Wednesday, November 23, 2011

Tightening the show head wall attachment -- FINALLY!


We have enjoyed our Tour motorhome, but I noticed that the shower head mount constantly loosened after a few days of use. I tried first to simply re-tighten the screws, but quickly found that the sheet metal screws used to hold the mount to the fiberglass enclosure had stripped the holes. Rats!


Rick tried first to shim the hole with filler, wood, etc., but after a couple weeks, the holes enlarged and the screws loosened up again. 


Finally, while wandering in our local Ace Hardware Store, Rick found these rubber and brass compression inserts. When a bolt is threaded into the insert and tightened, the brass threads compress the rubber and expand the insert so that it holds tightly.


These are simple to install -- just drill a hole in the fiberglass enclosure just large enough for the insert to fit tightly. 


I used a small expanding grinding bit to open the holes in the enclosure. Just go easy with this step and make sure the holes do not get too big to force fit the inserts in,


The inserts just slip in, no glue is needed. 


 Now, the new stainless steel machine screws are used to re-mount the shower head holder. I was delighted to find that the screws snugged down perfectly and held the mount firmly to the fiberglass. Plus, the rubber inserts eliminate any possible leaks behind the mount.

A simple repair and it worked great.

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