David Jenkins
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| posted on 6/1/14 at 11:42 AM |
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Another plumbing question!
Has anyone had any experience of these thermostatic bath shower taps?
Mixer tap
I'm guessing that it'll be a typical "you get what you pay for" job, but the big-brand-name equivalents are £250 and
upwards...
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designer
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| posted on 6/1/14 at 11:53 AM |
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You will find that most new builds are fitted with thermostatic shower taps and a set of quality taps ain't cheap.
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geoff shep
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| posted on 6/1/14 at 12:26 PM |
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Yes, I've got one of those almost identical (in function), slightly different design and the shower output is at the bottom. It is very good.
Edit: In fact - here's the one I got, a bit more but with all the shower attachments.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00593WPN8
What type of hot and cold supply do you have to your bath - and what water heating method?
[Edited on 6/1/14 by geoff shep]
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David Jenkins
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| posted on 6/1/14 at 01:21 PM |
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Thanks Geoff,
We've got cold water straight off the mains, hot water via a gas combi boiler (also at mains pressure - though regulated by the boiler - but
with no header tank of any sort).
We have a bloke coming to give us a quote for replacing the combi boiler on Wednesday, so I can talk to him about capabilities.
Everything's falling apart at once at the moment - the boiler's reached the end of its life, and the electric shower won't stay on.
I've looked inside the shower (nothing obvious), an equivalent replacement unit is £200+, and I'm fed up of having a miserably weak
shower when the incoming water is very cold (as it is just now). It's a case of getting a qualified person to change over to a new electrical
shower, or I go to a conventional mixer like the one I showed and fit it myself.
[Edited on 6/1/14 by David Jenkins]
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geoff shep
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| posted on 6/1/14 at 01:25 PM |
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That's exactly what we've got. The mixer is a straight replacement for the existing taps and the shower is great. The temperature safety
setting can be adjusted too. It also makes filling the bath at the right temperature a doodle.
I had to get a longer shower hose though as the one supplied was a tad too short - not so much of a snag with the outlet on top I guess.
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BenB
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| posted on 6/1/14 at 03:44 PM |
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Worth thinking about fitting a pressure equalising valve- they're cheap and work well. A thermo valve reacts quite slowly so if someone flushes
the toilet and the pressure drops you can get a bit burnt. I know with a combi the hot and cold should both be at same pressures already but the hot
temperature does depend on flow so I've seen set-ups where when the pressure drops the hot gets quite considerably hotter. Worth thinking about
anyway.
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geoff shep
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| posted on 6/1/14 at 04:30 PM |
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Maybe, but I've not had problem with that. The flow falls a bit if another tap gets turned on but the temp stays as it was.
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nick205
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| posted on 6/1/14 at 04:55 PM |
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David,
Same system as you, Gas combi fed by mains pressure and cold taps are direct off the mains as well.
The shower is a hose fed directly from the bath mixer and you can shower as hot as you want for as long as you like any time day or night. I
can't stand under the shower at full pressure, it's painful and it blows the shower curtain everywhere.
I didn't fit a thermostatic mixer tap as SWMBO and I are quite happy setting the taps to our preference. However with hindsight, I should have
fitted one for two reasons...
1. If someone turns a tap on elsewhere in the house it does affect the shower temperature
2. We have younger children who find it harder to set the taps and get the right temperature
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nick205
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| posted on 6/1/14 at 04:57 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by geoff shep
I had to get a longer shower hose though as the one supplied was a tad too short - not so much of a snag with the outlet on top I guess.
Same here with the supplied hose and downward facing outlet. I'm not tall at 5'10", but I would have had to kneel down to take a
shower 
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splitrivet
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| posted on 6/1/14 at 05:37 PM |
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Only thing Ive found is that the ceramic type taps need a higher pressure to operate.
When I fitted our new bathroom the water head was about 10 foot and none of the taps would work at all so ended up fitting a pump, in saying that the
shower is great now although the pump can be heard all through the house when its running.
The other thing was with the cheaper taps after a couple of years they all started dripping so had to change the cartridges but still reckon I was
quids in as they were 25% of the price of B&Q etc and whose to say the B&Q ones wouldnt have done the same they are probably the same taps but
with B&Q's name on.
Cheers,
Bob
[Edited on 6/1/14 by splitrivet]
I used to be a Werewolf but I'm alright nowwoooooooooooooo
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