I have a steady drip coming from my bathtub faucet ( single handle Valley back-to-back style cartridge ). I can't loosen the bonnet. I've tried a few applications of Liquid Wrench but no success. I'm afraid to bear down too much for fear of causing other damage. ( BTW, just to be sure, with these plumbing fixtures is counterclockwise untighten ? ) Any suggestions on how to resolve this problem would be greatly appreciated.
I'm not sure exactly how your faucet comes apart, but assuming it's similar to my Delta tub/shower faucet, this is a trick I learned from this forum a few years ago that helped me tremendously. The bonnet on mine was brass and quite thin. I used channel locks to try and get it off and it wouldn't budge. The harder I tried, the tighter I gripped and it wouldn't move.
Someone suggested that I was actually compressing the bonnet to much into the threads below, and a lighter touch might work better. They also suggested that I should grip only near the front edge which wasn't where the threads were and use a fairly light touch......presto ! In seconds it moved and in a few more seconds I had it off.
Sounded counterintuitive at first, but if you think about, it makes sense. The more you squeeze the bonnet into the threads below...the tighter it makes the connection. A lighter touch works better.
