Monday, January 18, 2010

Is Bath/Shower Mixer the way to go?

Cold water suppy is a tank upstairs. Hot water supply is a Brittony Water Heater in the kitchen which supplies kitchen and bathroom.Is Bath/Shower Mixer the way to go?
Usually cold water to the kitchen and bathroom basin tap will come straight from the mains. The cold water tank will usually supply the bath and the hot water system. This means that hot and cold water both enter the bath at the same pressure and make a mixer shower more practical. As you have a hot water heater rather than a hot water cylinder, this may not be the case.





To test the practicality of a mixer shower, you can get a cheap rubber mixer that has a short hose for each tap and a shower head (see below for link). If you can easily get the temperatures and pressures right with that, a proper mixer may work.





The drawback with a traditional mixer is that, because the cold water tank is usually not far above the bathroom ceiling, the pressure is quite low. If you can move the cold water tank higher in the loft, it could help a little.





An alternative would be an electric shower, running straight off the cold water main that feeds the bathroom basin. These have good temperature control, but the flow rate can decrease as the temperature rises, depending on the power of the heater.





I have seen a bath tap/shower mixer with a built in thermostat in a hotel (but nowhere else). They are available, but would not overcome the pressure problem.





You could fit a shower pump to increase the pressure. Make sure it is fitted in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions - they often have to be low down rather than in the attic.Is Bath/Shower Mixer the way to go?
Go with 10.5kw electric, as powerful as anything else and ensures you still have some hot water in the house when the boiler goes down.
Depends on how much you want to spend, but if you have good pressure coming out of your taps, then why not. it just all depends what you are looking for and the layout of the plumbing and bathroom

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