How to Fix a Leaking Shower Head
One question settles a dripping shower head: does it stop by itself after use, or keep running once the water is off? A short drain-down after a shower is nothing to worry about. A drip that hangs around points past the head, usually to a worn seal inside the wall mixer, and that is where a licensed plumber enters the picture.
If we're late, $100 comes off your bill
- Licensed and InsuredEvery job done by a licensed plumber. QBCC No: 15024607
- Fixed Quote FirstFlat-rate pricing, agreed before any work starts
- Lifetime Labour WarrantyBacked by our Fix-It-or-It's-Free guarantee (T&Cs apply)
- $0 Call-Out FeesNo extra charge for nights, weekends or public holidays
Any guide to how to fix a leaking shower head begins by telling those two apart. Get the diagnosis right and you avoid paying for parts the job never needed.
The suburb produces both versions in numbers. At the last census it held 784 separate houses and 816 flats and apartments. An interwar Queenslander with decades-old bathroom pipes can therefore sit a few doors from a unit block served by a single mixer, and the two throw very different drips.
For the faults inside the wall, Wooloowin households can put the job in licensed hands from our team and be done with it.
Is a Dripping Shower Head Normal
Some dripping after a shower is normal; a drip that never quits is not. Water left in the head and its arm drains away briefly after use, then stops on its own.
A shower head leaking when off tells a different story. Something inside the wall mixer, usually a tired washer or cartridge, is letting water slip past, and nothing done to the head will change that.
The distinction matters more here than in most suburbs. Census figures put 48 per cent of the suburb's dwellings in the flat and apartment column, and those bathrooms lean on one mixer each, so the closed-tap drip turns up often.
Head, Joint or Mixer Behind the Wall
A drip comes from one of three places: where the head attaches to the arm, the mixer concealed in the wall, or the diverter on a bath and shower combination. Each shows its own sign.
The arm connection
Water weeping there only while water is flowing means the thread has worked loose or its sealing ring has perished.
The wall mixer
A drip with every control closed means the internal washer or cartridge has worn away. The cartridge also controls the flow and the hot and cold blend, so a stiff handle or water at an odd heat reads the same way.
The diverter
Run the bath and see the shower dripping, or run the shower and see the spout spilling: the diverter is worn or the spout is restricted.
Scale
Mineral scale blocks individual spray holes and pushes water out through other gaps, which looks like a strange leak from the head itself.
Property age narrows the diagnosis further. Galvanised supply lines in the unrenovated Queenslanders deliver a heavy mineral load by the time water reaches the bathroom furthest from the meter, and that crust often finishes up plugging the spray plate.
When a New Part Does Not Stop the Drip
A drip that survives a replacement washer or cartridge usually means the seat or the mixer body itself is worn or damaged. The washer closes onto its seat, and the cartridge shuts within the body. Score either surface and the new part has nothing to seal against.
Stop fitting parts at that point and bring in a licensed plumber. Queensland classes a repair inside a mixer as minor work: a licensee does it, with no permit and no compliance form involved.
What the repair costs comes down to the fault, the parts needed and the access to the mixer. We give you a fixed quote before any work starts, so the figure is settled before anything gets touched.
What Counts as Unregulated Plumbing Work
Yes, the QBCC lists a shower head replacement as unregulated work in Queensland, so anyone who has the knowledge and skill the task calls for may do it. The swap needs no licence and no sign-off from the QBCC or the local government, and nothing gets reported afterwards. Whoever does the work, it still has to satisfy Queensland's minimum plumbing standards.
The boundary sits at the wall. Work on a cartridge or valve within the mixer is licensed work, because the QBCC's unregulated list stops at the head.
A replacement head also carries labelling rules. Water Efficiency Labelling and Standards, or WELS, is the national rating scheme for taps and showers. A head sold in or to Australia has to be registered under it and show its star rating and water-use details wherever it is listed or advertised for sale, online included.
Rentals split the same way. Queensland tenancy law puts only very minor jobs outside licensed hands on a rental, and a head swap is one of them. The owner or manager has to keep the home in good repair through the tenancy, and the tenant reports a needed repair as soon as possible.
When to Call a Plumber
Ring us when the drip keeps running after the taps close, when a replacement part has not stopped it, or when the shower sprays while the bath fills. Each sign points behind the wall rather than at the head. That is shower repairs work, and Wooloowin Plumbing Services takes it on with flat-rate pricing.
Shower Head Questions From Wooloowin Homes
Call (07) 3523 7172What makes a shower head drip in a Wooloowin bathroom?
Most drips trace to three faults: a worn seal at the arm connection, a worn washer or cartridge in the mixer, or scale blocking the spray holes. Where the bath and shower share one mixer, a tired diverter sends water the wrong way.
Do I need approval to change a shower head in Queensland?
No, the QBCC treats the swap as unregulated work. No licence or sign-off is needed and nothing gets lodged, though the work still has to meet the minimum standards set by law.
Who fixes a dripping shower in a Wooloowin rental?
The tenant tells the property manager or owner as soon as possible, and Queensland tenancy law makes the owner or manager responsible for keeping the home repaired. A head swap is one of the very minor jobs open to anyone. Anything inside the mixer needs a licensee.
What should a replacement shower head show on the box?
Look for the Water Efficiency Labelling and Standards (WELS) star rating and water-use figures. Heads sold in or to Australia have to be registered under the scheme and show those details on every listing and advertisement, online included.
Ring Wooloowin Plumbing Services About the DripWe'll call you back.
Book on (07) 3523 7172 for plumbing anywhere in Wooloowin. We're available 24/7, there's no extra charge for nights, weekends or public holidays, and every job comes with $0 call-out fees.
To claim your $0 call-out fee, call (07) 3523 7172 today.