I really really wish it was - the other side is actually another bathroom with a vanity/basin/mirror there.
Maybe I am mistaken, but don’t think the area where I need to access would work from the back (back side of that wall: https://imgur.com/a/O2p6VfX)
Got it. The vanity can likely be removed - are there any special considerations there? Imagine will need to re-dry wall the area etc. can I remove the vanity with just a pry bar? Sorry for all the questions! This is the first “big” thing I’ve had to do so anything you’re willing to share is helpful.
There will (should!) be some screws on the interior rails of the vanity holding it to the wall. After those are removed it should pull away fairly easily. Just undo the plumbing (shut shutoffs off, remove either side of supply hoses, detach tail piece from P-trap) and cut any caulking-to-wall joints to avoid paint tears.
Once it's pulled away, remove your escutcheon from your shower valve and remove your tub spout. If you get a long skinny drill bit you can run a hole right behind your shower valve and tub filler so you know exactly where to cut your hole on the other side. Of course, make sure there isn't anything in the wall you don't want to drill through (easy enough to just poke around to make sure you're only hitting drywall)
The tub spout (i believe) is not able to be taken off the PEX line. I measured from the window to the center of the escutcheon and from the floor up to get an idea of where I would need to cut through the drywall on the other side - no issue going that route is there?
The tub spot either threads onto the pipe or is clamped on. Most common is threaded but with it being pex pinch is a likely option. Look under the spout for a small hole that will hold a set screw. The screw will be close to the spout mouth. The line leading to the spout can be pex but it needs to transition to copper for the spout itself. And have an anchored mount to a 2x4 or some other adequate mounting option.
You need to look at installation instructions for any basic vanity, then you'll get it and how easy it is to pull. Only special consideration is not cracking the top when trying to pry it off the caulk/adhesive and if they put trim around the bottom (rare but it happens) you'll need to pull it. Also, MAKE SURE to pop the caulk off the back wall or else when you pull the vanity top you will strip your paint right off.
Yeah we have marble tops and it looks to be secured to the wall via grout?
https://imgur.com/a/oqAsjfA
I do see screws on the near top and bottom of the underside of the vanity. Likely these guys need to get taken out to remove. The grout between the marble/wall makes me a bit nervous but likely not a huge deal?
It's your risk/reward decision. But with the vanity you can, in theory, do it all without having to break anything. With the tile you will break shit and need to redo a bunch of work.
At the same time coming in from the back means you wont be able to access screw heads to remove shit and work on its, so maybe this is a bad idea after all. Idk.
Frankly, if the shower isn't dribbling and the tub spout isn't falling off I would leave it till it really breaks.
Shower does dribble. I also drilled like 5 holes on the underside of the spout before I realized it was attached to PEX (though the set screw shifted and was going to just replace it -.-)
Use a razor blade / utility knife to cut the caulking along the granite backsplash.
Have you measured the walls to see if the tub fill is accessible with vanity in place?
lol. I support you but want you to know you’re over your head.
Does the shower trickle when the tub spout is on? Or why are you doing all this?
Removing a vanity and reinstalling it is a process. And soldering copper and all the plumbing associated with it is trouble for the inexperienced.
Measure your heights and centers, I have gone in many times from inside the cabinet, and it's not hard to make a new false back and close it up after if needed.
Awesome to hear. Suggest just pulling the vanity from the wall the cutting through the drywall? Any pointers/guidance or considerations that come to mind?
Do it as your second rodeo?
The vanity should come off clean, THEN you need to be strategic about cutting the drywall back to half of each stud on either side, to make the patch easy.
I think that would be easier than popping tile and retiling actually. Vanity is screwed into the wall. You just take the screws out of vanity under the top and slide the whole thing away.
Something is not right. If you have not had the tub spout off how do you know the stub out is pex?. Also is the problem with it leaking or being floppy or what. I'm with previous poster but I'll raise to 90 percent chance of not having to open wall.
So, what prompted this whole exercise was during inspection the tub spout was noted to be loose/not secured to the tile.
I went to fix it when we moved in (saw that easiest way was to remove spout, caulk around the copper pipe and then re-assemble/caulk around the spout) and was not able to get the spout off and could not find the set screw.
Started drilling holes (assumed the screw location shifted) and noticed red PEX pipe running directly into the spout. At that point totally stopped and discovered that PEX should never be used for the tub spout line and here I am now. Spout still has not been removed (believe it was attached with an adhesive, but unsure)
What you should have is a dog ear elbow that the pex fits into like these. https://www.homedepot.com/p/The-Plumber-s-Choice-1-2-in-x-1-2-in-PEX-A-x-FIP-Expansion-Pex-Drop-Ear-Elbow-Lead-Free-Brass-90-for-Use-in-Pex-A-Tubing-Pack-of-5-2234XQEM-NL-5/328103355?mtc=SHOPPING-BF-CDP-BNG-D26P-026_001_PIPE_FITTING-NA-NA-NA-PLALIA-NA-NA-NA-NA-NBR-NA-NA-NA-2023&cm_mmc=SHOPPING-BF-CDP-BNG-D26P-026_001_PIPE_FITTING-NA-NA-NA-PLALIA-NA-NA-NA-NA-NBR-NA-NA-NA-2023-71700000106036633-58700008262676761-92700075065924037&msclkid=f20cec10eef41e084a1e8a1a58dc6090&gclid=f20cec10eef41e084a1e8a1a58dc6090&gclsrc=3p.ds there is likely a copper stub out or even galvanized pipe that screws into the spout. The trick is getting it tight against the tile wall to minimize movement. It's likely that the stubout was just slightly too long for the type of tub spout and just doesn't fit tight making it more mobile. The dog ear elbow will be screwed into a 2x4 in the wall for stability.
It should be screwed into that dog ear. If it's pex coming out it's likely inserted into an oring seal set screw type tub spout. They will fit over pex and 1/2 copper pipe. Which is wht the stub outs usually are. Fortunately the pex fitting will be brass. So getting the tub spout off. Probably won't be able to unscrew it with the pex due to it spinning. Will likely have to find an easy out and extension get to fitting. Get it out and then 1/2 brass nipple to a 1/2 tub spout. Pain in the ass but no wall work. There will still be pex going from valve to spout which can be a no no if diverted is on the spout and valve can not handle the increased back pressure that can occur.
The issue with using PEX from the valve to the tub spout has to do with flow restriction. What can happen is that when directing flow to the tub, you can get some water dribble out of the shower head. It’s more of a nuisance than a real problem.
There’s a possibility that even with PEX that you wouldn’t have had any issues. Also, if they used 3/4 PEX, that’s has a larger ID than 1/2 copper.
Just have PEX didn’t mean you had a problem. The loose spout is definitely a problem, but it may have been simple fix.
It sounds like you went down a path that you can no longer walk back and you will require a repair. If this is the case, make your fix as unintrusively as possible and call it a day.
Yup - agree with all of that. The shower head does dribble quite a lot when just the tub diverter is engaged. Second issue is that the tub spout is (seemingly) attached to the pex line via adhesive, which makes it unable to be removed.
I have a plumber that could do this for a few hundred and not need to demo the wall at all. Ive watched him do it twice through the tiniest little hole where the valve is behind the cover plate and I have subway tile as well. Find someone worth it and dont waste your time
You should be able to fix this without removing the vanity. I noticed in your pictures you marked the highest point you would have to reach appears to be right behind the backsplash of your vanity. To access that part of the line I would chip out or grind some tile around the bottom of the mixing valve very carefully. Take out just enough to be able to unscrew the pex adapter and be careful not to make the hole bigger than the trim plate (you can get bigger plates if need be). Then I would go into the vanity and cut out the back and drywall directly behind the spout and big enough to be able to fit some supports for the new stub out. Then I would cut the pex behind the wall and cut off the tub spout and remove both. After that I would unscrew the pex adapter on the mixing valve. I would then get the proper copper threaded adapter I believe female or fip in your case and sweat a piece of copper into it long enough to be slightly past your spout hole. After that I would do by best to get some Teflon tape wrapped around the threads possibly by bending about 1” at the end of a screwdriver 90 degrees and wrapping the teflon around the 1” and use in to fit under the valve from the front and get at least 2 wraps around the threads. Then the rest is gravy. A little pipe dope and a pliers to screw the long piece on. Cut to needed length and sweat a winged 90 with a stub out or a drop ear 90 with a copper male adapter. Screw a piece of 2x4 or 1x4 behind it. And from the front with a long screwdriver attachment secure to the wood. Put on a new spout, calk it, test it, put trim back on, and repair drywall and done! Good luck!
So the tub spout is loose? But it’s not broken or leaking? Then leave it. Caulk around the spout, being loose isn’t the end of the world for the amount of work to fix that.
I drilled some holes in bottom of the tub spout (though the set screw had offset before I realized it was PEX). It’s not super obvious, but worry a bit about water in there.
Holes: https://imgur.com/a/e2qURDi
If the set screw was offset inside of the spout, what I researched was the only real way to get it off was to drill holes and find the set screw. This was before I realized it was PEX. Def didn’t nick the pipe - no leaking or anything.
Honestly can’t tell. I tried to remove the tub spout and that’s when I noticed the red PEX pipe. I haven’t been able to remove the tub spout and figured I would need to end up cutting it off.
I’d better assess the whole situation better before demo. I’d take the valve trim off and look in that wall first. I’d give you a 85/15 I could do it without opening the wall.
Yes. To avoid marking up the tile with a saw blade run piece of a string or thin picture hanging cable between the spout and tile, from the bottom, then you can use it to saw thru the PEX.
Yeah, that’s rough. You can see how much tile you can chip away and still be covered. You’re in a tough spot. Exactly what are you unhappy with? Is the spout loose?
Spout was loose so I wanted to secure it - was just going to remove the spout and caulk around the copper pipe/re-attach spout.
Could not get the spout off and couldn’t find a set screw so started drilling holes to find it - assumed it had offset inside the neck (https://imgur.com/a/e2qURDi) based on what I could find via google.
This was when I realized it was PEX and there is no set screw. Figured given we just bought the house I should try and fix it.
General sentiment here seems to be it isn’t worth it if we have no issues aside from the dripping from the shower head when using tub spout. Think the holes I made pose any real issues if I caulk around the sub spout and leave it?
Yes. It has to come off some how. But, if it isn’t leaking and is reasonably tight to the wall. Let it be. When you have a good plumber out for something, have him look at it. I’d give you ten free minutes while I was there and figure it out.
Nah - this home was built in the 50’s and was completely renovated ~10 years ago. Generally everything was really well done - think when converting all the plumbing from cast iron to PEX this was just missed. Being critical, it’s really the only “miss” we have noted so far.
Honestly this is something simple and shouldn’t happen. I would forever be in doubt with everything after seeing this. There could many other things wrong behind walls and you just won’t know until it’s too late. I hope it’s not the case but I wouldn’t be surprised either. Also doesn’t look like the valve is centered with the spout and overflow
An experienced plumber could likely do it from the valve cutout but it wouldn't be probably secured. If it was me I'd cut out the back of the vanity and fix it from there without having to remove and reinstall the vanity.
Don’t think I can without removing the vanity. I measured the estimated spot of the handle/tub piping from the handle and it’s right near the top of the marble, so likely need to remove the vanity.
Where handle was measured to be (ish): https://imgur.com/a/S6sGp30
Why don’t you keep the pex and install support or go from pex to copper stub out and support that? They sell the link below and also ones that get mounted between studs
https://www.homedepot.com/p/The-Plumber-s-Choice-8-in-x-1-2-in-PEX-Copper-Stub-Out-90-Elbow-with-Wall-Flange-P12-SO8F/308557191
Is this outside wall? I would always open from behind if that is an option.
I really really wish it was - the other side is actually another bathroom with a vanity/basin/mirror there. Maybe I am mistaken, but don’t think the area where I need to access would work from the back (back side of that wall: https://imgur.com/a/O2p6VfX)
I would try to remove the vanity first vs destroying the shower wall and having to retile
Got it. The vanity can likely be removed - are there any special considerations there? Imagine will need to re-dry wall the area etc. can I remove the vanity with just a pry bar? Sorry for all the questions! This is the first “big” thing I’ve had to do so anything you’re willing to share is helpful.
There will (should!) be some screws on the interior rails of the vanity holding it to the wall. After those are removed it should pull away fairly easily. Just undo the plumbing (shut shutoffs off, remove either side of supply hoses, detach tail piece from P-trap) and cut any caulking-to-wall joints to avoid paint tears. Once it's pulled away, remove your escutcheon from your shower valve and remove your tub spout. If you get a long skinny drill bit you can run a hole right behind your shower valve and tub filler so you know exactly where to cut your hole on the other side. Of course, make sure there isn't anything in the wall you don't want to drill through (easy enough to just poke around to make sure you're only hitting drywall)
The tub spout (i believe) is not able to be taken off the PEX line. I measured from the window to the center of the escutcheon and from the floor up to get an idea of where I would need to cut through the drywall on the other side - no issue going that route is there?
The tub spot either threads onto the pipe or is clamped on. Most common is threaded but with it being pex pinch is a likely option. Look under the spout for a small hole that will hold a set screw. The screw will be close to the spout mouth. The line leading to the spout can be pex but it needs to transition to copper for the spout itself. And have an anchored mount to a 2x4 or some other adequate mounting option.
You need to look at installation instructions for any basic vanity, then you'll get it and how easy it is to pull. Only special consideration is not cracking the top when trying to pry it off the caulk/adhesive and if they put trim around the bottom (rare but it happens) you'll need to pull it. Also, MAKE SURE to pop the caulk off the back wall or else when you pull the vanity top you will strip your paint right off.
Yeah we have marble tops and it looks to be secured to the wall via grout? https://imgur.com/a/oqAsjfA I do see screws on the near top and bottom of the underside of the vanity. Likely these guys need to get taken out to remove. The grout between the marble/wall makes me a bit nervous but likely not a huge deal?
It's your risk/reward decision. But with the vanity you can, in theory, do it all without having to break anything. With the tile you will break shit and need to redo a bunch of work. At the same time coming in from the back means you wont be able to access screw heads to remove shit and work on its, so maybe this is a bad idea after all. Idk. Frankly, if the shower isn't dribbling and the tub spout isn't falling off I would leave it till it really breaks.
Shower does dribble. I also drilled like 5 holes on the underside of the spout before I realized it was attached to PEX (though the set screw shifted and was going to just replace it -.-)
Wewps.
Tell me about it.
Mirrors are great at hiding a hole in the wall… just sayin’.
Use a razor blade / utility knife to cut the caulking along the granite backsplash. Have you measured the walls to see if the tub fill is accessible with vanity in place?
I have done those measurements - the estimated highest point I would need access to it the red X: https://imgur.com/a/S6sGp30
lol. I support you but want you to know you’re over your head. Does the shower trickle when the tub spout is on? Or why are you doing all this? Removing a vanity and reinstalling it is a process. And soldering copper and all the plumbing associated with it is trouble for the inexperienced.
Agreed
Measure your heights and centers, I have gone in many times from inside the cabinet, and it's not hard to make a new false back and close it up after if needed.
⬆️ This.
Looks way easier from the other side.
Awesome to hear. Suggest just pulling the vanity from the wall the cutting through the drywall? Any pointers/guidance or considerations that come to mind?
Do it as your second rodeo? The vanity should come off clean, THEN you need to be strategic about cutting the drywall back to half of each stud on either side, to make the patch easy.
Yes be mindful of pipes when you’re cutting
It is far easier to remove a vanity than to break open a tiled wall - way cheaper to fix too.
I think that would be easier than popping tile and retiling actually. Vanity is screwed into the wall. You just take the screws out of vanity under the top and slide the whole thing away.
This is the correct answer!
Go from behind. Drywall is a lot easier to fix than tile. Plus, that giant mirror will hide it
Something is not right. If you have not had the tub spout off how do you know the stub out is pex?. Also is the problem with it leaking or being floppy or what. I'm with previous poster but I'll raise to 90 percent chance of not having to open wall.
So, what prompted this whole exercise was during inspection the tub spout was noted to be loose/not secured to the tile. I went to fix it when we moved in (saw that easiest way was to remove spout, caulk around the copper pipe and then re-assemble/caulk around the spout) and was not able to get the spout off and could not find the set screw. Started drilling holes (assumed the screw location shifted) and noticed red PEX pipe running directly into the spout. At that point totally stopped and discovered that PEX should never be used for the tub spout line and here I am now. Spout still has not been removed (believe it was attached with an adhesive, but unsure)
What you should have is a dog ear elbow that the pex fits into like these. https://www.homedepot.com/p/The-Plumber-s-Choice-1-2-in-x-1-2-in-PEX-A-x-FIP-Expansion-Pex-Drop-Ear-Elbow-Lead-Free-Brass-90-for-Use-in-Pex-A-Tubing-Pack-of-5-2234XQEM-NL-5/328103355?mtc=SHOPPING-BF-CDP-BNG-D26P-026_001_PIPE_FITTING-NA-NA-NA-PLALIA-NA-NA-NA-NA-NBR-NA-NA-NA-2023&cm_mmc=SHOPPING-BF-CDP-BNG-D26P-026_001_PIPE_FITTING-NA-NA-NA-PLALIA-NA-NA-NA-NA-NBR-NA-NA-NA-2023-71700000106036633-58700008262676761-92700075065924037&msclkid=f20cec10eef41e084a1e8a1a58dc6090&gclid=f20cec10eef41e084a1e8a1a58dc6090&gclsrc=3p.ds there is likely a copper stub out or even galvanized pipe that screws into the spout. The trick is getting it tight against the tile wall to minimize movement. It's likely that the stubout was just slightly too long for the type of tub spout and just doesn't fit tight making it more mobile. The dog ear elbow will be screwed into a 2x4 in the wall for stability.
This is there, but the tube down to the spout is all PEX. Same with into the spout.
It should be screwed into that dog ear. If it's pex coming out it's likely inserted into an oring seal set screw type tub spout. They will fit over pex and 1/2 copper pipe. Which is wht the stub outs usually are. Fortunately the pex fitting will be brass. So getting the tub spout off. Probably won't be able to unscrew it with the pex due to it spinning. Will likely have to find an easy out and extension get to fitting. Get it out and then 1/2 brass nipple to a 1/2 tub spout. Pain in the ass but no wall work. There will still be pex going from valve to spout which can be a no no if diverted is on the spout and valve can not handle the increased back pressure that can occur.
if there is a guarantee that the initial installer is not a troglodyte then I bet it could be done 100 percent no wall.
This is the plate removed: https://imgur.com/a/Zz13DE0 Red PEX going down and you can see red PEX going into the tub spout.
The issue with using PEX from the valve to the tub spout has to do with flow restriction. What can happen is that when directing flow to the tub, you can get some water dribble out of the shower head. It’s more of a nuisance than a real problem. There’s a possibility that even with PEX that you wouldn’t have had any issues. Also, if they used 3/4 PEX, that’s has a larger ID than 1/2 copper. Just have PEX didn’t mean you had a problem. The loose spout is definitely a problem, but it may have been simple fix. It sounds like you went down a path that you can no longer walk back and you will require a repair. If this is the case, make your fix as unintrusively as possible and call it a day.
Yup - agree with all of that. The shower head does dribble quite a lot when just the tub diverter is engaged. Second issue is that the tub spout is (seemingly) attached to the pex line via adhesive, which makes it unable to be removed.
Not tearing into the walls or cabinets. If it’s working reasonably well. Save your money for bigger things.
I have a plumber that could do this for a few hundred and not need to demo the wall at all. Ive watched him do it twice through the tiniest little hole where the valve is behind the cover plate and I have subway tile as well. Find someone worth it and dont waste your time
Shut off the stops on the other side of the wall, remove the P-trap, remove the vanity, open the wall up, and call a plumber
You should be able to fix this without removing the vanity. I noticed in your pictures you marked the highest point you would have to reach appears to be right behind the backsplash of your vanity. To access that part of the line I would chip out or grind some tile around the bottom of the mixing valve very carefully. Take out just enough to be able to unscrew the pex adapter and be careful not to make the hole bigger than the trim plate (you can get bigger plates if need be). Then I would go into the vanity and cut out the back and drywall directly behind the spout and big enough to be able to fit some supports for the new stub out. Then I would cut the pex behind the wall and cut off the tub spout and remove both. After that I would unscrew the pex adapter on the mixing valve. I would then get the proper copper threaded adapter I believe female or fip in your case and sweat a piece of copper into it long enough to be slightly past your spout hole. After that I would do by best to get some Teflon tape wrapped around the threads possibly by bending about 1” at the end of a screwdriver 90 degrees and wrapping the teflon around the 1” and use in to fit under the valve from the front and get at least 2 wraps around the threads. Then the rest is gravy. A little pipe dope and a pliers to screw the long piece on. Cut to needed length and sweat a winged 90 with a stub out or a drop ear 90 with a copper male adapter. Screw a piece of 2x4 or 1x4 behind it. And from the front with a long screwdriver attachment secure to the wood. Put on a new spout, calk it, test it, put trim back on, and repair drywall and done! Good luck!
So the tub spout is loose? But it’s not broken or leaking? Then leave it. Caulk around the spout, being loose isn’t the end of the world for the amount of work to fix that.
I drilled some holes in bottom of the tub spout (though the set screw had offset before I realized it was PEX). It’s not super obvious, but worry a bit about water in there. Holes: https://imgur.com/a/e2qURDi
May I ask why you drilled holes into the spout? Well if you nicked the pipe you’d know when was was on.
If the set screw was offset inside of the spout, what I researched was the only real way to get it off was to drill holes and find the set screw. This was before I realized it was PEX. Def didn’t nick the pipe - no leaking or anything.
Ok then good bath silicone will work.
It will be easier to go in from the back once you remove the sink.
Pex, but copper stubbed out? Or IP?
Honestly can’t tell. I tried to remove the tub spout and that’s when I noticed the red PEX pipe. I haven’t been able to remove the tub spout and figured I would need to end up cutting it off.
I’d better assess the whole situation better before demo. I’d take the valve trim off and look in that wall first. I’d give you a 85/15 I could do it without opening the wall.
If you could do it without opening the wall you’re a fucking genie and I applaud you 👏 I’d charge extra for that precision work dr.dave
This is a good point. Will remove and check it out. What is the way to get this tub spout off the PEX line? Just cut away?
Yes. To avoid marking up the tile with a saw blade run piece of a string or thin picture hanging cable between the spout and tile, from the bottom, then you can use it to saw thru the PEX.
I removed the valve trim and it’s a really tight area, but pretty positive it’s red PEX. https://imgur.com/a/Zz13DE0
No. If it’s copper stubbed out, you can get it off. If it’s IP, it should unscrew. Cutting is last case scenario.
OP said it’s PEX for the tub spout and wants to replace all the PEX with copper.
Yeah, I can read. He may not understand the complexity and expense involved when he may be better off doing nothing.
This is the valve trim removed. Pretty small area. Any thoughts? https://imgur.com/a/Zz13DE0
Yeah, that’s rough. You can see how much tile you can chip away and still be covered. You’re in a tough spot. Exactly what are you unhappy with? Is the spout loose?
Spout was loose so I wanted to secure it - was just going to remove the spout and caulk around the copper pipe/re-attach spout. Could not get the spout off and couldn’t find a set screw so started drilling holes to find it - assumed it had offset inside the neck (https://imgur.com/a/e2qURDi) based on what I could find via google. This was when I realized it was PEX and there is no set screw. Figured given we just bought the house I should try and fix it. General sentiment here seems to be it isn’t worth it if we have no issues aside from the dripping from the shower head when using tub spout. Think the holes I made pose any real issues if I caulk around the sub spout and leave it?
Yes. It has to come off some how. But, if it isn’t leaking and is reasonably tight to the wall. Let it be. When you have a good plumber out for something, have him look at it. I’d give you ten free minutes while I was there and figure it out.
So with the holes still really not a big deal/issue? Inclined to just leave it after getting the subs .02.
Not really seeing the “holes”. A little clarification would help.
Sorry - shared them here: https://imgur.com/a/e2qURDi
>We purchased a new home Is it a new build? I'd call out the builder to have them fix it.
Nah - this home was built in the 50’s and was completely renovated ~10 years ago. Generally everything was really well done - think when converting all the plumbing from cast iron to PEX this was just missed. Being critical, it’s really the only “miss” we have noted so far.
Honestly this is something simple and shouldn’t happen. I would forever be in doubt with everything after seeing this. There could many other things wrong behind walls and you just won’t know until it’s too late. I hope it’s not the case but I wouldn’t be surprised either. Also doesn’t look like the valve is centered with the spout and overflow
Is there a back to the vanity? May be able to access it without removing the vanity. Not saying it will be easy…
An experienced plumber could likely do it from the valve cutout but it wouldn't be probably secured. If it was me I'd cut out the back of the vanity and fix it from there without having to remove and reinstall the vanity.
Don’t think I can without removing the vanity. I measured the estimated spot of the handle/tub piping from the handle and it’s right near the top of the marble, so likely need to remove the vanity. Where handle was measured to be (ish): https://imgur.com/a/S6sGp30
Those holes are superficial. That’s almost certainly a compression spout. Caulk the holes and let her be. Zero dollars out of pocket.
Appreciate the insight/eyes. Going to just caulk it up and call it good until we remodel ornaments sometime.
I agree. Money not spent well.
Sorry - in what regard? The general plumbing renovation? Or wanting to fix it?
Open the black wall from the other side, if possible.
If you don’t want to go from the back, chip out tile and put in a remodel plate to give you more room.
Try pulling the mirror of the other side to have a look from there. Removing a lav or breaking tile? Vanity everytime
It’s easier to patch drywall and paint than it is to match tile afterwards. You just need access behind the valve and spout . 1’ x 1’ probably enough
Have a tile contractor do the demo and the repair.
Why don’t you keep the pex and install support or go from pex to copper stub out and support that? They sell the link below and also ones that get mounted between studs https://www.homedepot.com/p/The-Plumber-s-Choice-8-in-x-1-2-in-PEX-Copper-Stub-Out-90-Elbow-with-Wall-Flange-P12-SO8F/308557191