Differentiating between right vs. left and cold vs. hot stems can be tricky! Luckily, the following information, presented on behalf of Barry Walter, will make anyone ready to tackle the job with the knowledge needed to choose the right stems for your application.
The defining factor of which stem or cartridge to use comes down to the installation type. In the past, stems were described by the direction of its thread. This has now changed depending on the handle type or if the faucet is on a deck or on a wall. There are only a few ways that the valve handles can turn.
Round and cross handles are used for two-handle faucets and valves that turn in the same direction. Valves and handles will turn off clockwise no matter if the stems or cartridges are on a deck, slant-back, or wall.
The only time stems will turn off in opposing directions is if lever handles are involved in the installation. The orientation of turning on and off in this situation depends if the fixture is on a deck, a wall, or a slant back.
When lever handles are used on a deck, they should be rotated inwards to turn the water on and pushed away from the user to turn the water off. This means that the hot, or left side, will turn off clockwise and the cold, or right side, will turn off counterclockwise.
The caveat to this is if the faucet or valve is installed on a slant back or a wall. When that happens the lever handles should operate inversely. Gravity may cause heavier levers to turn the water on unintentionally. In this case, the hot, or left side, will turn off counterclockwise while the cold, or right side, will turn off clockwise.
To determine if a thread is right hand or left hand it is best to look at its direction. If the thread is going up and to the right, it’s a right-hand stem. If the thread and going up and to the left, it’s a left-hand stem.
There are some stem units that work in the opposite way. The right-hand thread turns off counterclockwise and left-hand threads that turn off clockwise. These are non-rising cartridges. In this case, the stem does not move up or down. The stem is held in place by a clip while a plunger that is operated by the stem will move up and down to turn the water off.
Now that you know what your faucet needs, visit our website or reach out to your local sales rep to finish the job!
