Shower Head Thingy Replacement

[momtojac]

I have looked through all the posts in plumbing and couldn't find anything on replacing a shower head...so here goes....
It is a brand new home - the pipes are pvc?/plastic - my husband cannot twist off the current showerhead and is afraid he will break the connection to the pipes in the wall. My sister said to heat (with a blow torch??) the connection part where the shower head is screwed onto the metal pipe that comes out of the wall....I am not sure this is correct. How should I do this without breaking anything? Thanks!!

[LazyPup]

Absolutely do not use a torch to apply heat to a PVC plastic fitting or pipe. At a minimum the heat would distort the pipe and in a worse case if the PVC were to catch on fire burning PVC emits extremely toxic fumes.

The chrome plated pipe coming out of the wall may be either brass or PVC but ether way, they are basically the same. Simply a 1/2 diameter male thread on each end.

Inside the wall there should be a 90 deg elbow with little mounting ears on either side that are screwed to a wooden block. The end pointing out has 1/2inch female pipe threads to permit screwing the chrome plated shower arm in.

If you are only changing the shower head, there is no reason to remove the chrome shower arm from the wall.

You will need two pair of channel lock pliers and a rag. Wrap a few turns of the rag around the chrome pipe to protect the chrome finish, then hold the pipe steady with one pair of pliers while unsrewing the shower head with the other. When looking at the shower head from the discharge end, the fitting will have to turn counterclockwise.

Before attaching the new shower head wrap the threads of the shower arm with a few turns of teflon tape to lubricate the threads in case you have to take it apart in future.

[momtojac]

ok ok - got it - no fire/heat at all!! Thank you Mr. Lazypup for answering, but what happens if it won't twist off at all?? Is there a liquid other than WD-40 to get the grooves to loosen? When my husband tries to turn the two he is almost pulling the pipe out of the wall...I would prefer to do this myself so I know it won't be broken, but need more "umph". Any ideas?? Thanks again

[LazyPup]

You may try putting some WD40 on the joint but probably it will not have any effect because pipe threads normally have teflon tape or pipe dope that makes them waterproof and would prevent any solvent from soaking in.

Normally a shower head is not difficult to remove so we must explore the possibility of other problems.

There should be a chrome trim escutcheon ring on the shower arm pipe where it meets the wall. Slide that trim ring forward a bit, then try scratching the chrome plating on the pipe at a point where it cant be seen when the trim ring is in place.

If it is extremely hard to scratch or if you see a gold color under the chrome it is a chrome plated brass pipe. In that case it should be connected on both ends with common pipe threads.

If the plating scratches away and reveals a white or grey color underneath it is most likely a chrome plated PVC pipe. If it is PVC examine the threaded area where the shower head is attached. It is possible that someone mistakenly applied PVC glue to the threads before attaching the shower head. If that is the case you may not be able to take it apart and may have to change the shower arm pipe as well.

I am attaching a photo of the proper way to use two pair of pliers to steady the pipe while unscrewing the shower head. Note the rag to protect the pipe finish.

[momtojac]

ok thanks - I will try it this weekend and let you know the outcome!!