water pressure help?/ pump on combi boiler?

[sooty795]

hi all

i have a 1935 semi detached house, and i`ve been told that to increase the pressure i`ll need to get rid of the lead pipe that supplys my home which is also a shared supply.

i have varied info on this but been told it will cost a bomb mainly because the water company will charge the earth?is this true any idea on cost?????

i currently have a very cheap combi boiler and been thinking of getting a new one, can this increase the pressure? or would it be best to change to a water tank to get the pressure up in the taps?

last question can you have a pump on a combi boiler system for a power shower as i`ve been told no?

cheers

 

[gasmick2]

hi i do not see why you think the water companies will charge a bomb as most of the work is on private ground and is your resposibillity to replace the water service if you req better pressure, all the water company will do is make the final connection to their service so yours will need separating from next doors and theirs will need making into a single service , i think it would be cheaper to both pay a part of the cost of digging out etc so both services can be laid in the same trench,
Using as tank will not make the pressure any better even if you make the w/c and the cold feed on the bath from storage, you will only make the volume of water be better and so relieving the cold main on the combi when its in use , most good fitters these days would not fit a new combi without the water pressure being ok, they should test it with a pressure gauge anyway, i would have thought it would still be cheaper in the long run to put in a new service

 

[bengasman]

Water company here charges about 500 for connection.
No, a tank will not work.
Lead pipe replaced by new pipe will not increase the pressure but the flow.
No, you can not use a pump in combination with a combi, nor a powershower

 

[corgiman]

I have installed combis with a break tank and a pump a few times

usually when a combi has been incorrectly installed on a shyte mains supply and the cost to convert back to conventional is too high.

so far no complaints, but would suggest that you get the best pump on the market as the poor thing will work its arris off

 

[bengasman]

Just advised a customer who wants a combi, she is better of with a cylinder system, much as I hate the bloody things. Ex la-flat, mains pressure sometimes below half bar. Thames water insists it has nothing to do with them. council promised to solve the problem. and they did. Sort of. Found a single impeller pump fitted in the bathroom to improve pressure on the kitchen tap. All done nicely compliant with part p by powering the pump using a trailing lead from the lounge.
Am open to suggestions. Including on how to upload a pic so you can see how the council deals with lack of pressure.
I never new that this was legal

 

[simond]

If the property can muster just over a bar static pressure over a 12hr period a suitably sized accumulator will resolve the issue and allow a combi to work properly.

No break tanks, no pumps. I cannot understand why anyone would fit a domestic break tank when there is an infinitely superior method. But then I have been saying that for a few years now....

 

[bengasman]

If the property can muster just over a bar static pressure over a 12hr period a suitably sized accumulator will resolve the issue and allow a combi to work properly.

Thanks Simon,
Accumulators are something I have never seen or worked with, any websites that give practical details? Doubt that it would work here as the pressure appears to be around 0.5 bar, going as low as 0.3 on a daily basis.
Have been told that the main problem is the poor state of affairs of Thames Water. They apparently have been fined large sums for leaking too much water and are turning pumps down to meet targets.

 

[Agile]

Grunfoss have some integrated pump/storage units for easy fitting.

An accumulator is very space hungry if its to have much capacity. Only advantage is that its quiet in operation and does not need mains power. Better fitted in an outhouse!

Few neighbours want to pay to seperate a poor mains connection and even fewer to seperate a shared one!

Tony

 

[bengasman]

Thanks Tony,

Would you have a model number or other details about combined pump dufa? Got to admit I have never come across it so far.
In the area where I work, space comes at £3000 per square metre, if not more. That would make an accumulator as expensive as the whole installation. Don’t think I will bother to propose that one.

 

[Biggles..]

Grundfos home booster- 200litre storage with pumped output. !5mm inlet 22mm outlet. Programmable output upto 5.5Bar, differential settings to ensure all outlets have 5 bar dynamic.

Just installed and commisioned one in a semi commercial property. what impressed us was on the 3rd floor of old victorian building with the downstairs taps fully open you got the 5 bar the booster was set too and 30-40 litres/min(35mm internal pipework).

its not small though at 600mm x 600mm x 1000mm(high)

 

[bengasman]

its not small though at 600mm x 600mm x 1000mm(high)

if that comes flatpacked, it could take the place of the cylinder.
are these mucho pesetas or not that bad

 

[Biggles..]

Subject to discounts, they average about the £700 mark.

 

[bengasman]

thanks for that folks, with thames water performing as it does, i can see a need for those develloping