Prepare the Shower Faucet for Repair

• Close the home's water valves, which are located near the water heater, to stop water flow into the shower. This prevents water from pouring out of the faucet when the various parts are removed. To access the seats, all the main parts of the faucet must be removed, including the handle and stem, and the valve inside of the faucet pipe under the handle.
  
  

Removing Handles

• Remove the handles on the shower faucet by removing the plastic cap on top of the handle and unscrewing the screw under this cap using a screwdriver or Allen wrench. If the handle sticks, attach a handle puller to the sides of the handle, turn the handle puller's center rod until the handle slides back off the faucet, then remove the handle by hand.
  
  

Removing the Stems

• Place a bath socket wrench over the stem, which is the part under the faucet's handle, and turn this wrench counterclockwise to unscrew and remove the stem. Pull the stem out only after it is entirely unscrewed from the faucet pipe. The stem is screwed tight into the faucet pipe so hefty force often is required. If the stem sticks, apply a liberal amount of lubricant to help loosen the sediment that often clogs the threads of the stem.
  
  

Removing the Seats

• Place the end of a seat wrench into the faucet pipe where the stem used to be. Center it into the seat and press it firmly forward until it stops. Turn this wrench counterclockwise until the seat comes out of the pipe, then remove the seat by pulling the wrench out of the faucet. This part also requires a decent amount of pressure to remove. Depending on the age of your shower and the amount of sediment, additional lubrication may be required to remove this part. Do not apply too much force as it may damage your plumbing. Allow the lubricant up to 12 hours to soak in and do its job before you attempt to remove the seat if it will not budge.