Shower Problem

[Orior]

Showers will always run slower when on a high setting as the water has to be heated first, whereas when its in cold setting its just coming straight from the pump.
Have you a problem with Lime in the water? Check the bottom of your kettle and it will tell you if you have a lime problem.

I was going to say that about the lime, we had very hard water in the last house and caused an awful build up in the show head.  Take it off and descale or just scrap if off.

Putting the shower head in a bowl of white vinegar overnight will descale it.

How much do you charge for doing that?

Yes, see how Laoislad turns a Problem into an Opportunity.

[Tony Baloney]

Mains pressure has nothing to do with it unless your shower is connected to the mains supply, which it shouldn't be. The pressure is determined by the height of your attic tank and by the pump in the shower unit.

As Laoislad says, the flow has to decrease the hotter you want it. That's how it works. The longer the water stays in touch with the heating element (i.e. the slower it flows) the hotter it gets.

Slightly off-topic (apologies theskull1) : am looking to replace our electric shower - what make / model would ye gentlemen recommend? So far I'm hearing that Triton / Mira are the best around?

They're all shite, for the reason above. You can't get good pressure and high temperature. The best answer is a shower pump fitted in the hot and cold supply lines. They cost upwards of €500 plus whatever your plumber charges for house calls. But even a one-bar pump will give you good shower pressure. A three-bar will skin your back. You should be able to see them demonstrated in one of those bathroom supply showrooms.

Edit: Correction on the price - that's what I was quoted recently when inquiring about replacing ours. I see you can get 2-bar pumps on line for as little as Stg£165 for a positive-head (for use in ordinary houses where the shower is below the tank) twin-impeller (pump both hot and cold water, which is what you want). I don't know how good these particular ones are. http://www.plumbworld.co.uk/standard-use-shower-pumps-1655-0000

There is an electric shower in the home place and it's useless. You need pressure from either a pump or a pressurised/unvented water system in the house as we have. Pump is obviously easiest to retrofit.

[mournerambler]

We had problems at home with silt in the water lines as well as lime, blocking the shower.
Clean the shower head with lemon or vinegar as described above.
You can clean the filters in these Mira showers, but make sure you turn off the water for the shower where its coming from your tank in the attic. Thers should be a stop tap on the pipe coming from the bottom of the tank. Shut the power off to the shower before you open it.
You will need a Philips screwdriver to open the shower and  may need a vice grips to open the filter.
Some water will spill out but if you have turned off the water it should stop after a few moments.

electric showers are fed from the mains & not from the storage tank, therefore turn of the mains supply where it enters the property.

Mains pressure has nothing to do with it unless your shower is connected to the mains supply, which it shouldn't be. The pressure is determined by the height of your attic tank and by the pump in the shower unit.

your electric shower MUST be connected to the mains supply.

[The Real Laoislad]

We had problems at home with silt in the water lines as well as lime, blocking the shower.
Clean the shower head with lemon or vinegar as described above.
You can clean the filters in these Mira showers, but make sure you turn off the water for the shower where its coming from your tank in the attic. Thers should be a stop tap on the pipe coming from the bottom of the tank. Shut the power off to the shower before you open it.
You will need a Philips screwdriver to open the shower and  may need a vice grips to open the filter.
Some water will spill out but if you have turned off the water it should stop after a few moments.

electric showers are fed from the mains & not from the storage tank, therefore turn of the mains supply where it enters the property.

Mains pressure has nothing to do with it unless your shower is connected to the mains supply, which it shouldn't be. The pressure is determined by the height of your attic tank and by the pump in the shower unit.

your electric shower MUST be connected to the mains supply.

I'm no Plumber but I do know showers like the Triton T90 are fed off the tank in the attic as they have their own internal pump in the shower itself.
I'm not sure about the Mira but the T90 does, whereas the Triton T80 hasn't a internal pump and is fed off the mains supply.
A shower like the T90 therefore can have its water supply cut by turning off the valve on the feeding pipe from the attic tank.

[theskull1]

I'm no plumber either as I'm sure you've all worked out 

[Orior]

Here's my story of shame.

My Triton electric stopped working after Christmas - it was sending through cold water only. I thought it was fecked, so having just completed a 3 mile jog, I hopped in the bath.

The bath emptied my hot water tank. It was then I discovered that the mains had been switched aff, and I'd used whatever water I had in the hot and cold storage tanks.

D'oh!

[Ulick]

Have Mira showers myself.

If the cold water is coming though at full power and given that an electric shower works off the mains, then it's very unlikely you have a problem with water pressure. The shower will only output water which has been heated to your chosen temperature, so the problem is that enough water is not being heated quick enough by the shower. If this is a new problem with your shower it would most likely indicate an issue with the heating element inside. Mira are very good at standing over their products. I had a problem with a shower element a few years back and they had someone out with me within a few hours. There's a helpline number on their website. Call that and they'll send someone out to check the shower. If it's still within warranty or guarantee period it'll not cost anything. 

One other thing to check is the wiring between the shower and your fuse box. Mira Sports are rated at 10.8kW which means you should have 16mm cabling. If you have anything less it's possible the shower isn't operating on full load.

[Doogie Browser]

You lads all need a good red ring, the best job, or so I am told 

[theskull1]

You must be the giver in the relationship then DB? 

[The Real Laoislad]

One other thing to check is the wiring between the shower and your fuse box. Mira Sports are rated at 10.8kW which means you should have 16mm cabling. If you have anything less it's possible the shower isn't operating on full load.

Wouldn't make the slightest bit of difference,the shower will run at the one load regardless of cable size.
The difference will be if you use something like a 6sq cable for something like a 10kw shower the cable will overheat as its only rated to take a certain amount of amps so you run the risk of a fire due to the cable melting etc,it won't make the shower run any slower.
Unless of course you factor in Voltage drop on the line but this only comes into effect over extreme distances between the supply source and the in this case the shower.
In theory you could run the shower with a 2.5 cable but it would not last very long!

So while you are right at 10kw he needs something like a 10sq cable I doubt its the cause of the problem ,I think 16sq is overkill btw as most houses the length and breath of the country only have a 16sq and sometimes less supplying the whole house..well in the Republic anyways.

[Minder]

We have an AquaLisa shower and have to say you couldn't beat it. Cost a fair few quid though.

[Ulick]

One other thing to check is the wiring between the shower and your fuse box. Mira Sports are rated at 10.8kW which means you should have 16mm cabling. If you have anything less it's possible the shower isn't operating on full load.

Wouldn't make the slightest bit of difference,the shower will run at the one load regardless of cable size.
The difference will be if you use something like a 6sq cable for something like a 10kw shower the cable will overheat as its only rated to take a certain amount of amps so you run the risk of a fire due to the cable melting etc,it won't make the shower run any slower.
Unless of course you factor in Voltage drop on the line but this only comes into effect over extreme distances between the supply source and the in this case the shower.
In theory you could run the shower with a 2.5 cable but it would last very long!

So while you are right at 10kw he needs something like a 10sq cable I doubt its the cause of the problem ,I think 16sq is overkill btw as most houses the length and breath of the country only have a 16sq and sometimes less supplying the whole house..well in the Republic anyways.

Was thinking that but thought I'd throw it into the mix anyway.

[Doogie Browser]

You must be the giver in the relationship then DB? 

Better than taking!  Seriously my spark always said the redring showers were the daddy-o of electric showers.