Review on 🔧 Moen 96988 Cartridge Repair Kit: Enhancing Performance and Longevity by Joe Nieves

All required valve parts were included but the disposable plastic key used to remove the cartridge from the housing was for a different cartridge. I had the correct wrench which I've kept since this valve was last rebuilt (I get about a year of drip-free use on each repair) so it didn't really matter. Even if you didn't keep the old key, the temperature controller's setscrew can be screwed into the end of the cartridge shaft. Then the screw can be carefully clamped with pliers and the cartridge can be removed from the housing. Directly gripping the cartridge shaft can create burrs that can damage the outer o-ring during assembly. The instructions are basically sequentially numbered drawings/drawings with a few words of explanation. The text was at least trilingual (English, French and Spanish?) and maybe more. The instructions are easier to follow than any plastic model I ever built as a kid. So if you're generally mechanically inclined and/or stubborn you shouldn't have any trouble rebuilding the valve. Tip: First remove the farthest o-ring on the cartridge core, then the farthest and roll them over the next o-rings still in their grooves. This way you don't have to pull the o-rings out of each groove on your way to the end of the valve cartridge. Then replace the closest o-ring first, then the closest, and finally the farthest, again using the o-rings already installed to help you "skip" the intermediate grooves. Save money, fix it yourself!