I have a Kohler single lever temperature balancing shower valve which
prevents scalding since it supposedly senses and compensates for water
demand changes elsewhere in the house. The problem is that the valve is
extremely sluggish in responding to the user's manual adjustment, and
therefore, trying to get the water temperature to the right mix of hot and
cold is very time consuming.

If I make a first guess at where to set it and wait for 30 or 45 seconds,
the temperature will stabilize, but is often too cold or too warm. If I then
adjust the valve to a hotter or colder setting, it eventually reaches a new
setting, again taking maybe 30 or 45 seconds to do so.

Most of the time I can hit the right setting on the 2nd guess. Sometimes a
third and final adjustment is required, again taking another 30-45 seconds.

Throughout the entire adjustment period, I am typically standing in very
cold or very hot water, waiting for an adjustment to stabilize.

I assume this is ***NOT*** the way the valve is supposed to behave. I've
taken the value apart hoping to find springs or other thermal compensators
which could be adjusted or replaced. There appears to be no user adjustable
parts, with the exception of a high temp limit stop which restricts the
valve rotation beyond a comfortable upper temperature range.

Whatever mechanism Kohler uses to sense and react to manual valve changes
seems to be outrageously slow. I can't believe this is the way the valve is
supposed to work. It is also an expensive (over $100) part for just the
valve itself (with no trim kit) so I expected it to be a deluxe item.

I welcome any thoughts of how this should be serviced? Many thanks in
advance.

Smarty

"Smarty" wrote in message
...
I have a Kohler single lever temperature balancing shower valve which
prevents scalding since it supposedly senses and compensates for water
demand changes elsewhere in the house. The problem is that the valve is
extremely sluggish in responding to the user's manual adjustment, and
therefore, trying to get the water temperature to the right mix of hot and
cold is very time consuming.

If I make a first guess at where to set it and wait for 30 or 45 seconds,
the temperature will stabilize, but is often too cold or too warm. If I
then
adjust the valve to a hotter or colder setting, it eventually reaches a
new
setting, again taking maybe 30 or 45 seconds to do so.

Most of the time I can hit the right setting on the 2nd guess. Sometimes a
third and final adjustment is required, again taking another 30-45
seconds.

Throughout the entire adjustment period, I am typically standing in very
cold or very hot water, waiting for an adjustment to stabilize.

I assume this is ***NOT*** the way the valve is supposed to behave. I've
taken the value apart hoping to find springs or other thermal compensators
which could be adjusted or replaced. There appears to be no user
adjustable
parts, with the exception of a high temp limit stop which restricts the
valve rotation beyond a comfortable upper temperature range.

Whatever mechanism Kohler uses to sense and react to manual valve changes
seems to be outrageously slow. I can't believe this is the way the valve
is
supposed to work. It is also an expensive (over $100) part for just the
valve itself (with no trim kit) so I expected it to be a deluxe item.

I welcome any thoughts of how this should be serviced? Many thanks in
advance.

I suspect that you are just dealing with a problem of low volume
shower heads. Because it is low volume, it takes awhile to get new
water from the valve to the head. If you take off the showerhead,
does the water get there fast?

In general it would take at most 10-15 secs for the water to leave the
valve, travel through the pipes to the showerhead. Most likely the
pressure balancing unite that is tucked inside the valve is starting to
fail. If you set the water temp and flush the toilet and the temp in
the shower increases noticeably, this would be the part to replace. If
you have the common single handle shower valve, the part number is
500520 $42.50, unless you purchased the valve after 1997, the it is free
under your warranty. Time to replace 10 minutes.
-g

Smarty wrote:
I have a Kohler single lever temperature balancing shower valve which
prevents scalding since it supposedly senses and compensates for water
demand changes elsewhere in the house. The problem is that the valve is
extremely sluggish in responding to the user's manual adjustment, and
therefore, trying to get the water temperature to the right mix of hot and
cold is very time consuming.

If I make a first guess at where to set it and wait for 30 or 45 seconds,
the temperature will stabilize, but is often too cold or too warm. If I then
adjust the valve to a hotter or colder setting, it eventually reaches a new
setting, again taking maybe 30 or 45 seconds to do so.

Most of the time I can hit the right setting on the 2nd guess. Sometimes a
third and final adjustment is required, again taking another 30-45 seconds.

Throughout the entire adjustment period, I am typically standing in very
cold or very hot water, waiting for an adjustment to stabilize.

I assume this is ***NOT*** the way the valve is supposed to behave. I've
taken the value apart hoping to find springs or other thermal compensators
which could be adjusted or replaced. There appears to be no user adjustable
parts, with the exception of a high temp limit stop which restricts the
valve rotation beyond a comfortable upper temperature range.

Whatever mechanism Kohler uses to sense and react to manual valve changes
seems to be outrageously slow. I can't believe this is the way the valve is
supposed to work. It is also an expensive (over $100) part for just the
valve itself (with no trim kit) so I expected it to be a deluxe item.

I welcome any thoughts of how this should be serviced? Many thanks in
advance.

Smarty

Thanks very much. The specific valve I have is the Kohler K-304 shown at:

http://tinyurl.com/yhnvog

The valve body alone cost me about $100 about 5 years ago and Kohler now
lists the replacement part at $92.50. Are you saying that the valve is still
under a free replacement warranty?

Many thanks again,
Smarty


"garmo" wrote in message
...
In general it would take at most 10-15 secs for the water to leave the
valve, travel through the pipes to the showerhead. Most likely the
pressure balancing unite that is tucked inside the valve is starting to
fail. If you set the water temp and flush the toilet and the temp in the
shower increases noticeably, this would be the part to replace. If you
have the common single handle shower valve, the part number is 500520
$42.50, unless you purchased the valve after 1997, the it is free under
your warranty. Time to replace 10 minutes.
-g

Smarty wrote:
I have a Kohler single lever temperature balancing shower valve which
prevents scalding since it supposedly senses and compensates for water
demand changes elsewhere in the house. The problem is that the valve is
extremely sluggish in responding to the user's manual adjustment, and
therefore, trying to get the water temperature to the right mix of hot
and cold is very time consuming.

If I make a first guess at where to set it and wait for 30 or 45 seconds,
the temperature will stabilize, but is often too cold or too warm. If I
then adjust the valve to a hotter or colder setting, it eventually
reaches a new setting, again taking maybe 30 or 45 seconds to do so.

Most of the time I can hit the right setting on the 2nd guess. Sometimes
a third and final adjustment is required, again taking another 30-45
seconds.

Throughout the entire adjustment period, I am typically standing in very
cold or very hot water, waiting for an adjustment to stabilize.

I assume this is ***NOT*** the way the valve is supposed to behave. I've
taken the value apart hoping to find springs or other thermal
compensators which could be adjusted or replaced. There appears to be no
user adjustable parts, with the exception of a high temp limit stop which
restricts the valve rotation beyond a comfortable upper temperature
range.

Whatever mechanism Kohler uses to sense and react to manual valve changes
seems to be outrageously slow. I can't believe this is the way the valve
is supposed to work. It is also an expensive (over $100) part for just
the valve itself (with no trim kit) so I expected it to be a deluxe item.

I welcome any thoughts of how this should be serviced? Many thanks in
advance.

Smarty

Thanks Bob,

It is definitely a low flowrate showerhead, but there is also a diverter to
all the same valve to control the water flow to a spout, and this flowrate
is very fast. The valve is extremely sluggish when used either with the
showerhead or diverted to the spout.

Smarty


"Bob F" wrote in message
. ..

"Smarty" wrote in message
...
I have a Kohler single lever temperature balancing shower valve which
prevents scalding since it supposedly senses and compensates for water
demand changes elsewhere in the house. The problem is that the valve is
extremely sluggish in responding to the user's manual adjustment, and
therefore, trying to get the water temperature to the right mix of hot
and
cold is very time consuming.

If I make a first guess at where to set it and wait for 30 or 45 seconds,
the temperature will stabilize, but is often too cold or too warm. If I
then
adjust the valve to a hotter or colder setting, it eventually reaches a
new
setting, again taking maybe 30 or 45 seconds to do so.

Most of the time I can hit the right setting on the 2nd guess. Sometimes
a
third and final adjustment is required, again taking another 30-45
seconds.

Throughout the entire adjustment period, I am typically standing in very
cold or very hot water, waiting for an adjustment to stabilize.

I assume this is ***NOT*** the way the valve is supposed to behave. I've
taken the value apart hoping to find springs or other thermal
compensators
which could be adjusted or replaced. There appears to be no user
adjustable
parts, with the exception of a high temp limit stop which restricts the
valve rotation beyond a comfortable upper temperature range.

Whatever mechanism Kohler uses to sense and react to manual valve changes
seems to be outrageously slow. I can't believe this is the way the valve
is
supposed to work. It is also an expensive (over $100) part for just the
valve itself (with no trim kit) so I expected it to be a deluxe item.

I welcome any thoughts of how this should be serviced? Many thanks in
advance.

I suspect that you are just dealing with a problem of low volume
shower heads. Because it is low volume, it takes awhile to get new
water from the valve to the head. If you take off the showerhead,
does the water get there fast?

You got me then. Does the water take a long time to even
show up when you turn it on?

Bob

"Smarty" wrote in message
...
Thanks Bob,

It is definitely a low flowrate showerhead, but there is also a diverter
to
all the same valve to control the water flow to a spout, and this flowrate
is very fast. The valve is extremely sluggish when used either with the
showerhead or diverted to the spout.

Smarty


"Bob F" wrote in message
. ..

"Smarty" wrote in message
...
I have a Kohler single lever temperature balancing shower valve which
prevents scalding since it supposedly senses and compensates for water
demand changes elsewhere in the house. The problem is that the valve is
extremely sluggish in responding to the user's manual adjustment, and
therefore, trying to get the water temperature to the right mix of hot
and
cold is very time consuming.

If I make a first guess at where to set it and wait for 30 or 45
seconds,
the temperature will stabilize, but is often too cold or too warm. If I
then
adjust the valve to a hotter or colder setting, it eventually reaches a
new
setting, again taking maybe 30 or 45 seconds to do so.

Most of the time I can hit the right setting on the 2nd guess.
Sometimes
a
third and final adjustment is required, again taking another 30-45
seconds.

Throughout the entire adjustment period, I am typically standing in
very
cold or very hot water, waiting for an adjustment to stabilize.

I assume this is ***NOT*** the way the valve is supposed to behave.
I've
taken the value apart hoping to find springs or other thermal
compensators
which could be adjusted or replaced. There appears to be no user
adjustable
parts, with the exception of a high temp limit stop which restricts the
valve rotation beyond a comfortable upper temperature range.

Whatever mechanism Kohler uses to sense and react to manual valve
changes
seems to be outrageously slow. I can't believe this is the way the
valve
is
supposed to work. It is also an expensive (over $100) part for just the
valve itself (with no trim kit) so I expected it to be a deluxe item.

I welcome any thoughts of how this should be serviced? Many thanks in
advance.

I suspect that you are just dealing with a problem of low volume
shower heads. Because it is low volume, it takes awhile to get new
water from the valve to the head. If you take off the showerhead,
does the water get there fast?

Most manufacturers seem to offer a "lifetime" warrantee
these days.

Bob

"Smarty" wrote in message
...
Thanks very much. The specific valve I have is the Kohler K-304 shown at:

http://tinyurl.com/yhnvog

The valve body alone cost me about $100 about 5 years ago and Kohler now
lists the replacement part at $92.50. Are you saying that the valve is
still
under a free replacement warranty?

Many thanks again,
Smarty


"garmo" wrote in message
...
In general it would take at most 10-15 secs for the water to leave the
valve, travel through the pipes to the showerhead. Most likely the
pressure balancing unite that is tucked inside the valve is starting to
fail. If you set the water temp and flush the toilet and the temp in
the
shower increases noticeably, this would be the part to replace. If you
have the common single handle shower valve, the part number is 500520
$42.50, unless you purchased the valve after 1997, the it is free under
your warranty. Time to replace 10 minutes.
-g

Smarty wrote:
I have a Kohler single lever temperature balancing shower valve which
prevents scalding since it supposedly senses and compensates for water
demand changes elsewhere in the house. The problem is that the valve is
extremely sluggish in responding to the user's manual adjustment, and
therefore, trying to get the water temperature to the right mix of hot
and cold is very time consuming.

If I make a first guess at where to set it and wait for 30 or 45
seconds,
the temperature will stabilize, but is often too cold or too warm. If I
then adjust the valve to a hotter or colder setting, it eventually
reaches a new setting, again taking maybe 30 or 45 seconds to do so.

Most of the time I can hit the right setting on the 2nd guess.
Sometimes
a third and final adjustment is required, again taking another 30-45
seconds.

Throughout the entire adjustment period, I am typically standing in
very
cold or very hot water, waiting for an adjustment to stabilize.

I assume this is ***NOT*** the way the valve is supposed to behave.
I've
taken the value apart hoping to find springs or other thermal
compensators which could be adjusted or replaced. There appears to be
no
user adjustable parts, with the exception of a high temp limit stop
which
restricts the valve rotation beyond a comfortable upper temperature
range.

Whatever mechanism Kohler uses to sense and react to manual valve
changes
seems to be outrageously slow. I can't believe this is the way the
valve
is supposed to work. It is also an expensive (over $100) part for just
the valve itself (with no trim kit) so I expected it to be a deluxe
item.

I welcome any thoughts of how this should be serviced? Many thanks in
advance.

Smarty

No Bob, the water seems to immediately flow from the shower head (or the
spout) as soon as the valve is turned on. The temperature regulator is the
really sluggish part. It's as if the valve has to overcome some friction,
spring pressure, or some other warm-up delay before it responds to make a
temperature change..


"Bob F" wrote in message
. ..
You got me then. Does the water take a long time to even
show up when you turn it on?

Bob

"Smarty" wrote in message
...
Thanks Bob,

It is definitely a low flowrate showerhead, but there is also a diverter
to
all the same valve to control the water flow to a spout, and this
flowrate
is very fast. The valve is extremely sluggish when used either with the
showerhead or diverted to the spout.

Smarty


"Bob F" wrote in message
. ..

"Smarty" wrote in message
...
I have a Kohler single lever temperature balancing shower valve which
prevents scalding since it supposedly senses and compensates for water
demand changes elsewhere in the house. The problem is that the valve
is
extremely sluggish in responding to the user's manual adjustment, and
therefore, trying to get the water temperature to the right mix of hot
and
cold is very time consuming.

If I make a first guess at where to set it and wait for 30 or 45
seconds,
the temperature will stabilize, but is often too cold or too warm. If
I
then
adjust the valve to a hotter or colder setting, it eventually reaches
a
new
setting, again taking maybe 30 or 45 seconds to do so.

Most of the time I can hit the right setting on the 2nd guess.
Sometimes
a
third and final adjustment is required, again taking another 30-45
seconds.

Throughout the entire adjustment period, I am typically standing in
very
cold or very hot water, waiting for an adjustment to stabilize.

I assume this is ***NOT*** the way the valve is supposed to behave.
I've
taken the value apart hoping to find springs or other thermal
compensators
which could be adjusted or replaced. There appears to be no user
adjustable
parts, with the exception of a high temp limit stop which restricts
the
valve rotation beyond a comfortable upper temperature range.

Whatever mechanism Kohler uses to sense and react to manual valve
changes
seems to be outrageously slow. I can't believe this is the way the
valve
is
supposed to work. It is also an expensive (over $100) part for just
the
valve itself (with no trim kit) so I expected it to be a deluxe item.

I welcome any thoughts of how this should be serviced? Many thanks in
advance.

I suspect that you are just dealing with a problem of low volume
shower heads. Because it is low volume, it takes awhile to get new
water from the valve to the head. If you take off the showerhead,
does the water get there fast?

"Smarty" wrote in message
...
Thanks Bob,

It is definitely a low flowrate showerhead, but there is also a diverter
to all the same valve to control the water flow to a spout, and this
flowrate is very fast. The valve is extremely sluggish when used either
with the showerhead or diverted to the spout.

Smarty

Disassemble the shower head. It should be obvious what it is that makes the
shower head a "low-volume" one.

Disable that part and evaluate the results.

If you can pin the problem on the low-volume shower head, your shivering
will be, according to some, in support of the environment. A small price,
indeed, to pay for saving the children.

Or, you could turn on the shower while you go through your pre-shower ritual
(shuck robe, step on scale, get fresh towel, etc.). It the water's not
right, adjust and repeat ritual.

I welcome any thoughts of how this should be serviced? Many thanks in
advance.

its a long shot, but make sure the hot and cold supply are not
reversed...
Mark

I guess my next step would be to disassemble the valve and
lubricate the moving parts. Or ask a plumber as a last resort.

Bob

"Smarty" wrote in message
...
No Bob, the water seems to immediately flow from the shower head (or the
spout) as soon as the valve is turned on. The temperature regulator is the
really sluggish part. It's as if the valve has to overcome some friction,
spring pressure, or some other warm-up delay before it responds to make a
temperature change..


"Bob F" wrote in message
. ..
You got me then. Does the water take a long time to even
show up when you turn it on?

Bob

"Smarty" wrote in message
...
Thanks Bob,

It is definitely a low flowrate showerhead, but there is also a
diverter
to
all the same valve to control the water flow to a spout, and this
flowrate
is very fast. The valve is extremely sluggish when used either with the
showerhead or diverted to the spout.

Smarty


"Bob F" wrote in message
. ..

"Smarty" wrote in message
...
I have a Kohler single lever temperature balancing shower valve
which
prevents scalding since it supposedly senses and compensates for
water
demand changes elsewhere in the house. The problem is that the valve
is
extremely sluggish in responding to the user's manual adjustment,
and
therefore, trying to get the water temperature to the right mix of
hot
and
cold is very time consuming.

If I make a first guess at where to set it and wait for 30 or 45
seconds,
the temperature will stabilize, but is often too cold or too warm.
If
I
then
adjust the valve to a hotter or colder setting, it eventually
reaches
a
new
setting, again taking maybe 30 or 45 seconds to do so.

Most of the time I can hit the right setting on the 2nd guess.
Sometimes
a
third and final adjustment is required, again taking another 30-45
seconds.

Throughout the entire adjustment period, I am typically standing in
very
cold or very hot water, waiting for an adjustment to stabilize.

I assume this is ***NOT*** the way the valve is supposed to behave.
I've
taken the value apart hoping to find springs or other thermal
compensators
which could be adjusted or replaced. There appears to be no user
adjustable
parts, with the exception of a high temp limit stop which restricts
the
valve rotation beyond a comfortable upper temperature range.

Whatever mechanism Kohler uses to sense and react to manual valve
changes
seems to be outrageously slow. I can't believe this is the way the
valve
is
supposed to work. It is also an expensive (over $100) part for just
the
valve itself (with no trim kit) so I expected it to be a deluxe
item.

I welcome any thoughts of how this should be serviced? Many thanks
in
advance.

I suspect that you are just dealing with a problem of low volume
shower heads. Because it is low volume, it takes awhile to get new
water from the valve to the head. If you take off the showerhead,
does the water get there fast?

I did disassemble the valve to the extent that I could, and found a
"cartridge" which I must assume gets replaced as an assembly. My next move
will be to see if I can get warranty replacement since it is not too old,
and has worked this way since installation.

Thanks Bob to you and other members of this newsgroup for your kind
assistance.

Smarty


"Bob F" wrote in message
. ..
I guess my next step would be to disassemble the valve and
lubricate the moving parts. Or ask a plumber as a last resort.

Bob

"Smarty" wrote in message
...
No Bob, the water seems to immediately flow from the shower head (or the
spout) as soon as the valve is turned on. The temperature regulator is
the
really sluggish part. It's as if the valve has to overcome some friction,
spring pressure, or some other warm-up delay before it responds to make a
temperature change..


"Bob F" wrote in message
. ..
You got me then. Does the water take a long time to even
show up when you turn it on?

Bob

"Smarty" wrote in message
...
Thanks Bob,

It is definitely a low flowrate showerhead, but there is also a
diverter
to
all the same valve to control the water flow to a spout, and this
flowrate
is very fast. The valve is extremely sluggish when used either with
the
showerhead or diverted to the spout.

Smarty


"Bob F" wrote in message
. ..

"Smarty" wrote in message
...
I have a Kohler single lever temperature balancing shower valve
which
prevents scalding since it supposedly senses and compensates for
water
demand changes elsewhere in the house. The problem is that the
valve
is
extremely sluggish in responding to the user's manual adjustment,
and
therefore, trying to get the water temperature to the right mix of
hot
and
cold is very time consuming.

If I make a first guess at where to set it and wait for 30 or 45
seconds,
the temperature will stabilize, but is often too cold or too warm.
If
I
then
adjust the valve to a hotter or colder setting, it eventually
reaches
a
new
setting, again taking maybe 30 or 45 seconds to do so.

Most of the time I can hit the right setting on the 2nd guess.
Sometimes
a
third and final adjustment is required, again taking another 30-45
seconds.

Throughout the entire adjustment period, I am typically standing in
very
cold or very hot water, waiting for an adjustment to stabilize.

I assume this is ***NOT*** the way the valve is supposed to behave.
I've
taken the value apart hoping to find springs or other thermal
compensators
which could be adjusted or replaced. There appears to be no user
adjustable
parts, with the exception of a high temp limit stop which restricts
the
valve rotation beyond a comfortable upper temperature range.

Whatever mechanism Kohler uses to sense and react to manual valve
changes
seems to be outrageously slow. I can't believe this is the way the
valve
is
supposed to work. It is also an expensive (over $100) part for just
the
valve itself (with no trim kit) so I expected it to be a deluxe
item.

I welcome any thoughts of how this should be serviced? Many thanks
in
advance.

I suspect that you are just dealing with a problem of low volume
shower heads. Because it is low volume, it takes awhile to get new
water from the valve to the head. If you take off the showerhead,
does the water get there fast?

In article ,
Bob F wrote:


I suspect that you are just dealing with a problem of low volume
shower heads. Because it is low volume, it takes awhile to get new
water from the valve to the head. If you take off the showerhead,
does the water get there fast?



My shower has separate hot and cold valves, maybe 5' off
the floor, with the shower-head at maybe 7' (or 6.5').

That two-foot distance is what, I guess, leads to the
delay between twisting a valve and the water hitting me.

I've seen the back-end of the shower (someone had to
open the wall in the adjacent room, happened to be
opposite the valves), and the two valves' output
mixed together right there at the height of the valves.

QUESTION: wouldn't it have been better had the valve
outlet-pipes gone on up to the shower-head *separately*,
and then mixed there instead?

Wouldn't that shrink the delay to about zero?

And, these days, how do they plumb showers?


David

"David Combs" wrote in message
...
In article ,
Bob F wrote:


I suspect that you are just dealing with a problem of low volume
shower heads. Because it is low volume, it takes awhile to get new
water from the valve to the head. If you take off the showerhead,
does the water get there fast?



My shower has separate hot and cold valves, maybe 5' off
the floor, with the shower-head at maybe 7' (or 6.5').

That two-foot distance is what, I guess, leads to the
delay between twisting a valve and the water hitting me.

I've seen the back-end of the shower (someone had to
open the wall in the adjacent room, happened to be
opposite the valves), and the two valves' output
mixed together right there at the height of the valves.

QUESTION: wouldn't it have been better had the valve
outlet-pipes gone on up to the shower-head *separately*,
and then mixed there instead?

Wouldn't that shrink the delay to about zero?

Excellent Idea, although probably not compatable with
today's pressure balancing valves. You could also use a
smaller diameter pipe to the head.

Bob

I posted a similar thread a few weeks ago, since my Kohler temperature
balancing valve (a mere $100 marvel of engineering) can (and often does)
take 30 to 45 seconds to respond to a manual change in the setting of the
temperature handle.

The valve also controls temperature of water discharged a short distance
below the valve through a tub spout, when the diverter is pushed to the tub
position rather than the shower position. In both cases (tub spout at high
volume flow a few inches below the valve and also shower discharge at low
volume 5 feet above the valve), the reaction time is terribly slow. A
replacement valve works the same way.

I would call this a crummy design, no more and no less. Shame on Kohler and
shame on me for spending so much and expecting this brand to be superior or
even equal to cheaper valves.

Smarty


"Bob F" wrote in message
. ..

"David Combs" wrote in message
...
In article ,
Bob F wrote:


I suspect that you are just dealing with a problem of low volume
shower heads. Because it is low volume, it takes awhile to get new
water from the valve to the head. If you take off the showerhead,
does the water get there fast?



My shower has separate hot and cold valves, maybe 5' off
the floor, with the shower-head at maybe 7' (or 6.5').

That two-foot distance is what, I guess, leads to the
delay between twisting a valve and the water hitting me.

I've seen the back-end of the shower (someone had to
open the wall in the adjacent room, happened to be
opposite the valves), and the two valves' output
mixed together right there at the height of the valves.

QUESTION: wouldn't it have been better had the valve
outlet-pipes gone on up to the shower-head *separately*,
and then mixed there instead?

Wouldn't that shrink the delay to about zero?

Excellent Idea, although probably not compatable with
today's pressure balancing valves. You could also use a
smaller diameter pipe to the head.

Bob