Zoey's 3 valve shower leaking

[wadd]

My girl friend has a 3 valve shower thats leaking after you turn the water off, she has replaced the the 3 valves and it's still dripping.
I'm not there to check it but I'm not a pro either so should we replace the spout internals?
If the hot and cold valve are doing there job shouldn't they stop any water from getting in, I know there's water in the line going to the head and spout but once that dripped out it would stop right?
If it's continually dripping wouldn't it be the hot or cold valve or am I missing something?
Thanks
Joe, Mary, Zoey

 

[Jadnashua]

When you replace the stem of a valve, it is often a good idea to replace the seat where the seal mates. If that part is worn, then the seal can't stop the water flow. You need a special valve seat wrench to remove and replace the seat - it's essentially a square shaft with a tapered end or ends. Depending on the valve, sometimes the taper is wrong and you can't get it to engage the seat unless you cut off some of the excess length of the tool. If the seats were bad, they may have cut up the seal on the end of your new stems, and that may need to be replaced again.

The safer thing to do is bite the bullet and update the valve to one meeting today's safety anti-scald requirements. Depending on access, this can sometimes be done from behind the wall, or if not, from the front. They make remodeling/restoration plates specifically to cover the larger hole required to hide the holes from the original valves.

 

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[Terry]

If the seats and the seals are good, then yes, it should stop the water.

If you have taken a shower, then it will take 35 minutes for all the piping to drain down, even if the seals are good.