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How to remove metal shower screen fixture without damaging tiles?

Hi,

I'm hoping someone can please help me or give some advice.Trying to remove this metal fixture on wall which has 4 sides and was used to support the shower screen that I've now taken out. There are no tiles behind it as bathroom was tiled around this fixture.Fixture is hollow and looks like up top inside is a hex screw holding it to wall which will not budge ! (Not sure if fixture has been glued to wall) .Would like to remove this without damaging tiles around it as not re doing tiles at this stage.

Thankyou Nikki

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EricL

Hello @nikki792

Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community. It's sensational to have you join us, and thanks for sharing your question about removing a metal post in your bathroom.

I suspect that the hex screw holding the post is not the only thing keeping it there. If the post was screwed to the wall there would be access holes indicating where the screws were driven into. But if you only see one screw, odds are this was placed in just to hold it in place while the adhesive cures. It's very likely that this post was glued into place. If there were no tiles you would have been able to slide a hack saw blade behind it and simply saw off the adhesive from the back of the post.

But because the tiles are in the way that method is not viable. I can only suggest using brute force to remove the post, you can either use a sledgehammer or a demolition bar on the back of it to lift it off the wall. I'm afraid some of the tiles will get damaged and part of the plasterboard wall as well. It is difficult to say how much the post will drag with it when it comes off the wall. I can only suggest preparing yourself that part of your bathroom wall will need to be repaired.

Let me call on our experienced members @Dave-1 and @Nailbag for their recommendations.

If you need further assistance, please let us know.

Eric

nikki792

Hi Eric ,

Thankyou for the advice, and I'm glad I've joined after always referring to the Bunnings community for ideas on how to do things it was time I joined.

Yes I was thinking of a hacksaw or sledgehammer.

Because I'm not redoing whole bathroom I didn't want to damage tiles.The only other thing I can do is just leave it there for now as a ugly eyesore.Will be having a new shower screen put in soon which won't be attached to it so it will be inside the shower.Any ideas on what I can recover it with? Could I perhaps tile over it? Bathroom Reno just not viable for me atm after already putting new kitchen in .

Thanks nikki

Nailbag

Hi @nikki792

I suspect this is a cover plate to the actual metal bracket securing to the wall. It's a little hard to tell by the photos, but I think I can see small screw heads? If you remove them, or if they are rivets, drill them out. Hopefully this allows for the cover to be removed. Once removed you can establish the next step to remove the bracket from the wall.

Nailbag

Dave-1

Morning @nikki792

I am thinking it is a cover plate as well, possibly that has a screw in it (that hex screw) and then also silastic of some kind. With that join half way down the wall in the cover I am imagining how it may have been installed.

The bottom part would have been done first, so glue and probarly the same hex screw was put in.

Then because the join lines up so nicley maybe the top section was put in so slotted down into that. Then secured with teh hex screw and more silastic.

If you look closely to the rear of the metal strip can you see glue or grout at all?

How have you been trying to remove the hex screw? Spanner of shifter? Sometimes a wide flat blad screw driver with the blade sitting square on the top of the screw and then hit the screwdriver with a hammer with a single hard fast blow, will break the screws "frozen" in place state.

If you can see silastic down the side of the metal post, I would get as thin a blade of knife I can (not the snap off ends type) and scour down the length, id probarly try the top one first to see if it works. do both sides and then maybe use a stilsen wrench to "lever" the channel back and fourth to weaken the glue that is left. You could also make up a timber wrench with two blocks at the end of the timber piece with a gap between the blacks that fits over the metal channel. That would be less likely to mark the white channel.

Dave

nikki792

Hi guys, update on it all :

Used whatever I could to loosen the post by scraping along sides to get the silicon or whatever was to unstuck.I could then lift top part up to get to bolt and used hacksaw for part of it then went & bought a reciprocating saw that cut through rest.Bottom part would not budge tried every tool to get off wall just to get to bolts & finally managed to get a angle grinder behind it to the blots.Both steel poles had a bracket on inside holding them together with rivets which I drilled out firstly.Its taken 2 whole days to get it done.Have fixed up broken tiles & bought some feature type tiles to cover the wall.There was no glue on the wall or backs of post.So ATM this is what it looks like now.

Thanks for everyone's help.Nikki

Dave-1

Evening @nikki792

That sounds like it was a job and a half. It really looks like a nice job that you have finished off. Did you waterproof the area before puttingthe new tiles up?

I know I would have broken a few of the surrounding tiles so kudos at the very least to keeping it together. And one last question of course 🙂 What knowledge would you pass onto the next person who has a similar issue?

Dave

EricL

Hi @nikki792

That is an amazing job, thank you so much for sharing that update. I'm glad you managed to get the post off without major damage to your wall. The new tiles look great, and they blend in nicely with your current tile set.

If you need further assistance, please let us know.

Eric

Nailbag

Hi @nikki792

Fantastic effort and persistence for a terrific result well done!

Nailbag

nikki792

Late update :

After gutting out bathroom and replacing with new shower screen,mirror cabinet,basin,shower taps,towel rails & new feature tiles I managed to redo this bathroom on a cheap budget of $3k

I also tiled the feature tiles around the top row of existing tiles to give it colour and to match in with what I had done to cover up that removal of ugly steel pole.Also repainted door frame and walls etc & im pretty happy with end result for a budget bathroom makeover.

JacobZ

Nice work @nikki792!

That looks like a fantastic result for a relatively low budget.

The tiles look like a great solution to cover up the hole that the pole left, and adding the bordering tiles has helped to tie it in with everything else.

Congratulations on a job well done.

Jacob

Dave-1

Afternoon @nikki792

That has come up a lot nicer then that steel post and hole! 🙂 Love seeing a project come together (And yes that quote is from the A team I think 🙂 )

Is there anything you would change about how you did the job? Process or recomended knowledge?

Envious of a decent job 🙂

Dave

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