Looking to replace bathroom and looking at shower type options. The house has a main bathroom and an ensuite. The house has a traditional boiler downstairs with a hot water cyclinder upstairs, and header tank in the loft. In the ensuite is thermostatic shower which gets hot water from the tank. It is the main bathroom we are replacing and that has an over the bath electric shower presently. Its about 18 years old so I think its a 8.5kw shower. The easiest option is just to replace the 8.5w electric shower with a new one, which leaves us a shower if the boiler breaks but we are not so keen on the electric shower unit on the wall. Just wondering what the other options are and how much work is involved. Presently there is just a cold feed into the electric shower and power. A showroom mentioned a digital shower, but I was unsure of the work involved and whether there will be any benefit / downside. Any suggestions / options would be really appreciated. Don't mind getting a plumber in if it is going to be worth it and ideal opportunity as we will be replacing tiles. But don't want to obviously change everything for a gimic and no benefit. Would having two showers running at the same time be an issue if they both took feed from the hot water etc, or is it best to stay with different types.
you can buy a *hidden* electric shower where on the wall it looks like a thermostatic
but the pump and heater gubbins are in the attic above.
Looks nice - was it worth 500 quid to me - no.
Ive just pulled the trigger on a Bristan Bliss 10.8kw. to replace my mira sport 9.5kw
I have an oil boiler - using the water from the boiler would be one of the more expensive inconvienant ways to have a shower for me.
What we did was retain the original boiler but remove the header tank, instead fitting a pressurised mains-fed system. It takes up a bit of room (fortunately we have a large garage) but it means we can run two showers at mains pressure at the same time. It wasn't cheap mind, but it means no horrible electric showers or noisy water pumps.
Some of the newer 'electric' shower units are far neater. I replaced ours with a modern one a few years ago - it's black and stainless and a fraction of the depth and size of the old 'white unit'.
I also upgraded to 10.5 KWH, but, you've got to make sure your feed cable is thick enough, and the fuse/breaker switch rated for the demand.
Given the option it would always be boiler supply for me. The digital showers as siad have gubbins hidden away in the loft, but take a long shower and it's going to cost. As also has been said if you go over 8kw you will almost certainly need at dedicated 6 or potentially 10mm core run (depending on distance) with separate breaker.
but it means no horrible electric showers
Alternative models are available.
I have an oil boiler – using the water from the boiler would be one of the more expensive inconvienant ways to have a shower for me.
can't see that being right, heating water by eletric is the most expensive way.
once i get round to fitting my oil boiler this year my showers will run of it.
Even if your boiler breaks you shouldn't be without hot water as you should have an emersion heater so can heat up a full tank of water in about 15 minutes. I'm not keen on electric sowers, they're nowhere near as good. They use more water as the supply has a lower flow rate and use a hell of a lot more energy 8.5kw is about 4 times the energy consumption as an electric oven - they're the most energy hungry device you can fit in a home. Having a pressurised unvented system is even better as your pressure will be better full stop, but before we converted our vented to an unvented we had a pump.
Also if your shower is quite old you might need to replace the electric cable supply to it, especially if you go for a higher rated shower, which depending how its routed might be a PITA. Some people run it externally, but they're huge thick grey cables and look horrendous.
Another recommendation for making sure the power cable is thick enough if you go for a higher rated shower.
I only found out, mid shower, that I had the thinner cable. Shower gel suds are surprisingly hard to get off with a towel.
Ended up with a nice rawlplug hole in my newly tiled bathroom, as the manufacturer didn't make a lower rated shower unit in the same model
Some people run it externally, but they’re huge thick grey cables and look horrendous.
Not people who have had them fitted by qualified professionals then.
I'm also confused about how something with a lower flow rate can use more water ?
They use less water as you don't turn it on and wait for the cold water to be expelled from the hot pipe work before it warms up. Shower goes on and starts pumping out hot water immediately.
I get that low power models as usually given in most houses are shit. But the higher end of the electric shower market isn't the shit storm it is at the low end and are perfectly livable unless you really insist on imitating an Amazon rain storm
Not people who have had them fitted by qualified professionals then.
I've seen lots of horrednous installations carried out by proffessionals. What make you think all professionals are 1. competent and 2. give two hoots about aesthetics over just getting the job done as easily and quickly as possible? They're not going to be too keen in spending hours trying to thread a cable through walls and floors, probably having to chase cables into walls, to get to your consumer unit, they'll just drill a hole in the wall and route it externally. Job done, move onto the next job. Minimal effort, maximum value.
I’m also confused about how something with a lower flow rate can use more water ?
For us baldies (not sure about your follicle status, but i'm certainly challenged in that area) it doesn't, but sharing a house with three long haired ladies then having a lower flow rate means ALOT longer in the shower to wash shampoo out of their hair compared with a shower that has a higher pressure and therefore flowrate. Higher flow rate equals shorter shower which consumes less water. I use an electric shower at work when I cycle in and even me with my lack of hair, I spend longer in those weezy crummy showers just to wash off soap off my body compared to a shower at home. Also in the winter when the water coming into the house is a few degrees colder the pressure at the shower head is even more restricted as you get the double whammy of the unit having to heat up colder water and people often wanting a hotter shower in winter.
They use less water as you don’t turn it on and wait for the cold water to be expelled from the hot pipe
Unless you live in Chatsworth House and your bathroom is diametrically opposite the hot water cylinder with a few miles of pipework between it an you, then you're talking seconds...anyway even with an electric shower you have to wait a few seconds. It takes similar time with an electric shower for the heating element to warm up and start heating water flowing through an electric unit...you don't get instant hot water with an electric shower. In my home my cylinder is positioned next door to my bathroom so only 10 feet or so of pipework to purge which takes literally about 15 seconds before the hot water starts coming through. Going to depend on the individual house layout of course.
I get that low power models as usually given in most houses are shit. But the higher end of the electric shower market isn’t the shit storm it is at the low end and are perfectly livable unless you really insist on imitating an Amazon rain storm
My shower at home doesn't imitate an Amazon rain storm, no massaging power shower head, just has decent pressure equal to mains pressure, enough to have a very quick shower. The less time I spend in the shower in the morning is a few extra miniutes in bed!!
To be fair i've not experienced the latest and greatest in electrc shower technology and i can accept they're better than the 'standard' ones....but you're starting from a pretty low base so easy to improve upon....but I suspect you can only get over the problems by MORE POWER (in my best Jeremy Clarkson voice), which just means more electrical consumption and higher costs. I think better showers are now around the 10KW range instead of 8.5KW, which was considered powerful when i were a lad, but probably now just an entry level 'crummy' shower.
Go on. perhaps i'm being a bit too unfair...i grew up in a house with an electric shower and it was perfectly adequate for years, but it's just one of those things where if you have an alternative and better option then why wouldn't you utilise it?
I have Mira digital showers in my house. The main benefits for me are as follows
1. Installation simplicity. All the gubbins is in the loft so it was super simple for the plumber to fit and if they ever fail, it’s a 5 minute job to swap them out with a replacement
2. The feed pipe to the shower is also the shower rail meaning the feed comes through the ceiling (it doesn’t look shit I promise) so there’s nothing at all behind the tiling. This made the tiling easier (I diy’d That)
3. You can set it to limit the flow - I’m a baldie so have it on eco.
4. In use, the best bit is that you press “on” and within a second you have water at precisely your chosen temperature. No fiddling around with a thermostat and wondering if you’re going to freeze or be burnt to death. Just perfect, consistent temperature. I’m convinced this saves a ton of hot water
I’m quite evangelical about them really. Pretty sure I was recommended one in here many years ago, and given all the benefits it surprises me they don’t seem to be everywhere by now