Can you wrench a shower arm past a dry fit position to align it?
When installing a shower arm with tape and pipe dope, forcing the fitting past a partial dry-fit position risks thread damage or leaks. People worry about how many degrees they can safely turn the threads once finger tight to get the arm to point straight down.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
Found another way around this?
Share your steps and trade-offs so fellow engineers don't have to reinvent the wheel. No account required.
- 1Switching to a standard 90-degree elbow so the shower arm drops straight down from the ceiling.Did this help you?
- 2Turning the shower arm 180 degrees so it angles downwardDid this help you?
- 3Hiring a plumber or handyman to do the workDid this help you?
- 4Asking the landlord to fix it if rentingDid this help you?
- 5Using a 1/2 brass coupling with tape and dopeDid this help you?
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“Having a problem that I’ve never had before with a detachable shower head (pic 1).”source ↗
“Once I add tape and dope, can I wrench this around to hit 6 o'clock safely, or is forcing a 45-degree fitting like that a bad idea?”source ↗
“Basically what I want to know if there enough wiggle room once it’s finger tight can you go an additional 180 or even 360° with the threads before thread damage.”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
- 22How to fix an off-center toilet drain during a remodel
- 2Connecting a linear shower drain right next to a wall stud
- 31How to fix a stripped or jammed shower handle
- 7Can you put a 4-inch faucet on an 8-inch sink?
- 3How to keep a tub spout drop ear from wiggling
- 2How to find new shower trim that fits an existing valve