Electric shower advice needed?

Question

I'm looking for advice on what type of electric shower to buy. At the moment my current shower just works off the mixer tap on the bath and is fed from my water tank in my loft directly above my bathroom, the water tank is heated electrically (i only have electric heating). Is this what you call a gravity fed system? Can this type of system have a power shower fitted to it?

I preferably would like a shower that gives me really good water pressure as well as a good constant temperature - is it better to buy a higher wattage one for that?

Can anyone recommend any specific models you have used or installed that gives the results I'm looking for?

Stevo - i dont want to install an electric showerhead i wnat to install an electric shower system, preferably a power/pumped electric shower and what i was asking was if they could be plumbed to my type of system as i know they can only be plumbed to certain types of systems. And I live in Scotland and we have soft water here so I dont have the problem of calcium or limescale build up.

Answer 1

An electric shower runs direct from the cold water main and electrically heats the cold water as you use it.

Things to bear in mind with an electric shower is that to get the best flow rates you need a high wattage shower > 10kw.

As your current shower is a mixer shower fed from your tank in your loft you will need to have a new mains water supply plumbed to the shower and you will also need to have a 10mm Sq heavy duty electricity cable installed with an isolating switch near to the shower.

Needless to say installing a 10mm sq mains cable into a wall is a messy job and will probably require some redecoration afterwards.

The other problem that faces some people installing this kind of shower is that it needs to be connected to its own circuit protected by a 40AMP circuit breaker at your fuse board. If your fuse board doesn't have a spare slot for the circuit breaker then you may have to upgrade this as well.

Power showers work on the same principle as your mixer shower, mixing preheated hot water and cold water feeds, but use an electric pump to increase the flow rate. Depending on how your tanks are setup and the capacities of your tanks, your system may not be suitable for a power shower, you really need to get this assessed by a decent plumber.

As the power shower is not heating the water it requires a lot less electical current and can be safely connected to the household ring main via a fused spur, meaning there is no requirement to install heavy duty cabling or add an extra circuit breaker to your fuse board.

However a power shower installed with inadequatley sized water tanks can literally empty your tanks in a couple of minutes.

In terms of brand of shower I would recommend you go for either Mira or Triton

Due to recent changes to regulations, electical installations must be performed by an electrician with the correct certicification or be checked for compliance by a representative from your local council at your expense.

Answer 2

If you want to use your existing hot water from your cylinder, which appears to be gravity fed, (if you have a cylinder with an element and a cold storage tank??) then your easy solution to get a bit of pressure is to fit a Mira power shower which is basically a pressure increasing pump, it will however empty your hot water cylinder fairly quickly!! Your next bet is an electrically heated shower unit of 9-10 kw , new circuit required etc. Or you could fit a thermostatic valve to your existing pipework and if there is not enough flow/pressure then fit a separate booster pump. Disregard Stevo, he's in the US and knows nothing about UK plumbing! We don't have pumps on the mains supply, it's all done by pressure (head) of water from reservoirs.

http://www.mirashowers.com/onlinecatalog/shower_features.jsp?item=156316&prod_num=Event+XS+Thermostatic&cat=Power+Showers

Answer 3

Your current boiler is probably 50-70% eefficient. Fitting a Condensing boiler with a sedbuk A, rating of over 90% will save you the cost of the boiler over a 15 year lifespan. The previous advice of fitting an unvented system is probably your best bet especially if there are 4 of you waiting to use the shower. Another option is to fit and electric power shower which doubles as a back up if you are fitting a combi boiler. Remember to have your system sized correctly if you do fit a condensing boiler because if it isn't it won't condense. Current regs insist on energy efficient controls like trv's, lagging of exposed pipes and zoning so make sure you get a reputable installer.

Answer 4

Hello, use a power shower motor runs on 5amp's needs plumbing in but cheap to run elec supply. Many people make the mistake of thinking that a shower supplied off the mains water is a power shower this is not so. These can be very expensive for the electrics to be installed. See at your local supplier's and they will show you both.Best Luck.

Answer 5

Mike has got the answer correct. The only thing that I would add is that the mains water supply to the shower needs to have its own stopcock so that the shower water supply can be turned off without affecting the supply to the rest of the house.

Answer 6

I think you have the wrong impression of how plumbing works. You can't buy an electric showerhead. They don't make them. You don't have a gravity fed system, either. Water is moved through pipes by water presure. This pressure is generated by pumps in the plumbing regulated by the city you live in. If your water pressure is low, you will have a weak stream of water coming out of your faucets. If the showerhead is clogged with lime, and scale, you will have a weak flow, as well. If the pipes in your place are old, same thing. Same thing goes for the water heater. Water, no matter how clean it is, has sediment in it, and after a while the sediment hardens on the inside of pipes, water heaters, valves, and shower heads. You can sometimes clean them with calcium removers such as CLR. Usually, it is best to replace the shower head. But, if the water pressure is reduced coming into your place, you will still have a weak flow. There are, however, some shower heads that claim to be "turbo" heads, that give you a strong spray. You may want to look into those.

As far as temperature goes, you may be able to adjust the temperature on the water heater up a bit. Be careful not to get it too hot, or you can scald yourself. Usually 130 degrees is max recommended temp.

Good luck,

Stevo.

Aditional details...

Ah, I see. I am not privy to the types os systems you have there in Scotland. Interesting problem you have.

My Grandfather is from Arbroth (hope I spelled that correctly) and I am half Scottish, myself. I hope one day to get over there to see for myself the countryside, and to give 'ole Nessie a kiss.

Hope you get your situation remedied......

Stevo.

Answer 7

the Mira sport is one of the best ..especially the 9,7 kw version ..however you will need a plumber and an electrician ..the shower is fed by the rising main .so you will need a reasonable water pressure ...as for the electrics you will need a large cable to carry the 9.7kws ..this cable has to go back to your mains electrics and it has to have its own MCB..that's a mains circuit breaker ..this is a legal requirement and must be done by an NIC reg electrician

Answer 8

I use a Mira sport and it's very nice, it has three settings low, medium and high. The highest setting gives you a powerful jet and can be made hot or cold. You will need a qualified plumber / electrician to fit it but it's well worth it.

Answer 9

Yes - www.payaproffesionaltodoit.com will help.....know your technical limits my friend