I can confirm that tying the shower head in place with a J-cloth is not a satisfactory solution to a broken shower clamp. Fortunately, Rob the decorator was able to fit in a spot of handyman duties, and came round to sort out the new fittings after he’d finished painting for the day. I was very glad I’d called in a professional – not only did it require drilling through tiles, but he struggled to get the pieces to fit together and had to file them down to make them fit. But at least he had all the correct tools for doing so; it would have been beyond not only my DIY capabilities but also the contents of my toolbox.
While he was here, I also got Rob to look at the porch door, which was sticking badly. It turns out that’s because part of it was substantially rebuilt when I had the carpenters in over the summer. They replaced the rotten bits of the porch while they were here fitting the new windows, but it looks like the new piece of wood has swollen in all the damp weather we’ve been having. So Rob got out his electric plane and took off a slice of wood, and the door now shuts much better. Again, a job that I would have struggled to do without the correct tools. Sometimes, it is very useful to have a handyman on call, and he charges me an entirely reasonable price for sorting out these little jobs.
So that is the electric shower in the ensuite back to fully functioning order. I’m hoping the plumber will come next week to at least make a start on replacing and making good the built-in shower in the extension. With a bit of luck, I’ll have a full complement of working showers again in a few weeks……