replaced shower and now no pressure

[lisa2012]

Hello

I live in a modern house approx 11/12 years old.

We had a Aqualisa Aquarian mixer shower in the ensuite.

I have just changed it to a triton mixer shower.

All installed and turned it on and no pressure!!!

All the taps have pressure. Hot water and heating are working, but the water is just trickling out the shower.

Have had some plumbers out ...

Once thinks I need a power flush and a pump

the other thinks its a faulty shower.

Any ideas

 

[Armo74]

What type of system do you have?

 

[Armo74]

What reasons did they give for there diagnosis?

What model is it?

 

[TicklyT]

What type of hot water system do you have?
Combi boiler, Unvented cylinder or open vented system?

What is the recommended minimum water pressure for your new shower mixer?

Many shower mixers require a minimum of 1 Bar water pressure, but a gravity hot water system rarely delivers more than 0.2 - 0.5 Bar.

A 'plumber' that suggests powerflushing the heating system will cure a hot water pressure issue is not a plumber.

 

[calorific]

What did the installer say when (s)he installed and checked it?

 

[lisa2012]

I have a low pressure system - boiler downstairs, hot water tank in airing cupboard and then two cold tanks in the loft.

The new shower is a Triton Altair Bar Mixer.
Water pressure requirements
Running water pressure: Gravity fed - 0.1 bar min. 1.0 bar max.
Mains fed - 1.0 bar min. 5.0 bar max.
Maximum static water pressure: Gravity and mains - 10 bar
This mixer shower is designed for use with traditional low pressure ‘gravity’ water systems, using a cold water cistern and hot water cylinder as well as for the higher pressure systems found in the UK up to a maximum of 5 bar running pressure.For effective operation of the internal seals, the maximum static pressure must not be exceeded.

The first guy seemed to think that the pipes were blocked (he thinks this as the last shower wasnt used for about a year or so due to the shower try being cracked and we have only just been able to get the money together to have the tray/tiles and door replaced. - we have hard water so he is saying that the pipes will be filed with limescale - hence needing a power flush)

He also said that the pressure in the house is not good enough. ( icant see this to be fair as the the Aqualisa worked fine - it wasnt a power shower but it was fairly decent)

He said the hot water pipes in our airing cupboard are 28mm and they should be 22mm (this is have no clue as to why its a problime - my house was built by Beazer homes about 11/12 years ago - surley the building regs havent changed that much!)


The other guy says it could be a faulty shower ( he thinks this as the last one worked fine and also we have put the new one in exactly the same place - also with the new one after running for about 5/10 mins it starts to make a humming noise)

Or he says it could be that due to the fact it is fed from the wall by 15mm pipes and some showers need bigger pipes .


I have now sent them all away and am debating calling trition as they offer a free replacment/repair - however if they find out its our fault from installation we have to pay - and I have read on reviews there are very good at coming up with reasons you need to pay - and at the momemt my bank balance is screaming at me - lol

 

[Burnerman]

So long as there is a minimum of 1m (but preferably 2) between the top of the shower rose and the bottom of the large cold water tank in the loft, this shower should work fine.
Ideally it should be fed with 22mm pipes to both the hot and cold sides of the shower.
The installer should have put a full bore isolator valve on each supply pipe (22mm).
At the very last convenient point, the 22mm pipes need to be reduced to enter the shower.
Things to check: Is the hot and cold supply the correct way round?
Is there any possibility of an airlock somewhere?
If both show that alls ok there, I guess the thermostatic cartridge is faulty (even had a new Grohe like this recently).
When doing shower installs, its a good idea to open the isolators before the shower is fitted, both to clear any debris in the system and to check that the supplies are ok.
John

 

[calorific]

First thing to do is to remove it and check to see if the mesh filters have got crud in one or both of them, which is entirely possible if the pipework has been stagnant for a year or so as said. Then flush through the pipework before refitting (outlet pipe to shower head on the underside, with hot inlet on the left and cold on the right).

 

[lisa2012]

Hello - thanks for your replies - I will try them tonight.

Just been on the phone to triton and explained the set uyp etc, and they have said the maximum flow rate would be 3 liters per min.

So I am guessing if your suggestions dont work tonight then I am going to need to look at getting a pump. I am just puzzled why the aqualisa one (which was about 12 years old) works better than a new fancy modern one!

If I do go with the pump option - do I have to pull all the floorboards up etc?

 

[steve32]

The flow from your Triton shower will not be as good as an Aqualisa Aquarian


Have the non-return valves (NRVs) been removed these are not required
for a balanced gravity system and they will restrict the flow.