If you are interested in purchasing a new showerhead, you may naturally be curious about whether or not a showerhead would fit the shower arm.
A shower arm is a pipe that is installed in your wall and links your showerhead to your water supply. The positive part is that there is a simple solution that can be applied to the majority of homes:
In both Canada and the United States, the standard thread size for showerheads is a half-inch NPT, which stands for national pipe thread.
As a consequence of this, any showerhead that is marketed locally should be suitable for use with the shower arm.
The only things that are exempt from this guideline are showerheads that are sold in foreign countries, unusually designed showerheads, and very ancient homes.
The selection of the appropriate showerhead requires consideration of a great many other factors.
Check out the information and pointers that I’ve prepared below to assist you in selecting a showerhead that is compatible with your system.
This will help you avoid the need to spend a significant amount of time searching the Internet or making many trips to the local hardware store.
Types Of Shower Heads
Electric Shower Heads
Electric showers are, as the name suggests, machines that produce hot water using electricity. These types of showers have been made and sold in great amounts throughout the years by companies such as Mira, Triton, and Aqualisa.
Price is usually the most important factor, and most people settle for a simple white shower unit that has a sliding riser head and rail.
In most configurations, the head can be detached from the hose and then attached to the wall mount independently.
This is the origin of the term “handheld shower head,” which describes the shower heads that are typically used in shower stalls and over bathtubs.
Handheld Shower Heads
If you have a shower head that can be held in your hand, then you have access to a wide variety of options.
These provide you with a selection of various modes, styles, and costs; nonetheless, those are all connected to a hose and can be mounted on a wall, slid along a rail, or held in the hand.
Mixer showers combine cold and hot water to create the showering experience; these showers can be manually controlled or controlled by a thermostat.
Homeowner has the option to carefully conceal any room or thing and do not want the viewer to notice the valve, the device, or any other connections could be hidden to avert the head from being repaired.
If the valve is covered up, there is a high chance that it will result in the head being fixed. When you use our left-hand filter options to choose between a handheld showerhead and a fixed head, replacing a shower head is a task that can be accomplished with relative ease.
If this is your first time opting for a new bathroom, you need to think about what will work best for you and how you want to put it to use before making a decision.
If it will be positioned over a bathtub, a hand-held model is probably the best option because it can be removed from its mount with relative ease and used to clean the area surrounding the bathtub.
Fixed Shower Heads
A fixed head is one that is not removable and is fastened into the connection. It can be installed in either a concealed or exposed piping configuration.
It is possible to configure these wall-mounted shower heads in a variety of ways. Many individuals are considering upgrading their shower heads because they need more flow of water, yet in many situations, low water pressure is the root of the problem.
A low-flow shower head or a smaller one that can distribute water more precisely may be the best option in certain situations.
The shower design or the pump may need to be changed to increase the flow of the shower. When it comes to showering, you may also want to think about the type of shower you’re using.
Depending on your preferences, you may opt for a separate shower or a shower built into your bathtub, in which case you will need a shower curtain to keep the water out.
The kind of shower head you should use depends less on the shower enclosure than it does on the shower system itself since both can employ a variety of various types of shower heads.
Rain Shower Heads
The rain shower system is one more style of showerhead that is now enjoying a lot of success in the market.
These showers normally have a form of fixed head, but the heads are constructed in such a way as to offer a broad distribution of water.
The system typically consists of a large shower head that is fastened to a shower arm. The amount of water that is expelled from these types of systems is often a little bit lower.
Because it uses somewhat less water than other types of shower heads, this particular model of shower head may also be beneficial to individuals who are interested in reducing their impact on the environment by conserving water.
According to its moniker, the rain shower head is intended to simulate the sensation of showering in the rain.
Shower Spray
Another interesting feature is one that has a spray pattern switch. This switch allows the water flow that comes out of the shower head to be adjusted and provides a variety of different spray settings.
This function will generally alter the size of water droplets, transforming them from large drops of water that are dense into small drops of water that are relatively light.
These spray parameters are typically selected by the customers for their own personal choice so that they can acquire the ideal shower for their needs.
Are Shower Heads Universal? Shower Heads & Universal Fittings
In any case, the response to that inquiry is the same. They all adhere to the NPT standard, but the specifics differ from country to country and occasionally include exceptions that diverge from the norm.
Unique Ones
There are, without a doubt, variants of shower heads that are radically dissimilar to the standard models, and these variants exist both regionally and among the outliers. The rainfall showerheads are the most prominent examples of this category of showerheads.
In spite of the fact that these may conform to the norm and have their very own extension that is placed onto the typical shower setup, it is more common to find them mounted on the ceiling, which necessitates additional plumbing work in order for it to be functional.
These shower heads are typically quite straightforward to identify because they are typically constructed with a significantly larger surface area than the typical shower arms and heads have connectors that are a great deal shorter.
They may be of great assistance for the purpose of accelerating the pace of your showers, which is one of the primary reasons why individuals favor showers over bathtubs.
The shower heads that are fixed on the wall are yet another example of a special kind of shower head. The handheld and wall-mounted shower heads serve different purposes but have a comparable connection.
However, the wall-mounted shower heads are significantly more compact. They can also demand a complete overhaul of your plumbing system, and as a result, you should avoid installing them in your bathroom unless you want to perform an extensive remodel of the space.
Check For Repairing
Once we’ve determined which types of shower heads are best for our needs and which types we’d like to purchase, the next step is to make sure everything else in our shower is working properly.
It’s easy to overlook some faults during the renovation process and have to deal with the consequences later.
Make a point of inspecting every aspect of the shower in order to catch any problems early and avoid more serious ones.
When it comes to the shower hose, it’s the most important portion because it’s directly connected to the shower. A suspected leak or knot in the hose should alert us.
These can lead to a decrease in water pressure, and in some situations, floods. Dirty shower hoses, on the other hand, constitute a serious health and safety risk to both the user and the installation.
Make sure it’s handled before moving on to the next step of the examination. Shower controls that aren’t working properly or making strange noises after the shower is turned on are usually symptoms of a problem.
Debris, loose fittings, and a slew of other difficulties can cause issues. Most of the time, a replacement is the only option, but tighter plumbing may be able to fix the problem.
If the problem persists despite your efforts to improve your fit, seek assistance from a specialist. Problems with water flow are more likely if you have a shower diverter in your bathtub.
Understanding The Fitting Of Shower Heads
You will need a reliable method to reverify that the showerhead you choose is going to be compatible with your shower arm as you get ready to explore all of the available possibilities. This section will focus on that particular topic.
Exchange Old Shower Head
You may find yourself staring at the arm of your shower and having no idea whether or not it conforms to the typical dimensions.
If this is the case, removing and transporting your current showerhead to the retail establishment will save you a significant amount of time.
You can also take the shower arm off of the existing fixture and transport it with you if the original showerhead is not available.
That way, you won’t have to go all the way home to test it out before you can receive assistance or determine whether or not it’s compatible.
Measuring Shower Arm
You may double-check the threads on your shower arm by measuring it, even if you are unable to bring the existing parts to the store. If this is your situation, you can measure your shower arm.
Male Or Female Threads
First, you need to make sure whether hand threads on your shower are male or female. On which side of the fitting does the threading sit on the outside or on the inside?
It contains male threads if the threads are located on the outside of the object. It contains female threads if the threads are on the interior of the object.
Because male and female threads attach to one another in a reciprocal fashion, if the threads on your shower arm are male, which is quite typical, you will need to purchase a shower head that has a connector that features female threads, and vice versa.
Tapered Or Parallel
Your next step will be to determine whether or not your threads are parallel or tapered. When something is tapered, the diameter gets smaller as it goes down the threads.
If it’s parallel, then the diameter of the threads will remain the same. Simply taking a look at it ought to be sufficient to tell you the answer.
If you are in the United States or Canada, there is a good probability that it is tapered; nonetheless, you should verify this and make sure that the connecting component matches, as a tapered part will get attached with a tapered female part.
Inner & Outer Diameter
Now take the diameter measurement. It is important to measure the outer diameter when dealing with male threads.
It is important to measure the interior diameter when dealing with female threads. These are frequently denoted by “I.D.,” which stands for “inner diameter,” and “O.D.,” which stands for “outer diameter.”
The next step is to take the measurement and verify it against a thread chart in order to determine the nominal size or the trade size.
This naming convention for the standard size is called a nominal size, and it helps identify parts. When looking for a new showerhead, these are the most important dimensions to pay attention to in terms of the measurements.
Do not be afraid to inquire about assistance or explanation when you are shopping.
Final Verdict
As long as your home’s plumbing is standard, you can buy a shower head from a store. Today’s shower heads are made to work with any 1/2-inch shower arm pipe.
With this, it’s a breeze to replace your shower head when it comes to remodeling your bathroom! It may be more difficult to replace the shower head in case you have an older property because the normal 1/2-inch pipe running into your shower may not be standard.
Because many pipes may be adapted, contemporary shower heads can be installed. In addition, unique shower heads may be required for ceiling-mounted showers that generate a waterfall appearance.
