HOW TO FIT A SHOWER: THE GROHE GUIDE

When it comes to installing bathroom fittings, it’s understandable to feel a little daunted at first – especially if you don’t have much DIY experience. However, fitting a shower is often much more straight forward than you may think. While you’re still better off consulting a professional to install more complex fittings such as concealed showers, standard wall-mounted shower systems are perfectly manageable, even for novice DIYers. Time to dust off your tools and get to work – the cost saving and satisfaction of doing it yourself will be more than worth it!

In this step-by-step guide, we show you how to fit a shower rail, flex hose, and hand shower. You should first install your thermostatic shower mixer. For detailed instructions on how to do this, please consult our guide here.

Note: The product used in this guide is a GROHE Vitalio Joy shower system. However, the methodology applies to the majority of our other exposed shower rail sets.

BEFORE YOU GET STARTED…

As with any DIY project, proper preparation is paramount to successfully installing your new shower. First of all, if any major plumbing work has been done on your home recently, the water network must first be flushed of all impurities. Otherwise, you risk damaging your mixer.

Then you will need to prepare your work area to make things easier and more convenient for yourself. In particular, gather all the parts and tools you’ll need close to your working area so you don’t have to reach too far for them while working. You may also want to consider laying a sheet or tarpaulin to protect the floor or shower tray from any falling debris.

See all the parts and tools you require below..

REQUIRED PARTS

All of the following parts should already be included in your shower system. If not, head to our showers product page to find the parts you need – simply search by accessory type using the filters on the left side of the page.

  • Installation instruction manual (be sure to hold on to this for future reference)
  • 2x anchors
  • 2x screws
  • Flex hose
  • Bottom mounting bracket
  • Top mounting bracket
  • Hand shower

REQUIRED TOOLS & ACCESSORIES

  • Pencil
  • Rubber mallet
  • Spirit level
  • 8mm drill bit
  • Drill
  • Phillips-head screwdriver
  • Silicon sealant

HOW TO INSTALL THE SHOWER BAR

Here’s a step by step guide for how to fit taps on a new bath.

Installing the shower bar, or rail, does require a bit of drilling. In this demonstration, we drill through the grouting at the intersection of the tiles. However, if you’re confident you know what you’re doing, you could also drill through the tiles instead. Either way, ensure you are using the correct type of drill bit for the wall type.

  • Position the rail at an appropriate height for the entire family, and mark the tile intersections closest to the ends with your pencil.
  • Measure your mixer unit and mark its centre point on the wall. Then, using a spirit level, extend your marks vertically up the wall.
  • Mark the intersections of the tiles (on the grouting) that are closest to the bar’s holders, while checking for vertical alignment with the spirit level.
  • Fit your drill with an 8mm drill bit appropriate for the wall type and drill the holes you have marked.
  • Fill the holes with silicone sealant and then insert the provided anchors, securing them firmly with the rubber mallet.
  • Attach the dark grey plastic holder for the top shower bracket onto the wall.
  • Insert the other grey plastic holder into the bottom of the shower rail, then position the eye of the shower rail facing the guide on the dark grey plastic holder.
  • Slide the shower rail into the dark grey plastic holder fitted to the wall so that the shower bracket cursor is on the right.
  • Attach the dark grey plastic holder to the wall.
  • Slide the lower and upper covers over both dark grey plastic holders, aligning the slots of both elements.

HOW TO INSTALL THE SHOWER HOSE AND HAND SHOWER

With the shower rail and mounting brackets now in place, it’s now time to connect the hose and fit the shower head to your thermostatic shower mixer.

  • Check the proper placement of seals in the shower hose. If they are missing, add a fibre or rubber seal. Without properly attached seals, water will leak from the hose.
  • Screw the smaller end of the hose onto the thermostatic mixer unit.
  • Screw the larger end of the hose onto the hand shower.
  • Turn on the water to ensure the hand shower is working properly.

Congratulations, you have successfully fitted your shower and it’s now ready for use!

Check our other installation guides here if you have more fittings you wish to install, and discover all of our products on grohe.co.uk.

BATHROOM BROCHURE