You may be aware that we're deep into a full bathroom renovation in our daughters' bathroom downstairs. While we're waiting for the concrete patch to cure so we can move on, I wanted to share a quick Bathroom Reno 101 tip that you can implement in under 10 minutes that only requires 1 tool and will drastically change your shower experience.
Our "master" bathroom shower is very sad. But since it will be awhile until we tackle that project, we decided to at least update the showerhead...because it has looked like this. For 3 years!
What's worse, it has started squirting water up to our lowered shower ceiling, where it travels just far enough to lose all warmth and then drip ice cold water back on our heads. Enough was enough. Last week, we spent $22 on a new showerhead.
The good news is, you don't have to wait until your showerhead is dripping (learn from our mistake!), or you own a home, or have a big budget to renovate an entire bathroom to swap out your showerhead. All you need is the showerhead of your choice (we've heard such great things about this cheap Delta one) and Tongue and Groove Pliers. (Our Kobalt one is currently on sale for 80 cents. 80 cents!)
HOW TO CHANGE YOUR SHOWERHEAD
1. Use the pliers to loosen your old showerhead. Lefty loose-y ;)
2. Once you loosen it, you will be able to easily unscrew the head by hand from the shower arm in place.
3. Do the same steps with your new, glorious showerhead, except in reverse. So, screw on the new showerhead to the arm.
4. Tighten it with your pliers. Righty-tighty ;)
5. Turn on the shower to make sure there aren't any leaks. Trouble-shooting: If there are, try tightening the head more (1/4 turn at a time to prevent over-tightening and cracking it) or try using plumbers' tape on the threads which will help seal the space between connections.
6. You did it! Enjoy that glorious shower. If you're renting, keep the old showerhead in a safe spot so that you can swap it back before moving.
For us, this was a strictly functional upgrade. As in, we're very aware our shower needs a whole lot more than a new showerhead to be instagram ready, but I couldn't pass up this opportunity to share this quick update anyone can do. Let us know if you try it!
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This is awesome and inexpensive way to update a shower head, thank so much for sharing.
Your shower heads look great! Usually i cleaned shower heads 1 times a week to avoid a buildup of calcium, and cleaning with vinegar or CLR (Calcium Lime Rust)
This was the first thing we did with our apartment shower. And we just left it behind since the prior one was SO undeniably awful. You're welcome, subsequent tenants!!
This is a great, quick, inexpensive update while waiting for a bathroom remodel! This makes me want to switch out my shower head today. :)
You don't have to use some of plastic gum or something to prevent leaks?
Not with most shower heads, though I hesitate to say "all." They usually come with a rubber washer inside the connection that prevents leaks.
I think you're referring to plumber's tape. Many new showerhead kits come with a little spool of this tape that you wrap around the end of the shower arm before screwing on the new showerhead, but you can buy your own roll at a hardware store for cheap. We replace showerheads every time we move and I always wrap a little plumber's tape on to prevent leaks and get a tight seal. Be sure to clean off any old plumber's tape when removing an old showerhead - it can get shredded and stringy looking.
Are there any washers to deal with?
Nope!
We did this last year. It was about a month after moving in to our first house. The showerhead in our main bathroom had horrible water pressure. We had a large amount of sedament in our lines and it hsd clogged the fixture. Swapped it and it has been 100 times better.
Wrap a rag around the new shower head before using channellock pliers so you don't scratch your new shower head - alternatively you could use a crescent wrench which shouldn't leave any scratches. Good tip to keep the old shower head!