Showers for low water flow

[laurap100]

Hi there...can anyone help me?

I want to replace my shower which has stopped working (just gives cold water) which I think is due to the water board reducing the water flow to our property. Currently I have a 10.5kw electric shower, which I had fitted just less than 2 years ago, when the previous 10.5kw shower did exactly the same thing in the summer...showed low flow, then seemed to just stop giving out hot water.

We have had some plumbers in (as we are going to do the bathroom at the same time) but each one has recommended something different relating to the shower, and now I am confused.

We have a combi boiler (Worcester Junior 28i) and one of the plumbers measured our water flow (10l min cold, 6l min hot). I have been told by this plumber that I need to get another electric shower. Another plumber told me to get a electric power shower so I presume this will run of the boiler, and the third told me to get a mixer shower (Mira Discovery).

I don't know what to do. I don't want to pay out a lot of money for showers and fitting to find out the shower is going to do the same thing the next time the water board turn the flow down (although they denied it last time I asked!)

Please help!

Laura

 

[EliteHeat]

Unless you have noticed a marked decrease in the water pressure & flow rate through your kitchen sink cold tap, it is very unlikely that anyone turned anything down.

It is more likely that the heat exchanger is scaled up reducing the flow to a dribble and stopping the shower in its tracks.

You're always going to get a better shower from a oombi than from an electric shower, even with your weedy flow rates (10l per minute is absolute borderline for installing a combi in the first place). However, many people would advise you that an electric shower is a good option since you will at least have some sort of hot water supply when your combi breaks down, which it surely will at some point.

 

[laurap100]

Thanks.

I checked with next door, and they also seem to be having a problem with their electric shower, although theirs is a 9.5kw rather than 10.5kw. Does that mean that they are less likely to have an issue with water flow?

Laura

 

[Gunslinger]

take a close look at the shower heating element if you can, i have a mira advance, and when i got it (second hand) the previous owner said they replaced it due to low water pressure and the shower not performing as it should.... well, it is working fine for me and has done for a couple of years, all i did ?...

was to take the heating tube out of the shower, and remove the element... it was choked solid with limescale, couple of hours in a container with kettle descaler sorted it out nicely

so depending on whether your in a hard water area, it could be something as simple as this .... if it is, then i'd get your combi boiler checked too for the same sort of build up



EDIT:
forgot to say, the difference between your neighbors and your shower in relation to the Kw rating will only make a small difference, the Kw rating is the power rating of the element, the higher it is then the quicker it might be able to heat the water, it should self regulate so that it has time to heat the water, in theory, the higher the rating the higher the permissible through flow rate

 

[laurap100]

Thanks for your help.

We actually live in quite a soft water area, but I'll see what the heating element looks like.

If it isn't that would you recommend a mixer shower rather than another electric (we are getting a new one anyway to go with the new bathroom) but at least it might get us through until we get the bathroom done.

 

[Gunslinger]

i'd be more inclined to try and identify what is causing the problem first, get your water board out, if there was a drop in flow and pressure, it may not be intentional. 10lpm mains seems very low to me