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How to replace shower head?

I have just removed my shower head and are left with a male connection that isn’t a standard sizing. It’s stuck in with silicone.

assuming there’s the proper female attachment behind the wall? And I need to remove the silicone to get to it? Any ideas?

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Noyade

Good morning Casey @kasey83

Any chance of posting a photo of the connection?

Jason

Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community @kasey83. It's great to have you join us.

As per @Noyade's helpful reply, it would be fantastic if you could please share a photo so members can see what you are working with and suggest next steps. We'd love to help.

Please let me know if you need a hand uploading your photo or getting the most from the Bunnings Workshop site. You'll find we have loads of clever and creative members sharing helpful advice and inspiring projects on the site every day.

Jason

kasey83

lol I thought I did.. hopefully you can now see it?

EricL

Hello @kasey83

There are quite a few types of shower arms and assemblies so it's vital that we see what is left on your wall. Fittings on the wall will often have silicon at the base of it to prevent water and moisture from entering the wall, it's also sometimes used as a means of keeping the parts of the shower head in place. Wall fittings are often sized at 15mm or 1/2inch standard if your house was constructed in the 80s. Older houses might use slightly bigger fittings or are imperial in size.

If you've left the arm of the shower head in place it is even more important that we see it. Shower arms sometimes come with non-standard fittings and will only work if the same head is installed in the arm. I've placed an image below to give you an idea of what we are looking for. As soon as you post your shower head pictures we should be able to make a recommendation on how to proceed.

We look forward to seeing the pictures of your shower assembly.

Eric

kasey83

Thanks Eric, its definitely not a standard sizing... I have tried multiple threads with no luck... I do not have a pic of the whole arm with me at work but so you get an idea its a gooseneck pipe like this pic 3.jpg

kasey83

the arm is split which is why I took it off to replace it

EricL

Hello @kasey83

Thank you so much for posting those pictures of your wall fitting. It looks like it is a part of your old shower assembly and the person that installed it has covered the area with silicone. The majority of shower fittings are always female and in order for you to attach a new fitting you'll need to use a Brasshards 15mm Chrome Plated Brass Hex Nipple in coordination with FIX-A-TAP 12mm x 8m Thread Seal Tape.

However, it is possible for you to remove this square fitting off your wall, but that fitting might be tightly fitted. There is the danger that you might damage the internal plumbing or twist the fitting off. Hence I recommend just linking to the piece that's already on your wall so that there will less risk of damaging the fitting that's already there.

If you're after a recommendation I suggest looking at the Estilo WELS 3 Star 9L/min 3 Function Hand Shower, this shower head has the basic three function spray such as standard, deluge and pulse. You can also take it off the wall to wash the shower walls when cleaning. But you can pretty much use any shower fitting on that piece as it is a standard fitting.

If you have any other questions that we can help with, please let us know.

Eric

kasey83

Thanks Eric, unfortunately the thread is not a standard sizing… I tried multiple different fittings with no luck

EricL

Hi @kasey83

Thank you for the added information about your shower fitting. I recommend taking the next step and that is to remove the silver fitting that's been left behind. Unfortunately, the fitting is custom fit to the old shower arm. I recommend using a large shifter so that it will be easy for you to twist the silver piece off. The silicone should tear right off when the centre piece starts to move.

I suggest trimming the silicone with a craft knife so that the brass nipple mounting piece will be easily accessible. However, if you are worried about damaging the plumbing behind the wall, I suggest engaging the services of a professional handyperson to remove the silver piece and install your new shower head for you.

If you need further assistance, please let us know.

Eric

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