PLUMB A SHOWER: ADVICE TO FOLLOW
If you’re remodelling your bathroom to make it the stuff of your dreams, chances are you’re going to want to update to a new shower system sooner rather than later. Luckily, GROHE has the knowledge and products you’re after. When you’re beginning to plan your new shower from scratch, it’s likely you’ll need to figure out how to plumb a shower first. There are two aspects of plumbing: the pipes that connect your shower fixtures to the water supply and the shower drain that allows the water to drain out effectively.
Doing the rough-in of a GROHE shower is easy thanks to the innovative solutions developed by GROHE that address some of the trickier aspects of how to plumb a shower. GROHE’s answer to the restrictions of shower plumbing is the GROHE Rapido SmartBox.
The technology behind the GROHE Rapido SmartBox allows for one rough-in to be installed that can control up to three shower functions without any adjustments. Traditional rough-ins can usually only handle two functions (bath and showerhead), making installation for luxury shower systems much more cumbersome. The GROHE system’s installer-friendly design also allows for piping to be done as efficiently as possible.
Whereas traditional rough-ins require hot and cold water to be attached on the left and right, the Rapido SmartBox system features two 1/2" inlets, one for hot and one for cold water pipes, on the rough’s bottom side. This provides you with direct access to both pipes, saving you from having to fiddle around with 90° fittings to get the job done. This frees up space on the three remaining sides for three outlets, making the job of installing a luxurious shower system with three functions incredibly simple. By requiring only one rough-in for such a job, installers and planners save time and effort.
Ready for an installation guide for plumbing a shower?
CONNECTING COLD AND HOT WATER TO GROHE RAPIDO SMARTBOX
Here are the most important steps that a plumber will undertake when plumbing the shower.
- Make sure the water supply has been turned off.
- Find the ends of the water supply lines. They may be located in the cellar. Clean these copper water supply pipes, making sure to smooth both the insides and outsides of the copper pipes a few centimetres up.
- Attach a push-to-fit connector to the copper pipes. This will later make it easy to connect the PEX pipe to the water supply.
- Back in the future shower, cap off any of the outlets on the GROHE Rapido SmartBox that will not be used.
- Screw the brass adapters into the inlets and outlets, tightening them with a pipe wrench. Make sure not to over-tighten them, however.
- Decide where the shower handles should be placed. Usually, this would be about 115-125 centimetres above the floor. Install the blocking area accordingly. Also install a blocking area at about 2.15 metres for the showerhead. The Rapido SmartBox can also be attached directly to the wall, without needing to install blocking areas.
- Using a spirit level, make sure the SmartBox is level and then screw it in place.
- Attach the hot water PEX pipe to the bottom left inlet. Slide a crimper on, leaving about 0.5 cm of space from the fitting. Using a PEX crimper tool, crimp it in place. Repeat with the cold water PEX pipe on the bottom right inlet.
- Add pipe holders for extra support, nailing them into place.
- Run the PEX pipes down to the water supply pipes. Push them into the push-to-fit connectors, making sure they click into place.
- Attach the showerhead and any other shower functions to the A, B, or C outlets of the GROHE Rapido SmartBox using the PEX piping and crimping in place. Follow the matrix on the SmartBox to determine which outlets to use.
There you go! The water supply is now connected to the GROHE shower. For other guides on installing bathroom fixtures, make sure you check out our other installation videos. Here you’ll find helpful tips about installing products like basin mixers, shower mixers, kitchen sink mixers, and much more.
