Laying shower pipes on a bathtub wall

 

If you want to retrofit a bath-only installation with a shower, the easiest way is to replace the bath spout. You can install a different type of spout with an adapter that allows you to attach a flexible shower hose to the wall. Permanently attaching shower pipes behind the bathtub wall is a more challenging project, but you can do it yourself if you have basic plumbing skills.

Close the main water tap in the house. Open the tap in the kitchen until no more water comes out of it.

Loosen the screws holding the handles of the bath faucet. Pull off or unscrew the fittings. Unscrew the grub screw holding the bath spout, if there is one, and then unscrew or pull off the spout.

Gain access to your work area behind the existing "wet" wall of the bath - the wall with the bath spout and the water pipes. Pry off the tiles from the edge of the bath to the area of the shower arm and from one stud to the other flanking the tap. Cut through the cement board or drywall with a drywall saw or scoring tool.

Cut the existing hot and cold water pipes to remove the tub-only faucet. Use a copper pipe cutter for copper pipes and a CPVC pipe cutter for CPVC pipes. Replace the fitting with a tub shower fitting, using standard welding techniques or fittings for copper pipes or primer and cement for CPVC pipes.

Using a chop saw, cut a 2 x 6 cross brace that fits snugly between the uprights at the height of the shower head, either 120 cm above the tub rim or high enough for the tallest member of your household. Screw or nail the cross brace in place. Screw an elbow supported by a pipe clamp into the centre of the cross brace. Cut a shower pipe with a pipe cutter to fit from the tap to the elbow. Connect the pipe, again using copper sweating techniques or fittings for copper pipes or CPVC primer and cement for CPVC pipes.

Fit the tap handles and attach the nipples and caps to the shower arm and the bath spout. Turn on the main water valve and taps to check for leaks. Attend to any sign of leakage, no matter how small, until the pipe connections are completely dry by replacing or tightening the connections and then checking.

Turn off the water at the main valve and run the kitchen tap again until there is no more water in the pipes. Remove the tap handles, shower head and bath spout. Rebuild your "wet" wall with cement board or waterproof drywall and cut out openings for the pipes. Tile or otherwise finish the wall and reinstall your taps, shower heads and fittings.

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