This blog post will show you how to change a shower head to a handheld shower head in less than 5 minutes.
There are many different reasons why you should switch over to a handheld shower head. Whether you need direct hot water on an achy part of your body, rinsing your kids, rinsing a soapy dog, or cleaning the shower quicker.
The main reason that I wanted a handheld shower head was for cleaning. We have a large walk-in shower, and it’s beautiful. But very hard to maintain if you don’t have a handheld shower head.
Soaping up the shower wall and floor is the easy part of cleaning. But rinsing takes forever if you can’t detach your shower head.
Materials Needed to Change a Shower Head
- Adjustable Wrench
- Pipe Wrench
- Plumber Tape / Teflon Tape
- Handheld Shower Head
- Step Stool – We borrowed our kids potty stool
How to Remove a Shower Head
First you need to remove the shower head using the adjustable wrench and turn the nut counterclockwise. Suppose you want to protect the finish of the old shower head nut. Then you can use a small piece of fabric/tape to keep the nut scratch-free.
After loosening the nut, you can use your hands to twist the shower head off entirely counterclockwise. Be careful not to drop the shower head.
Clean the Shower Arm
After removing the shower head, remove any plumber tape left on the threads of the shower arm(pipe) and wipe the shower pipe clean from debris.
Adding Plumber Tape to the Shower Arm
Then you need to add plumber tape, or it also goes by Thread Seal Tape, Teflon tape, or PTFE.
The plumber tape helps by giving you a water-tight seal, so your shower head doesn’t leak.
You apply the plumber tape directly on the threads of the shower arm pipe. Make sure to wrap the tape around two to three times around the shower arm clockwise onto the threads.
You don’t need to wrap the plumber tape further than the threads on the shower arm pipe. You wouldn’t want the plumber tape to be shown on the outside of the nut that you’ll screw on.
Attaching a Handheld Shower Head
Next, take your handheld shower head and loosen the shower head adjuster nut before screwing it onto the shower arm pipe.
After doing so, use your wrench to tighten the shower head to the pipe. You’re welcome to use a fabric or tape to protect the finish of the nut.
Instead of the previous wrench, I had to use a pipe wrench because this unit did not allow enough space for my adjustable wrench.
After you have tightened on the shower head, you’ll want to adjust the shower head to the direction you want it to spray.
Then tighten the shower head adjuster nut by hand.
You just finished changing the shower head to a handheld shower head.
Now go and enjoy your shower!
Thank you so much for stopping by, and have a good day!
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