You usually won’t need to remove your shower handles, but issues such as leakage or dirty filters might require you to remove them. This will probably make you wonder how to remove the shower handle without screws.
Surprisingly enough, it isn’t that hard. You only need to pop the cap or button out with a flat screwdriver, turn off your water supply, and remove the screws inside. After doing so, the shower handle should come right off.
However, this doesn’t work for all shower handles since some are designed differently. So today, we’ll be covering all about removing all sorts of shower handles without screws. Without further ado, let’s begin.
Why Should I Remove The Shower Handle?
Most of the time, you won’t need to remove the shower handle yourself since most people call in a plumber. But when you do it might be for the following reasons —
Faulty or broken shower handle
This is the most common reason for removing your shower head. But if your shower handle is faulty or broken, you’ll need to call a plumber most of the time anyway.
So we wouldn’t recommend you to go through the effort of removing the shower handle yourself.
For changing the faucet cartridge
Your faucet cartridge controls the flow of the water, so naturally worn out or faulty cartridges will lead to leakages or an inconsistent flow of water. So for replacing the faucet cartridge, you’ll often need to open the shower handle.
Leaks and damaged filters
A damaged filter requires you to open the shower head too, and locating or fixing a leak requires can be difficult without removing it.
Cleaning your shower handle
And finally, you need to open up your shower handle to clean it and remove any mineral deposits.
What Are The Different Types Of Shower Handles?
Not all shower handles are different, and they can be divided into these three types most of the time —
1. Knob Handles
Knob handles are the most common type of shower handles and are usually similar to a door. They’re generally circular and require you to spin them in different directions to turn them on and off.
In addition, their can be other shapes, but you’ll still need to rotate them.
2. Lever Handles
Lever handles are the second most common type of shower handles, and they require you to move the lever up and down to turn the water on and off.
Sometimes, they have a unique feature for turning it sideways to control the temperature of the water.
3. Cross Handles
Cross handles are usually X shaped and require you to spin them to turn them on and off, similar to a knob handle.
These typically aren’t very common anymore, but they can be very helpful for someone with arthritis. They’re great if you’re going for a retro look, too, since they have a somewhat vintage feel.
Tools and Materials Required to Remove Shower Faucet Handle Without Screw
Sometimes, you won’t even need any tools to remove a shower faucet handle without screws, but here are 5 tools you should keep beforehand just in case.
- A Flat Screwdriver
- An Allen Wrench
- Old Cloth
- Rust & Corrosion Cleaner
- Pliers
The Allen wrench is optional and is only required for lever handles, but it’s always good to keep it just in case. Other than that, you’ll only need a flathead screwdriver, and you’re good to go. Hex screws are easier to remove with Allen wrenches too.
Most of the time, you won’t need a rust or corrosion cleaner, but it’s good to have it near. You should clean the shower handle every time you take it out, too, since you usually won’t be taking it out too often.
How to Remove Shower Handle Without Screws? Easy Steps
Now that you know all about the necessary tools required for removing shower handles without screws, here’s a step-by-step guide.
For Single Unit Shower Handles
Here’s what you have to do to remove single unit shower handles.
Turn off the water supply
Make sure you turn off the water supply before unscrewing the handle. If you don’t, you’ll probably have water leaking or spraying directly at you.
Pop the cap off to reveal the screw
Most of the time, when people think their shower handle doesn’t have a screw, it’s hiding under the cap or button of the handle. You can simply pop it off using a flat screwdriver, and it should reveal a screw.
If there are no screws, twist the handle
Sometimes you won’t directly find a screw, even after popping the cap off. You most likely have a twisting shower handle if this is the case. You can gently twist it, and it should reveal screws or the handle should pop right off.
Remove the screws
After turning the water supply off, you can simply unscrew it with a regular screwdriver. An Allen wrench or key is recommended, and it’ll make unscrewing much easier, and sometimes your standard screwdriver will be too big for the screws.
Make sure you track where the screws are and keep them in a safe place since they can easily get lost. Even one screw missing can damage your shower handle with leaks or other issues.
Take the shower handle out
After unscrewing, you should be able to take the shower handle out now. Not all shower handles are simply stuck to the screw, so you might need to use some pliers to take it out.
For Double Shower Handle Units
Double unit shower handles aren’t too complicated either, and the process is very similar. Here’s how to remove double shower handle.
Turn off the water supply and turn the base of the handle
If you have two shower handles in your bathroom, first turn off the water supply.
Then hold the handle’s arm to twist the base in an anticlockwise direction. Make sure you aren’t turning clockwise since that can lead to the handle breaking.
Unscrew, and remove the handle
After this, you should be able to remove all the screws with a flat head or Phillips head screwdriver.
By doing so, you can take the handle out and access the cartridge. Make sure to reassemble everything afterward in the same way you found it.
For Lever-style Handles
Lever-style handles are usually much more complicated, so the removal process differs significantly from regular single or double-unit handles. Here’s how you can remove them —
Turn the water supply off and remove the button
Firstly, turn the water supply off, and locate the button on your shower handle. Then take your flat screwdriver and pop the button out.
These are usually very delicate, so ensure you take more care of them while removing them. You should have replacement shower faucets just in case, too.
Remove the Allen key, and pull out the handle
Unlike regular shower handles, these won’t have screws but instead, have Allen keys. To remove them, you can simply get your Allen wrench, and you should be able to pull out the handle afterward.
These Allen keys are also known as the shower knob’s set screw, so you can find the perfect wrench by searching that from the shower handle’s website.
Tips And Tricks To Follow When Removing Shower Handle Without Screws
Now that you have a good idea of how to remove shower handle no visible screws, here are a few tips and tricks to help you along the way.
Clean Mineral Deposits
Sometimes, even after you pop the cap or button out of your shower handle, you can’t see any screws. And if twisting doesn’t work either, then you likely have mineral deposits clogged up inside your shower handle.
You can simply clean it with some rust or corrosion cleaner, but if you want a homemade solution, you can use lemon and distilled white vinegar. Simply wipe with a cloth afterward, and you should have a screw visible.
Check The Brand
Most popular shower handles nowadays are from well-known brands, and even if they aren’t, they’ll still usually have a website for their brand. You can simply check your shower handle from there to check if it’s a twisting handle and how you can remove it.
This can save a lot of time, and you might not even need to get any more tools other than a screwdriver.
Check The Base Of The Handle
Sometimes the screws can be hidden near the base of the shower handle, and it’ll usually be a hex screw. For this, an Allen wrench can work best.
Frequently Asked Questions
Here are a few common questions that we get asked a lot-
Most of the time, a shower valve replacement can cost between 200$ and 600$. It depends a lot on the type of valve as well as the brand. Replacing the cartridges won’t be as expensive, though, usually being between 100$ and 350$.
You can get away with just replacing the cartridge most of the time anyway, so we’d recommend you to change the cartridge first before replacing the valve.
If your shower handle doesn’t have any screws, it’s definitely a twisting handle. A lot of the time, people don’t twist the handle hard enough and think it’s not a twist handle. So make sure to rotate the handle relatively hard.
If it still doesn’t twist and you don’t see any screws, it’s likely stuck to the wall. The best option then is to call a plumber.
Yes! Although they aren’t too common, there are some shower handle removal tools that can help you remove handles in a matter of seconds. These work not only on shower handles but also on regular faucets and taps.
Conclusion
Hopefully, now you have a good idea of how to remove the shower handle without screws. To give a quick recap, they usually aren’t too difficult to remove, and you can twist them. But if you can’t, you can simply pop off the button or cap and unscrew it.
The process may be slightly different for a lever-style handle, as it has an Allen key instead of a screw. You should make sure to clean your handle if you can’t locate the screw or Allen key.
This brings us to our final tip, which is to use CLR to clean your handles. It’s the most common cleaner for shower handles as it can quickly clean away any mineral deposits from your handle.
With that all being said, good luck and cheers!
