# No flow from Delta 1700 shower valve after cartridge replacement



## billyjoe (Apr 17, 2011)

After substantial sand from the well causing havoc and replacement of the hot water heater core in our furnace, the shower/tub valve got plugged and we got no flow.

We have now installed a whole house water filter for the future. Then we bought a replacement cartridge for the shower, took out the old one, cleaned the valve body, and installed the new cartridge - result is zero flow again! We have tried installing the "hot side" on the left and on the right and each time get the same zero flow! 

Also tried cleaning the old cartridge and reinstalling it with the same results. When the cartridge is removed and the water turned on, we get a healthy stream from the valve body. Does anyone out there know of something else to try??

I plan to probe both sides of the valve body for scale or blockage, but beyond that I am at a loss... how about vapor lock - any chance of air in the line during installation causing the spool in the cartridge to slam shut??

I have also double checked that the holes in the cartridge line up with the holes in the valve body when the handle points to open, so I don't think we are 90 degrees out of phase... PLEASE HELP!


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## myswapspace (Nov 11, 2011)

*Any answers to this question? I have the exact same problem.*

I have exactly the same situation, I replaced the cartridge with a _Delta_ RP46463 and it seems to "slam shut" when water is applied.

I cannot see how this could be happening on both the old and new cartridge alike. The new cartridge has seen zero sediment. 

I do see a reference to an older cartridge.. is _the __Delta_ RP32104 the answer?


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## oh'mike (Sep 18, 2009)

If this is a shower only --the head may be plugged up---if you have a tub spout you will want to call Delta technical help---they are always good to me--I hope you have the same experience.---Mike---


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## myswapspace (Nov 11, 2011)

*Solution...*

Thanks, I actually did reach Delta and they were very helpful but did not solve the problem. Nonetheless, I think I have found the solution. There are three holes in the brass valve body. One for hot water in, one for cold water in and one for mixed water out. I never thought the valve cartridge could pass clogging material through it that would clog the exit port, but in face, more aggressive cleaning of the exit port seems to have restored water flow. (I used compressed air with a rubber nipple to blow out crud in the exit.) I now thin this is the cause for the "slamming: sound when I would try to pass water through, the water would pass through the cartridge but with no exit available it would stop short and "slam" shut.

I actually wish I could clean that valve body more.. maybe I will look for a long slim brush/snake to pass through the exit port. Its still not flowing as much as I would like.

Thanks again.

Bryan


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## Alan (Apr 12, 2006)

myswapspace said:


> Thanks, I actually did reach Delta and they were very helpful but did not solve the problem. Nonetheless, I think I have found the solution. There are three holes in the brass valve body. One for hot water in, one for cold water in and one for mixed water out. I never thought the valve cartridge could pass clogging material through it that would clog the exit port, but in face, more aggressive cleaning of the exit port seems to have restored water flow. (I used compressed air with a rubber nipple to blow out crud in the exit.) I now thin this is the cause for the "slamming: sound when I would try to pass water through, the water would pass through the cartridge but with no exit available it would stop short and "slam" shut.
> 
> I actually wish I could clean that valve body more.. maybe I will look for a long slim brush/snake to pass through the exit port. Its still not flowing as much as I would like.
> 
> ...


Do you have a hose spigot before the shutoff for the house? Pull the cartridge back out, and use any available water outlet to blow water (and hopefully your crud) back from the showerhead outlet, and into the valve body.


The other thing to think about is that these are pressure balance valves. If you don't have equal pressure/flow on the hot and cold, you're only going to get whatever the smallest flow rate is. You mentioned a problem with the hot water heater earlier, is the flow out of the hot side of the other faucets in your house equivalent to the flow out of the cold?


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## Adamas (Aug 10, 2013)

I'm having the same prob as Alan. Was this issue ever resolved? Did flushing the system restore water flow?

Any help appreciated.


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## lowhook (Oct 8, 2014)

*I am having the exact same problem*

Same problem here with my shower tub 1700 series. I replaced the cartidge and flushed out the system 2times and the sink which is hooked to the same lines is flowing just fine but the shower has zero flo. I have tried everything i can think of! i even replaced some of the older plumbing pipe with pex and reflushed the lines and still no flo?


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## nighttowl (Nov 5, 2014)

*1700 series fix*

The housing has a flow restrictor that clogs up.

Remove the housing if possible.
Remove the top and bottom outlet pipes, then use a flat ended punch to tap the flow restrictor up through the bottom pipe, and tap it out the top. most likely a huge amount of rust will come out with it.

unfortunately for me, I figured this out after replacing a bunch of pipes under my house trying to figure out why there was no water pressure.:furious:


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## quizzz18 (Oct 10, 2015)

*crazy man*

I'd post the link but since i'm new they won't let me. Guy drilled out the third (top) opening to get more flow


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## quizzz18 (Oct 10, 2015)

*video about drilling out the third opening*

Still won't let me post it... Google this: delta 1300 flow restrictor ::: the video is pretty poor quality and was posted on the 24th of 2012.


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## quizzz18 (Oct 10, 2015)




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## brianduckfan (Apr 24, 2016)

*Re: Any answers to this question? I have the exact same problem.*



myswapspace said:


> I have exactly the same situation, I replaced the cartridge with a _Delta_ RP46463 and it seems to "slam shut" when water is applied.
> 
> I cannot see how this could be happening on both the old and new cartridge alike. The new cartridge has seen zero sediment.
> 
> I do see a reference to an older cartridge.. is _the __Delta_ RP32104 the answer?


I just went through this same problem. It started with slower and slower flow so I ordered, mistakenly, a new cartridge. On install I got ZERO flow even after a bunch of reattempts. Solution was to remove cartridge and tub downspout then attach vacuum to downspout until I could feel sucking through mixing hole. Must have been an obstruction. Weird.


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## Delta shower cartridge (Mar 5, 2021)

No flow from shower or tub has happened to me numerous times in my rental properties after replacing the shower with a brand new delta mix cartridge like an rp46074. The properties are old and the lines are galvanized and the water is hard. I'VE LEARNED TO FIX IT BY USING MY AIR COMPRESSOR AND BLOWING THROUGH THE EXIT PORTAL IN THE ROUGH IN SHOWER VALVE. IT'S THE THIRD HOLE. YOU COULD PROBABLY ALSO TRY SOMETHING ELSE TO CLEAN THE VALVE OUT. I'VE SAVED ALOT OF MONEY BECAUSE ALMOST EVERY PLUMBER I CALLED COULD NOT FIGURE IT OUT AND EITHER WANTED TO RIP OUT ALL MY WATER LINES OR RIP OUT THE TILE OR SHOWER AND PUT IN A NEW SHOWER VALVE.


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