How to fit a shower head and hose: a simple UK guide

To fit a shower head and hose, turn the shower off and unscrew the old hose by hand. Put the washer inside the new hose nut, then screw on the hose and the head, hand-tight: the washer makes the seal. Run the water for a minute and check the joints for drips, and add a few turns of PTFE tape to the outlet thread only if a threaded joint still drips.

Those steps suit a handheld head on a flexible hose, and the instructions with your new head always come first. This guide explains each step, the checks to make before you start and how to keep the head out of the bath and toilet. For the wider picture, read our guide to filter shower heads in the UK.

We sell a filter shower head kit, so every rule we quote here links to its source.

How to fit a shower head: the short answer

Fitting a handheld shower head and hose is usually a five-step job you can do yourself, by hand. Our fitting guide for the Waterhush kit covers the kit itself, and the instructions in the box always come first.

1. Turn the shower off and unscrew the old hose from the outlet.
2. Place the washer flat inside the new hose nut: the washer makes the seal.
3. Screw the hose on hand-tight, then the head.
4. Run the water for a minute and check the joints for drips.
5. Only if a threaded joint still drips: turn the water off, add a few turns of PTFE tape to the outlet thread and refit hand-tight.

These steps assume a handheld head on a flexible hose. An electric shower, a fixed head with no hose, a connection you're not sure of or a rented home each needs a check first, set out below.

Before you start: four checks

Four checks decide whether a new handheld head is a straight swap: whether your shower has a hose outlet, whether it is electric, whether the connection matches and whether your holder suits the new head. If you rent, there is one more step: ask your landlord.

Do you have a hose outlet?

A handheld head screws onto a flexible hose, and the hose screws onto the shower outlet. If your shower has a fixed head and no hose, a handheld head is not a direct swap. You would need a hose outlet first, such as a riser rail kit, which is a bigger job and may mean drilling.

Swapping one fixed head for another is usually simpler. Unscrew the old head from the shower arm and follow the new head's instructions, taking the same care with the thread and washer as below.

Is it an electric shower?

An electric shower heats the water in its own unit on the wall, usually with a switch or pull-cord nearby. Some electric shower manuals limit what the outlet can take.

One maker's 2009 installation guide for an electric shower says the outlet acts as a vent and must not be connected to anything other than the hose and showerhead supplied. Waterhush is not for electric showers unless your shower's manufacturer confirms in writing that a filter head can be fitted to your model. See what electric shower manuals say about replacement heads.

Does the connection match?

The hose has to match your shower's outlet, and outlets and hose nuts vary: our guide to shower head thread sizes shows how to check yours. Our kit's thread size isn't confirmed yet, so we can't promise it fits your outlet. If you're unsure, contact us before you buy.

Will your holder take the new head?

A new head can be heavier or shaped differently from the one it replaces. Our head is round and weighs about 400 g, so make sure your holder takes a round handheld head of that weight and grips it firmly. A loose or broken holder is a separate fix, and may mean drilling.

Renting in England? Shelter England's advice on improvements is not to make them without your landlord's permission, agreed in writing. Keep the old head, hose and washer to refit, and read how to ask your landlord and protect your deposit.

Weighing up our kit? Our three-question check covers the basics, though it can't confirm the thread.

How to change a shower head and hose, step by step

Changing a shower head and hose takes the five steps below, done by hand with the water off. The same steps work if you only need to replace the shower hose: fit the new hose, then screw your existing head onto it, as long as the two connect.

What you need

• The new head and hose. The Waterhush Shower Kit includes the head with the cartridge already fitted in the handle, a 1.5 m flexible hose, one washer, PTFE tape and an instruction leaflet.
• A dry cloth, to wipe the outlet thread and to cover the plughole so a washer can't slip down it.
• Your shower's manual, if you have it, and the instructions for the new head.

The five steps

1. Take off the old hose. With the shower off, unscrew the hose nut from the outlet by hand. If the old washer stays stuck to the outlet, lift it off so the new one can sit flat.
2. Wipe the outlet. Wipe the thread and the end of the outlet clean and dry, so the washer seals against a clean face.
3. Fit the washer. Place the washer flat inside the new hose nut; it makes the seal.
4. Screw on the hose, then the head. Start each nut straight so it doesn't cross-thread, then turn it until it is hand-tight. Don't overtighten.
5. Run the water. Run the shower for a minute and check both joints for drips, then hang the head in its holder.

If a threaded joint still drips after a careful hand-tight refit with the washer in place, turn the water off and add a few turns of PTFE tape to the outlet thread, as the next section explains.

If the old nut won't turn by hand, don't force it. A cloth can give you more grip, but grips or a spanner can crack a nut or damage the outlet, so ask a plumber if it stays stuck.

PTFE tape on a shower hose: do you need it, and which way does it go?

On a shower hose you usually don't need PTFE tape, because the flat washer inside the nut makes the seal. Use it only if a threaded joint still drips after you have checked the washer and refitted the nut hand-tight: a few turns on the outlet thread, wound in the same direction you will screw the nut on.

Direction matters because the nut turns as you tighten it. Wound the same way, the tape is smoothed down onto the thread; wound the other way, it can bunch up or unravel. On most threads, that means winding clockwise as you look at the end of the outlet.

Tape is not a seal on its own, so it can't make up for a missing or worn washer. Keep it on the thread and off the end of the outlet where the washer seals.

Don't overtighten either. The 2009 electric-shower guide says not to use excessive force when connecting the flexible hose or showerhead, and that finger tight is sufficient. If the instructions with your new head say something different about tape, follow them.

Keep the shower head out of the bath, basin and toilet

A handheld shower head should hang where it can't dip into the bath or reach into the toilet, to prevent backflow. Backflow is water flowing the wrong way, from a bath, basin or toilet back into the pipes that feed your taps.

Water Regs UK says a shower in a typical home may be classed as a fluid category 3 risk. A shower whose hose handset can reach into a toilet bowl or bidet is considered a fluid category 5 risk. In that case, unless the hose is permanently restrained or shortened to keep a set gap above the toilet or bidet, the whole shower supply needs category 5 backflow protection.

For the bath or shower tray, Water Regs UK says the risk is typically handled by keeping the handset a suitable gap above the spill-over level, the point where water would overflow. Shower makers' manuals put numbers on that gap.

The 2009 electric-shower guide says water regulations require the head to be held so it can only discharge at least 25 mm above the spill-over level of the bath or tray. If the head can be placed in the bath, basin or tray, the guide says a double check valve or similar must be fitted in the supply.

Another maker's 2012 guide for an electric shower asks for at least 25 mm between the showerhead and the spill-over level of a bath, tray or basin. For a toilet or bidet, it asks for 30 mm. Its diagram shows a hose retaining ring holding the head at a suitable height.

So check the reach before you fit a new hose. A 1.5 m hose, like the one in our kit, may be longer than the one you take off: let the head hang at full stretch and make sure it can't dip into the bath, basin or toilet. If it can, fit a hose retaining ring, which stops the hose dropping below a set height, or ask a plumber about a shorter hose or backflow protection. Our kit doesn't include a retaining ring.

Shower head leaking at the hose connection? Quick fixes

A shower head leaking at the hose connection usually comes down to the washer, the thread or overtightening, or tape that has bunched. Turn the water off, then check each in turn.

• Washer: unscrew the nut and check that the washer is there, sitting flat, and that only one is fitted.
• Thread: if the nut felt stiff after a turn or two, it may be cross-threaded. Unscrew it, line it up straight and start again by hand.
• Tightness: refit hand-tight. Overtightening can squash the washer out of shape and make a drip worse.
• Tape: if you used PTFE tape and it has bunched or reaches the end where the washer seals, take it off. Re-wrap a few turns in the screwing direction only if the thread still drips with a good washer in place.

If it still drips after a careful refit, stop and follow the leaflet that came with your head, or ask a plumber. A drip that keeps coming back can point to a worn or damaged outlet, which is a plumbing repair rather than a head swap.

Changing the filter cartridge later

A filter shower head needs a new cartridge from time to time; follow the leaflet for your model when you change it. In the Waterhush Shower Kit, the cartridge sits in the handle: you keep the head and hose and replace only the cartridge.

Keep each refill sealed in its airtight sachet until you fit it, and note the date you change it. We suggest a new cartridge every 3 months, or every 2 months for households of two or more. That is a suggestion, not a promise of how long a cartridge lasts: our guide on how often to change a shower filter cartridge explains why.

What we don't know yet: threads, pressure and electric showers

Our kit's thread size isn't confirmed yet, and we have no water pressure or flow figures for it, so we can't promise it fits your shower. We would rather say so than guess.

• Thread: a hose that unscrews tells you the old one can come off, not that ours will match. If you're unsure about your outlet, contact us before you buy.
• Pressure and flow: a filter cartridge sits in the path of the water, so if your flow is already weak, check your shower's manual before choosing any filter shower head.
• Electric showers: Waterhush is not for electric showers unless your shower's manufacturer confirms in writing that a filter head can be fitted to your model.

A guide can't see your bathroom either. If anything here conflicts with your shower's manual or the leaflet in the box, follow those, and ask a plumber about anything you're unsure of.

The bottom line

Fitting a handheld shower head and hose is usually a by-hand job: washer in the nut, hand-tight joints, then a leak check, with PTFE tape only if a threaded joint still drips. The main limits are your shower's connection, type and manual, especially for an electric shower, and keeping the head out of the bath and toilet. Next step: read your manual and the leaflet, and contact us before you buy if you're unsure about the connection.