Any bathroom and modern kitchen cannot exist without a water supply system, one of the main devices of which is a faucet. It provides the desired temperature and pressure of the flowing water, which provides the necessary convenience and comfort when using water in the house. If these functions are violated, it is necessary to replace the axle box crane, this is the name of a special device installed in the mixer body and ensuring its uninterrupted operation.
Device types
- With rubber inserts.
In older design mixers, a bushing valve with rubber gaskets is used to shut off the flow of water, which are raised or lowered using a screw rod, thereby ensuring the flow of the required amount of water from the tap. The advantage of this device is its low cost and ease of repair, and the disadvantage is the rapid wear of rubber gaskets.
- Ceramic.
Instead of high-wear rubber, these products use ceramics made from powdered metals sintered at high temperatures. This technology makes it possible to obtain a ceramic material that is many times more durable than the rubber used previously. The main advantage of such a bushing crane is its strength and durability. It must be taken into account that ceramic parts do not tolerate contact with sand particles that may be present in water, and therefore require additional water treatment. The disadvantage is the rather high cost.
Regardless of who and when installed or repaired faucets in the bathroom or kitchen, a far from pleasant day comes, and you notice that water starts dripping from the faucet, it does not block water well, an extraneous sound is heard when opening and closing, the stem scrolls or completely fails.
Causes of the malfunction
The bushing crane has a stem with a worm gear, during the rotation of which, the rubber gasket attached to its end closes the valve that allows water to pass through, which regulates its amount. During operation, the rubber deforms, loses its properties and begins to pass water even when closed. Often such a defect causes an unpleasant hum in the supply pipes. During prolonged operation, the worm gear of the rod may fail, which does not allow the device to be completely shut off.
Crane bushings made of ceramics consist of two parts that have the same holes that overlap when one of them rotates, and unlike valves with a rubber gasket, ceramic ones close when the flywheel is turned only half a turn. Such products serve for a long time, they fail less often than devices with a rubber gasket, but they require additional water purification from solid particles that adversely affect its performance.
You can repair the axle box crane with your own hands, having a simple set of tools that almost everyone has. You need a screwdriver, a wrench of the required size or an adjustable wrench, you may need a drill and pliers if the mixer has been in operation for a long time and the seat is rusted and dirty, which will prevent dismantling.
Bush crane repair
- With rubber seal
Before proceeding with the repair, it is necessary to completely shut off the water supply to the mixer. We have already determined the cause and object of the malfunction and can proceed to disassemble it. We remove the decorative caps from the flywheel, unscrew the screw securing the flywheel to the stem and unscrew the axle box. When dismantling, there may be a problem with unscrewing the screw or the axle box itself due to the fact that they are heavily oxidized or rusted.The head of the screw must be drilled out with a drill, and the threaded connection of the tap and mixer should be lubricated with a rust remover, and after waiting 15 minutes, the axle box can be easily unscrewed. After dismantling, we inspect the mixer and decide what to do next. If the rubber gasket is out of order, then simply replace it with a new one. If the stem with a worm gear is faulty, then the bushing crane must be replaced.
- Ceramic
In the same way, the ceramic box is dismantled. If it turns out that the problem arose due to poor adhesion of the plates to each other when solid particles enter the space between them, then it is necessary to completely disassemble the valve.
Often it is enough to simply clean the ceramic plates from dirt and rust, lubricate them with a high viscosity waterproof grease and reassemble the bushing valve. We should not forget that the plates are lapped together with a certain side and cannot be turned over, as this will only worsen its operation. If the ceramic parts are damaged, then it is necessary to try to get the same ones, which is usually very difficult. It's easier to just buy what you need. mixer.
Installation of axle box crane
If you need to buy a new crane, you need to consider where the product was manufactured. Imported valves have a stem with slots for installing a flywheel, and ours have a square to which the flywheel is attached. There are two types of mounting thread - 1/5 and 3/8 inches. This must be taken into account when buying a new crane. The easiest way is to bring the removed crane to the store, and the consultants will select the necessary one. The axle box crane is replaced after the seat has been cleaned of dirt and rust. In the case of installing a repaired faucet, it is also cleaned with a coarse metal brush. After such processing of the seat and the axle box itself, a thin layer of waterproof lubricant is applied to the threaded connection, which will make it possible to easily replace the product in the future, if necessary. To improve the insulation, several turns of fum sealing tape can be wound on the thread.
The axle box crane is screwed into place by hand, and then tightened with a wrench to the desired state, being careful not to damage the sealing gasket on the valve seat.
Now you can open the blocked taps and check the work done.
