Modern electric showers any good?

Hi Peter.

It's a bit subjective - what's 'good' for one person might not be good for others.

But, a 10.5kW jobbie will certainly be noticeably better than the old 7.5kW unit - around 40% better flow? But an electric shower can only ever heat 'so' much water, so one 10.5kW make won't be noticeable different from another 10.5kW unit.

Or, to put it another way, assuming your old 7.5kW shower was working as it should, then a NEW one of the same size wouldn't be any better in terms of flow. You need - as you know - to increase the power.

So, electric showers are limited by their power rating. Newness will make no difference. (Tho' better designs of shower head might make they feel 'better').

I think it really comes down to what they want their shower for - how often it's used and whether a quick shower or an invigorating splooosh is what they want.

A 10.5kW leccy shower will give them an adequate shower any time they want. I doubt they ever go "OOooooOOOhhh - that's goooood!" when having a shower, but it'll get them wet and warm and clean.

Conversely, a shower mixer (and thermostatic is usually a sensible idea) can give you as good a shower as you want. But, that will come down to how suitable the plumbing is - does water GUSH out the bath taps when they're opened? How high up is the cold tank above the shower head height?

Will a pump be required (usually costly)? (Although you can get neat shower units which have small pumps built-in to them - they are a very good compromise).

Best advice, I guess, is to call in a couple of plumbers to survey the house and advise. Listen carefully to what they say (they may be biased...) and ask as many Qs as you can based on the above.

Keep us posted

 

The most important thing you need to consider if your going to upgrade to a 10.5 Kw shower is what size cable is suppling the existing shower if its only 6mm you will also need to upgrade the cable to 10mm. How easy is it to do that without a major upheaval?

 

Pfffft - Peter knows this...

 

Could be complicated either way. For me going the electric route is probably best, plus your Mum will be familiar with their style of operation

Upgrading the cable to 10mm could be straight forward, pull the old cable out, pull the new cable in at the same time.

Worth checking your cold water flow rates with the shower spec, no point in going for a 10.5kw if a 9.5kw is enough for your flow rate.

Spend the extra and get a thermostatic controlled electric shower.

Make sure you have a 30mA RCD in your consumer unit, you'll need to upgrade the mcb as well probably.

 

Cool.

If the old shower gave 'low pressure' warnings, then - as GiF says - the mains pressure should be tested. If it's too low for a leccy shower (that's very low...) with no real prospect of having it sorted, then that would point the way to a thermostatic shower coming off your stored supply.

However, I suspect your mains water supply is actually perfectly fine for a 10.5kW leccy shower, in which case what you say makes sense - your mum is used to this, and will even notice a distinct improvement.

But - check it first.

It's the simpler option, no question - it just needs that cable and stuff upgraded.

 

Have you looked at something like the Mira Event - the type that has it's own in built pump? Can be a good compromise especially if your mother has a cylinder of hot water. Just a thought.

 

Yup, these are good (and I - cough - did refer to shower units with wee built in pumps above... )

They work a treat, give a very decent shower (faaaar better than instant electric) and are simple to install. They also look pretty much identical to instant leccy showers and are as easy to operate, so 'mum' will find it a good replacement should you decide to go this way.

If you always have loads of stored hot water and want a better shower than an I-E type, then it's a cracking option. Also you won't need to upgrade your wiring or necessarily even change it - just replace the MCB for a 5A jobbie (they usually use a transformer near the unit as they are very low voltage.)

 

Rule of thumb method.
If you FULLY turn on the cold wash hand basin tap then look for a visible reduction in the flow when you flush the WC.
If you did notice a reduction?
If you did, then you haven't got enough cold water mains pressure for a electric shower.

Too many of these electric showers are fitted with insufficient water pressure and are be leagued with problems for ever more.

 

I've used them on occasions, and whilst they do 'whoooosh' inside, it isn't a noise that's intrusive. I'd imagine the Mira Event to be pretty good in this regard (I know my bro has one and loves it.)

Yes, the water supplies would need to be balanced - so a cold water supply from the storage tank. A flange in your cylinder is a possibility, but I think in most case you'll get away without one - they don't suck that much water.

How high above your hot cylinder is the CWS? And where is the shower in relation to this?