Knowing how to fix various problems in your bathhouse at home does indeed grant you a tremendous amount of peace to enjoy. After all, you do not want your wife constantly complaining about how bad the whole house is and how she is most importantly not getting the relaxing showers she needs after her long day’s work, or even worse get that hunk plumber across the house to come fix the minor issues you do not know how to. Now knowing how to remove a flow restrictor from Moen shower head would be an easy way of preventing any of the above situations.
Indeed, there are times that you did be having a nice cold bath and notice the flow of water from your Moen shower head has little or no pressure. We all have the amount of pressure we did like water to flow on us while taking that cozy bath, so when you start noticing a slight change you tend to feel like you are not enjoying your showers any longer. When this happens, chances are the flow restrictor is clogged. Most often manufactures, including Moen place flow restrictors in the neck of shower heads to prevent waste of water and conserve. These flow restrictors, although handy can sometimes give you a nightmare in the bathroom and clogging is one of them and when problems such as clogging are not looked in to or properly handled, can lead to you buying a whole new set of shower heads.
When removing clogged materials from inside the shower head of a Moen, a great amount of care is to be exercised as a wrong move could accidentally damage the threads inside the shower head. Hence to prevent any unforeseen circumstances when trying to remove a flow restrictor from a Moen shower head here are steps to follow:
How to Remove flow restrictor from Moen Shower Head
Tools needed
- Adjustable Wrench
- Cloth
- Screwdriver
Step 1
Carefully place a cloth on top of the shower head connection while securely tightening the jaws with an adjustable wrench. With one hand, secure the shower pipe near the shower wall and in a counterclockwise direction turn the shower head connector using the adjustable wrench. Reattach the shower head with shower hose and tighten the connection by hand. Once it is secure, then use a pipe wrench to finish tightening. This should be done after you turn on the water and check for leaks.
Step 2
You will see a rubber O ring gasket in the shower head, gently remove it with your fingers. Note that removing the O ring gasket with anything other than your fingers could easily damage it due to its delicate nature, so restrain from the use of pliers or screwdriver. With the shower head placed facing the palm of your hand, shake the screen loose till it is out of the shower head and carefully place both the screen and the O ring aside.
Step 3
With the help of a screwdriver, insert into the corner tip of the flow restrictor. Now to locate the flow restrictor, it is the flat plastic piece in the shower head neck with several small perforations that looks like an aerator on a faucet. Now, apply gentle pressure with a rotary motion. Make sure that you do not rotate it too hard as it can damage the flow restrictor. If the shower head does not have a flow restrictor, then simply remove it.
Step 4
Using the screwdriver, gently pry the flow restrictor out of the shower head neck. A heavy precaution is advised here to move with care around the inner threads of the shower head as the least thing can cause the threads to be damaged. Once the flow restrictor is removed, place it into a container filled with vinegar. Let it soak for about 20 minutes.
Step 5
You now place back the screen into the shower head and insert the O ring firmly against the screen making sure all is tight and secured. For it to be more tighten and secured, wrap plumber tape around the shower arm threads. Thread the Moen shower head back to the shower arm so that you are not able to turn it by the hand.
You Can Check It Out to Wash Hair Without a Shower or Sink
Step 6
With the help of the cloth, again laid over the connection, hold the shower arm and gently turn the connections another three-quarter turn with the adjustable wrench. With this last step done, you have been successfully been able to remove a flow restrictor from a Moen shower head and pieced everything back together. If you are having a problem with the pressure of your shower, this is a great and easy fix. If you can get over the pain of disassembling your shower head, it is a simple process to remove the flow restrictor from a Moen shower head.
Although the laid-out steps can easily aid you to perfectly remove a flow restrictor from a Moen showerhead, it is to know that during your attempts there might be some few challenges here and there especially for an individual who is not quietly good working with tools. However, with the listed tools mentioned above, handling of the whole procedure should be easy. Make sure to also close all water faucets and shower heads are completely drained off water before commencing on the procedure.
Clogged materials can also be found in the shower head once the flow restrictor is removed. With the aid of your hand, gently remove any foreign material that may be preventing the direct flow of water through the shower head. There are times too that after removing the flow restrictor your whole showerhead might malfunction, this would be mostly due to the damage to the pipeline that water passes through from the faucet to the showerhead. Replacing it with a new one would be the best thing to do in this case. Therefore, knowing how to clean a Moen showerhead is quite necessary too.
In fact, taking a shower from a dirty or contaminated showerhead could be hazardous. As you daily use your showerhead for bathing, it is exposed to dust, dirt, and germs that in a long run hid in the showerhead and later released along with water back to your skin. So as a measure to prevent harmful bacteria from entering and living in your showerhead, always clean it from time to time with some old fashion vinegar. One good factor of using a Moen showerhead is being able to clean the showerhead and reusing whether is attachable or detachable showerhead.
Flow restrictors are kept in showerheads as a way of preventing the use of too much water during baths and are kept there by manufactures as a way to help you regulate the flow or amount of pressure coming out of the showerhead, so tampering with it might lead to an increase in your water usage and higher water bill in the long run. If the showerhead you’re using does not have one, and you want to save on your water bill, then you should definitely get one installed.
