Stuck shower pipe

[YogiBear]

Aloha,

We just moved to a newer home.

Of course, it's not perfect, so we are making changes to fit us as we move along.
The shower heads are too Low and are of the kind we don't like.

I got one shower pipe coming out of the wall removed and fixed up the Wife's shower with the head(s) that she liked(I put a diverter on it so she can run her rainforest head and a handheld, either individually or both at the same time)

The second shower pipe seems to be frozen and not responding to my efforts to remove it.

I am very reluctant to use excessive force on the pipe wrench to get it off.

Does any one have any ideas or suggestions??

Thanks

 

[YogiBear]

Aloha,

We just moved to a newer home.

Of course, it's not perfect, so we are making changes to fit us as we move along.
The shower heads are too Low and are of the kind we don't like.

I got one shower pipe coming out of the wall removed and fixed up the Wife's shower with the head(s) that she liked(I put a diverter on it so she can run her rainforest head and a handheld, either individually or both at the same time)

The second shower pipe seems to be frozen and not responding to my efforts to remove it.

I am very reluctant to use excessive force on the pipe wrench to get it off.

Does any one have any ideas or suggestions??

Thanks

 

[pbslinger]

Your intution to ease off is probably good, you might disloge the fitting it screws into if you apply too much force.

 

[Spotteddog]

Are the pipes in the wall copper, galvanized iron, other? What is the horizontal extension passing through the wall currently made of? Or are you attempting to change ONLY the shower head?

 

[truckemup97]

Can you get to it from the back side? If the other side of the shower wall is in a closet, you can remove the drywall to get to the root of the problem. Or, you can just apply more force. If it comes out, great! If it doesn't, you can then go in through the closet.

 

[mtgianni]

If it is newer than the late 80's code requires a copper 90 ell to be screwed to a stud to prevent vibration and allow the nipple to be removed. Look for wrench marks and remove the escutchen to see what's behind it. I can see some fool putting epoxy there to stop a drip.

 

[YogiBear]

Aloha,

As far as I can tell, the first pipe is a chrome plated steel, I think. It came off easily.

I am thinking since they both look the same, it is the same material.

The first on I took off had a brass fitting. That was all I could see thru the hole.

The house was built in the mid 60s.

I DO NOT want to make a Major project of changing just shower heads. An exterior wall is involved.

Yes, it seems some one may have gotten carried away with some kind of sealant on the plate against the wall.

I can live with a shorter than me shower head until we have funds to re-do the bathroom laundry room combination.

I want to have a shower Higher than I can reach (7') AND I want massaging jets fron the walls etc. We have been looking at ads for the New bath room, shower, sauna combos......

Doesn't mean in the mean time I will not consider other ways to remove the stubborn pipe.

So, I still welcome ideas.

Anyone know how th make the stuck pipe COLD and contract from the fitting?

Or did someone tell me the wrong idea?

Thanks

 

[Spotteddog]

Cheapest way would be a CO2 fire extinguisher (don't tell Al Gore). Next cheapest, a one time so called "automotive air conditioning top up kit" which is a can of 134A refrigerant and the valve to dispense it with. (careful, some come with an oil charge already in the can!) Next would be compressed tank of Nitrogen. Depending on your state laws, you may need a recycling certification to purchase the last one. It's overall the most effective though?

 

[YogiBear]

Aloha,

How messy is using the CO2 fire extinguisher?

The joiming location is INside the wall with only at most a 1/4 inch (if that much) gap around the pipe.

So my problem is getting enough "coolent" to that point withour opening the hole the pipe passes thru.

Any suggestions?

 

[Spotteddog]

The CO2 extinguisher is clean, Nitrogen is clean, the car refrigerant will be just as clean provided you verify it's not a can containing refrigerant oil along with the refrigerant.
I'm assuming(?) the pipe passing through the wall (escutcheon) is a male thread on both the shower nozzle as well as the end going into the fitting (within the wall) you described? The "male" half of any assembly is always the portion to "shrink". The "female" half, is always the portion to heat or in your case, leave at room temperature during a removal operation. So the bottom line is, the part thats sticking out through the wall currently, is the only portion you are supposed to be chilling down. The idea is to shrink the escutcheon to loosen it's grip on the internal threads of the fitting it's tightened into.
GOOD LUCK!

 

[pred]

Get a hot air gun and heat up the pipe as it goes through the wall, Heat it longer than you think is needed,,, Then try to remove.
Some of the older pipe dope concoctions would harden pretty good over the years. Heating may soften it enough to unthread fitting, If heating, or cooling as above stated does not work,, Give up.
Peter

 

[mtgianni]

Cold makes things shrink including the gap between threads. Heat makes things expand including the gap between threads. Use heat.

 

[sar4937]

Another method is to cut the pipe back to a straight section, and using a hacksaw blade wrapped with duct tape to form a handle, saw from the inside out carefully. You can saw through the pipe where it is not threaded into the fitting, and inside the fitting area you must saw in as deep as possible without cutting through thr pipe and into the threads. Once that is done, you can crush the pipe with visegrips which will snap along the scoreline of the pipe collapsing the pipe. Make sure to flush out any metal chips before installing the new showerhead.

 

[m1gunner]

What is the covering on the shower wall where the offending pipe protrudes?

Worst case is you have to open the wall to do what you want with the pipes, 40 plus years of corrosion may have fused the two pieces.

In the long run, opening the shower wall may be quicker and cheaper than messing with the pipe, and there is no way to leak check your new fitting behind the wall if you don't open it up.

 

[YogiBear]

Aloha,

Thank you all for the advice, lots I never thought of.

The major home improvement is on hold until funding builds up.

I will defineately try some of the less destructive (to the wall) suggestions.

This all started in 2002 when we went to Australia on vacation and stayed at a hotel (The Observatory in Sydney) which has Rainshower heads about 7' plus in thier shower. The Wife liked it and I bought her one when we got home. I put it into the master bath shower.

I want to put multiple shower heads/hand helds in the second bath (mine). But, I am not in a major rush to redo "my" bath yet, the Wife's comes first. Something, I thing most married guys understand.

Give up a little and get a lot back...

 

[sar4937]

Usually those multiple shower heads will require a larger supply pipe for the higher volume of water.

 

[Spotteddog]

Yeah,
Like a 3/4" line (minimum) @ full pressure, broken down to 1/2" and then 1/4" lines further down stream. And all of it will need to be installed behind the wall(s)? Either that, or that luxurious 360 massage will be happening in what will feel like a Hamster cage, with exposed pipes!