fixing a shower outlet elbow

[iep]

I'm installing a concealed shower in my bathroom and so need a shower outlet elbow to attach the shower hose to.

There are loads of these available (from £5 to £100) but they seem to fall into three designs:

1. 1/2" BSP brass threaded pipe from back of outlet is screwed into a receptacle within the wall. Can either be a standard 90" tap elbow (like that used for an outside tap) that you have already mounted within the wall.

2. Or you can use the supplies 1/2" bolt as per Fixing type B below and then an adapter like the john guest speedfit 1/2" tap elbow to hook up to your 15mm pipe.

3. Lastly there are products like this aqualisa one which include a push fit joint that connects directly to a 15mm pipe sticking out of the wall and are then screwed in place through the tiles:

I realise that it is horses for courses but can anyone advise on which approach they find works best and why? In my experience, a decent mechanical fixing is 90% of the battle for a good leak free installation of this kind of product so I want to get it right.

Cheers,

iep

 

[Madrab]

Depends on what you have. If you can access in the wall before it's closed up and tiled then this I find is excellent. Securely fixed then it's very sturdy
http://www.screwfix.com/p/h-c-contemporary-bar-valve-fixing-kit-chrome-effect/76919

If the pipework is already through and you have 2 tails sticking out through the tiles then I've found these are the best

http://www.aquabliss.co.uk/easy-fix-kit.html?gclid=COn2uJP0ksYCFScXwwodHKAAKA

 

[iep]

Thanks, I should have been more clear.

It's a full strip out and rebuild the wall job so I have full access to the the stud wall (In fact I'll be building it) so I am free to use any solution I can find.

Thanks for the first tip, however, the whole shower mixer is inside the wall so I only need one outlet and i'd really like it to be an elbow so the hose doesn't end up sticking out of the wall at 90 degrees.

I did properly search screwfix though and found this:

http://www.screwfix.com/p/aqualisa-shower-hose-wall-outlet-chrome-mm/5208g

I'm not delighted that it is made of plastic but I might order one to take a look at it. If I ensure there is bit of ply behind the wall at that point, it would be very easy to fit.

Cheers,

iep

 

[Madrab]

Oh I see IEP, apologies, you didn't mention the shower type so assumed it was a bar you were fitting.

 

[iep]

Just found these (generally used for outside taps so hadn't considered them). Any reason not to mount this inside the wall? Looks like an ideal fitting to screw the shower outlet elbow into and can be fixed very securely.

Cheers,

iep

 

[muggles]

Why not use a backplate elbow, which is designed for the job?

 

[iep]

To me, this looks more secure. By mounting it directly to the inside of the wall, when I screw on the threaded outlet elbow it will clamp nice and tight to the tiles:

Just seems that a backplate elbow mounted to the inside of the wall wouldn't be so mechanically sound.

I might be over analysing this.

iep

 

[Madrab]

Maybe overthinking as you suggest. Unless you plan to perform some bathroom gymnastics off of the shower head then it doesn't need to be able to support your weight.
That being said, no reason at all that you couldn't use the external tap pipe and wall plate as it is the same type of fitting if you can get access to the other side of the ply wall to screw it on. Just check you have enough male thread on the outlet to get to the fitting and provide a watertight fitment.

 

[iep]

Madrab. Yes, I do tend to build things way overspec but I reckon real solidity has a nice luxurious feel.

As you say, the external pipe has the right fitting and I do have access to the other side of the wall. So, it seems like a goer. Unfortunately, best laid plans and all that, I bought a couple of these from Screwfix n my way home today and they are covered in stickers saying 'Not For Use With Shower Connectors!!!'. No idea why but two stickers per item makes me think they have a good reason.

ip