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Plumbing

Low hot pressure from shower outlet on mixer tap

Anonymous user 28/02/2024 - 3.18 PM

We have a gravity-fed plumbing system in the house. We have a mixer tap attached to the bathtub, with an outlet on the top of the tap for the shower hose. Whilst the hot water pressure in all taps (i.e. bathtub taps, bathroom sink taps and kitchen taps are fine) the hot water pressure is low when being diverted to the shower hose. The result is that: 1. The hot water pressure is overpowered by the cold water pressure when using the shower only. 2. This means that we have to turn the hot water tap fully on and turn the cold water tap by only a fraction to get the right temperature. However, the resulting water pressure is not enough to have a good shower. The aim is to have the right temperature water with a really good pressure of water. My questions are: 1. Is there a fix for this without making major changes? (e.g. tighten/loosen a nut somewhere). 2. If new equipment is required, what are the best options? (e.g: a.Will a thermostatic tap solve the pressure problem?, b. I could get an electric shower that runs off the cold water feed, c. Potentially a water pump (but expensive option)). Thanks for your advice in advance. Prash

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3 Answers

Martin House Plumbing Services

Rating: 4.8 out of 5
Lymington
Hi. It sounds as if your bath cold water is mains fed & as such a BSM should never have been fitted. It is not only dangerous but illegal to do so as it presents a very real & immediate danger of scalding. If you can get sufficient flow using hot water only from the shower head (not while in the bath) then it may well be practical to supply the cold to the bath or the bathroom from the tank. Whilst in some cases this can be a major job, in others it can be relatively simple, so I'd certainly look into the practicality of doing that. Whilst plumbing wise fitting an electric shower is usually quite straightforward, the electrical side of things isn't, especially if there has not been one fitted in the past, & this can lead to needing a whole new electrical consumer unit to cope with the additional load, installing heavy cables & so on. Then you have the electric to pay for which'll have your meter spinning like a top. If at all practical I suggest you go for the tank fed cold option & preferably just to the bath tap. If you still have an old galvo tank in the loft then that would usually need changing in order to do this for a variety of reasons. However, if this is the case then it will be well overdue for replacement anyway & so may be time to weigh up your system options as a whole. If the tank is plastic, GRP or even asbestos, then it should be possible to get a connection for a cold supply without too much trouble, & if you're lucky an easy to isolate bathroom/bath cold water pipe. I hope this helps.
Answered13 November 2016
3

LockFit Romford

Rating: 4.8 out of 5
Romford
In answer to your questions no there is no nut to tighten. The reason is because of the different pressures supplying the shower hose. I suggest either an electric shower or a water pump.
Answered27 January 2016
2

MA4 Plumbers

Rating: 4.9 out of 5
Clapham Junction, London
It seams that the pipe work is little messy there. If the cold water at the shower is supply directly from the main, get an electric shower. Tiziano
Answered3 February 2016
1