How to Convert Fixed Shower Head to Handheld

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Fixed or commonly known wall-mounted shower heads can be very reliable, easy to use and enjoyable because you can just walk right in and have a nice relaxing shower with your both hands free.

But, if you want to teach your child how to shower on his own, or you have a demanding dog whom you have to shower from close range, considering a handheld showerhead can be a very smart idea.

Let’s see how exactly can you change your fixed shower head for a handheld on your own.

Convert Fixed Shower Head to Handheld

Preparation and Getting Started

As every plumbing task require certain preparation, for successful converting you will need to make sure that the handheld showerhead you want to buy is compatible with the holder bracket you have installed in your wall.

When you have found the compatible mounting set, you will need these tools for the job:

  • Adjustable wrench
  • Adjustable pliers
  • Plumber’s tape

It is also recommended to first clean the bracket and mounted parts in the wall from limescale.

Converting a Fixed Shower Head to Handheld

Step 1 – Taking off the old showerhead 

When converting your old shower head to the new one, it’s important that you protect the chrome.

For this purpose, take a little piece of tape and wrap it up around the teeth of the pliers to protect the metal. This way, you still have the needed pressure while the edges of pliers are smooth.

Use the pliers to remove the old showerhead by turning it counterclockwise until it comes off.

You can also use a piece of cloth and wrap it around an adjustable wrench, so you can use this combination not to damage the chrome.

Converting a Fixed Shower Head to Handheld

Step 2 – Cleaning the shower threads, removing limescale 

It would be a good idea to thoroughly clean the non-changing components of dust and rust, as well as to use vinegar to remove the limescale from shower arms, preventing it from spreading to your newly set hose and shower head, and limiting its performance.

Letting it spread through your mount components could cause the water to squirt in all directions from your shower head.

Step 3 – Setting up the bracket

In the next phase, we take our compatible handheld shower mounting bracket and connect it to the shower arm.

Now, you will notice how the bracket has a short side with the outlet that’s aside with a shower holder.

Place the mount correctly, so that the side with an outlet is facing down, and the holder side up. Screw on the mount and use an adjustable wrench to tighten it up. You will not need any tape for this, considering that the bracket has its built-in rubber washer.

Finally, make sure you hand tighten it as much as you can.

Step 4 – Connecting the hose

When we come to this part, you will notice how your hose has two different endings.

The shorter ending will be attached to its appropriate side of the bracket.

As we mentioned before, the shorter ending will be attached to the downward-facing shorter side of the bracket, as the longer ending will be attached to the showerhead itself.

Again, your hose should have a built-in washer on both endings so you just use your hands and tighten the hose endings to the bracket.

It is good to stretch the hose up a little bit right after you finished installing it.

Step 5 – Installing the showerhead

In this final part, connect the showerhead to the remaining ending of the hose, and tighten it up well. After this is complete, your shower head should fit in the holder on the upward side of the bracket.

If the showerhead does not stand stable in the holder, it is possible that the bracket itself is not tight enough, so it is best to check in the finishing phase.

Step 6 – Thoroughly check after installation

As for the finishing touch, check if you had tightened up everything enough so you won’t have leaks in your system, and hang your new shower head in its new bracket.

Conclusion: Is converting fixed showerhead to handheld a DIY kind of task?

To answer this question let’s see what exactly is most important to pay attention to:

1) Finding the proper mount This is very important because if you make a mistake you will not be able to attach the mount to the components in the wall.

2) Making sure that everything is tightened enough – Leaks can show up even day after replacing the showerhead so pay attention to any leaks since even a small one can cause a disorder in your system, and you would maybe even have to change it again.

3) Preventing the limescale spreading from old parts to the new showerhead 

If you pay enough attention to these rules, you will see how this task you can complete on your own, considering that you will not need more than 20 minutes for this.

But, beware when buying the bracket and hose, not all of them have built-in washers so some of them cannot be tightened only by hand!