Tips To Remove a Single Handle Faucet

One way to create a different look in your bathroom is to replace the faucets. Before you can replace the faucets, you'll have to remove your single-handle bath faucet
to determine what to replace it with. Once you remove the faucet, you can quickly determine what type of cartridge setup your new faucet will need to fit your plumbing system

1. Turn off the water shutoff valves for the shower plumbing. If you cannot find these, turn off the main water supply to your home. This shutoff valve is near your water meter.
  
2. Remove the handle from the shower faucet. If the handle has a cover plate on the top, pry it off with a flat-head screwdriver. Remove the screw in the middle of the handle with a Phillips-head screwdriver to pull the handle off the faucet. Other types of handles have a set screw on the side of the handle; remove this with an Allen wrench to pull the handle off the faucet.
  
3. Turn the screws that secure the cover plate to the wall counterclockwise with a Phillips-head screwdriver. Pull the cover plate away from the wall. Some shower faucets use a bonnet nut to secure a sleeve over the cartridge. Remove the bonnet nut with a pair of channel-lock pliers and pull the sleeve away from the cartridge.
  
4. Remove the retaining pin that secures the cartridge to the cartridge housing with a pair of needle-nose pliers and pull the cartridge out of the faucet plumbing body. The pin is an open-end clip that resembles a long, narrow staple.