Fix A Leaking Shower

Fix a leaking shower – It’s that easy!

Drip, drip, drip – talk about annoying!

A leaking shower can at its most basic level be irritating, but at its worst level can cost you money through loss of water, which could then cause structural problems and hard to get rid of dry rot or mould. That drip, drip noise is more troublesome than you realise!

A leaking shower is more often than not caused by a problem with the valve, known more technically as the shower faucet (tap). These seals can become worn and allow water to slip through or can become clogged up over time through wear and tear and general usage. This causes water to either run unevenly and squirt out, or drip, drip, drip …

Here’s a step-by-step guide to getting that irritating dripping noise out of your life.

Turn off the water main – Check the water is off before you attempt to do anything else, otherwise, you’re going to get very wet indeed!

Remove the tap handle – Basically, turn the shower handle off. You then need to remove the handle cap, which will then show you the handle screw. You need to unscrew this with a screwdriver.

Remove the cartridge – You will see a large ring exposed once you remove the handle. You need to remove this, usually by purchasing a cartridge puller at a hardware store.

Replace the cartridge – Purchase the correct cartridge and replace the old with the new.

Double-check – Putting everything back in its place. If there’s no drip, drip, dripping, you have successfully learnt how to fix a leaking shower, but if the drip is still there, you will need to move on to fixing the actual tap itself.

Fix the tap – Making sure the water is still off, remove the tap with a pair of pliers. Make sure you allow time for any residual water to drain out. You will see a rubber gasket that will need to be replaced. Once this is done, attach the tap back to its original position and wulla!

If you continue to have leaking water issues, call your local professional plumber. With the Gold Coast‘s largest plumbing team, Oceanside Services provide competitively priced plumbing services to all areas of the Gold & Tweed Coast’s 24 hours a day 7 days a week! For any plumbing services you need give us a call now on 07 5520 7100.