How to upgrade shower head?

[MollyT]

 

 Hello,

Please could you have a look at the photo of my shower head? It's the static type but we would like to put in one where we can move the head. I've seen videos on YouTube of people doing this themselves but I was wondering if this would be possible for me to do? Especially considering the shower head is fixed quite high up. Would be open to other variations of moveable shower heads, just want to know what is possible here to do by myself. Plumber said they would need to rip the whole thing out of the wall - aka a big and expensive job!

Many thanks!

[MitchellMc]

Hi @MollyT,

From what you’ve shown, there are two very different types of “movable” shower upgrades, and that’s where a lot of the confusion usually comes from.

If by movable you mean a handset on a hose that you can lift off and use, then yes, that is absolutely something you can do yourself and it does not require ripping anything out of the wall. Units like the Estilo you’ve pictured are designed to screw straight onto the existing outlet coming out of the wall. Your current fixed head simply unscrews, and the new combination rain head and handset assembly screws on in its place. This is considered a simple fixture change, not in-wall plumbing work.

Before starting, turn the mixer off and ideally shut off the mains water at the front of the house just to avoid any surprises. Wrap some thread tape on the outlet threads, screw the new unit on, and tighten it carefully so it sits straight. No wall damage and no plumber required if you’re comfortable using basic tools.

If, however, you mean that you want the actual overhead rain shower to move up and down or be repositioned lower on the wall, that’s a different story. Changing the height or location of the shower outlet does involve internal plumbing and waterproofing, which is why your plumber mentioned a larger and more expensive job.

One thing to keep in mind is height. The Estilo unit sits a little higher than a standard fixed shower head because of the diverter and handset. In your case, that may make the rain head even higher than it already is. If that’s a concern, you might want to look at a lower profile rail shower or a standard handset-only setup that connects directly to the existing outlet without raising the height further.

In short, adding a handheld shower on a hose is very doable as a DIY upgrade using your existing connection. Moving the actual plumbing point in the wall is where the cost and disruption come in. Here's a helpful guide: How to change a shower head.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Mitchell

[MollyT]

Hello Mitchell,

Many thanks for your reply! I did mean the movable handset on a hose that I can lift off so that's good to know it's possible. I was just having a look over the options and realised I will need to have one with a railing drilled into the tiling so I can move the shower head lower as we would not be able to reach it to move it at the current height.

I have added an image of this below - is it easy enough to drill into the tiling and install?

Many thanks again!

[JacobZ]

Hi @MollyT,

It is not too hard to drill into tile; you can check out How To Drill Into Tiles for some guidance on the process. You would then just need to follow the instructions for your specific shower rail to ensure you install the fixings in the correct locations.

The main risk in this situation is that there are pressurised water supply lines behind the tile, and there isn't really a great way to know where they are. If you were to accidentally hit them, you could be in for a costly repair. 

For this reason, it would be best that you have a plumber assist with the installation, as if a pipe does get hit, it will be their responsibility to rectify any damage.

Let me know if you have any further questions.

Jacob