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I have two showers in my house, one seems to be noticeably cooler no matter what I try. Both are Symmons Temptrol model A. The house is mostly PEX except where copper is required.

I cannot take a shower in one because the hot water never gets hot enough. The sink to the same bathroom has nearly scalding water.

I have replaced the spindle assembly and the hot and cold seats hoping that this would help, with no joy.

I have backed out the hot-water limit stop screw to the point where the handle now spins nearly 500 degrees (way way past a full turn.)

The other shower is just bearable but I like a really hot shower. I have resorted to turning up the water heater which has helped, but I feel like I am missing something.

I am not sure if there is an obstruction in the pipes but with the single handle design of the shower I cannot tell the pressure of the hot water in the shower. The sink next to it has what appears to be a normal pressure.

  • Is this typical of this style of shower control?

  • Does the hot water never fully flow?

  • If I do have an obstruction in the pipe what would my next step be?

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    Check the valve to see if it lets you increase the maximum temp
    – Steven
    Apr 13, 2014 at 1:07
  • My bad: "I have backed out the limit stop screw to the point where the handle now spins nearly 500 degrees (way way past a full turn)" should have read that I backed out the hot water limit stop screw. This was my first thought as well.
    – Michael B.
    Apr 13, 2014 at 2:06
  • @user20978 You can edit your post using the 'edit' link under the tags. Please do so.
    – Dan D.
    Apr 13, 2014 at 2:29

1 Answer 1

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The troubleshooting section in the installation guide would indicate 2 things. First, you've likely backed the limit screw out too far - assuming the water pressure on the hot and cold sides are similar between the two showers, they should be set in the same range. Second (and more directly related to your issue), you should pull the spindle assembly and make sure it is clear of debris and calcium deposits.

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  • "you've likely backed the limit screw out too far" - maybe I'm missing that part in the table. Which row indicates that this might be an issue? The only reason that I say this is that I started out with the screw at factory setting and started backing out a quarter turn at a time. "you should pull the spindle assembly and make sure it is clear of debris and calcium deposits" - It is a completely new assembly as indicated in my post. Could it be defective? I could hear and feel the balancer sliding inside the assembly before I installed it. This was noted as an indication of correct operation
    – Michael B.
    Apr 13, 2014 at 14:58
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    @MichaelB. That one wasn't in the troubleshooting section - I'm inferring it from the explosion diagram on page 5. If you look at the diverter spindle, rotating beyond a full turn would appear let cold water back into the mix. As far as debris goes, draining pipes and then having the water pressure blast out the remaining air in the pipe can loosen all kinds of junk in the pipes. On other possibility is that something got into it when it was being installed. It doesn't take much more than a couple grains of sand to partially block these.
    – Comintern
    Apr 13, 2014 at 16:14

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