A leaking shower is no fun at all – in fact, it can be pretty costly. If your showerhead is leaking, it might be time for a new one. Or at the very least, time for a bit of plumber’s tape.

New or Old Shower Fixtures

Take a look at your showerhead – is it worth keeping? If it’s a special showerhead that perfectly matches your bathroom fixing, there is no need to replace it. But if you have a standard showerhead that is less than superior, you might use this leaking opportunity as a chance to replace it. You might be surprised at how affordable a nice massaging or rain effect shower head can be. Almost all showerheads install the same way, anyway.

The Hardware Store

In the hardware store you’ll be buying at least one, possibly two things:

• Plumber’s tape (white, very light tape sold in the plumbing and pipe areas)
• A new showerhead (optional, but very fun)

You might also need a wrench if you don’t have one at home.

Removing Your Old Shower head

Removing the leaking showerhead by twisting it off the same way you would a bottle cap. Twist it gently to the left and it should come right off. It was screwed on tightly, you might use your wrench for a bit of leverage, but be very careful to NOT twist the pipes – just the showerhead itself.

Once the head is off, you should see a bare, threaded pipe coming out of the wall. This is perfect for your next step.

Apply Plumber’s Tape

Your small white roll of tape is now used to cover the threads of the exposed pipe. If there is yellowed, old tape present, remove it first before apply a new wrapping. The tape is very thin and almost weightless, so be careful to wrap a few rounds of tape keeping it flat and covering all the threads.

Affix New Showerhead

Now that your pipe has been treated with plumber’s tape, it is ready for the new showerhead. If you’re keeping your old head, simply screw it back on. You’ll be placing it on top of the white plumber’s tape. Screw it on as smoothly as you can – the tape will be sealing any gaps between the threads.

If you’re using a new showerhead, you’ll need to remove it from the packaging before screwing it on. Again be smooth. Tighten your showerhead by hand and don’t use the wrench this time as you might damage the plumbing if you tighten the head too much. Tighten the showerhead and then turn on the water – does it leak? If so, remove the head by twisting it off and put on another few rounds of plumbing tape. Twist the showerhead back on a try again. The leak should be gone and you’ll now be able to enjoy a new, invigorating shower!

Easy Step By Step

• Remove the old shower fixture by twisting the showerhead to the left and removing it from the pipe.
• Wrap plumber’s tape around the exposed end to seal the threads.
• Screw a new showerhead on over the treated pipe.

Warnings, Advice, and Suggestions

If you are renting and choose to replace the showerhead, keep the original showerhead for when you move out. Simply unscrew your shower head, screw back on the boring original version and you can take your deluxe model with you and not be in trouble with your landlord.

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