Could I be imagining that the handle in my Moen kitchen faucet is
getting harder to push down? It doesn't appear to leak or drip so it
doesn't seem to be a problem for now but if I'm right, what does it
mean ?

jim wrote in message ...
Could I be imagining that the handle in my Moen kitchen faucet is
getting harder to push down? It doesn't appear to leak or drip so it
doesn't seem to be a problem for now but if I'm right, what does it
mean ?

If the handle is harder to push down, it's almost definitely the cartridge.
They will send you a rebuilding kit or a new cartridge for free. It will
contain all the o rings and rubber and silicone grease you need to rebuild
it if they send you the kit, and it's an easy job. If you view rebuilding as
an impossibly difficult task (it's fairly trivial) you might be able to talk
them into replacing the cartridge instead. If you take the cartridge out and
find one of the O rings slants to the side by design, you have an older
cartridge and the rebuild kit will not work -- they will need to send a new
cartridge unless they now offer a kit for that cartridge too.

The handle is not a "moving part" but one that is attached to the cartridge
and the cartridge stem is what's moving relative to other parts. The handle
is just screwed into it, and is stationary in a relative sense.

Once you remove the handle, there is a ring to pry off, and they will
include a small plastic tool to help you get the cartridge out. Just make
sure that when you put the new (or rebuilt) cartridge in, you don't put have
the stem backwards or the hot and cold will be reversed. But if that
happens, take the handle off, turn the stem facing the other way, and it's
fixed.

And don't forget to turn the water lines off before you do this.