Hello. We are in a 3 storey townhouse and have a megaflo, water softener and a system boiler. Pressure and flow on ground floor is fine but bathroom on middle floor has only 3 litres per minute. It is Dornbracht stuff, had engineer visit who said should be getting 5 out of tap and rainforest shower. Mains pressure is 2.8. Our plumber said we aren't getting pressure in our bathroom because there is a pre set valve on Megaflo which is set at 3 bar. As we have under 3 it effectively can't work to pressurise our water. Anyone know if this is correct/any way around it? Or have we completely wasted our money on the megaflo. Thanks.
Megaflo
- Thread starter Froggy09
- Start date
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Pressure is not flow.
your plumber is talking shoite - or you have misunderstood him.
The pressure reducing valve on the Megaflow is just that. If there is less than 3 bar hitting it, it is not doing anything.
What is the pressure in the bathroom?
Have ALL filters been checked?
your plumber is talking shoite - or you have misunderstood him.
The pressure reducing valve on the Megaflow is just that. If there is less than 3 bar hitting it, it is not doing anything.
What is the pressure in the bathroom?
Have ALL filters been checked?
Hello,
I'm not a plumber, but I've been looking into this.
I'm assuming your cold flow is the same? I just tested our water and the pressure dropped from 3.5 to 0.4 bar as soon as you turn the taps on. So the flow is poor.
What size pipe do you have to the megaflow, and what size afterwards? Are there lots of bends etc? Friction losses are your problem more than pressure I would say. What type of house do you live in? what size is the incoming supply etc.
I'm not a plumber, but I've been looking into this.
I'm assuming your cold flow is the same? I just tested our water and the pressure dropped from 3.5 to 0.4 bar as soon as you turn the taps on. So the flow is poor.
What size pipe do you have to the megaflow, and what size afterwards? Are there lots of bends etc? Friction losses are your problem more than pressure I would say. What type of house do you live in? what size is the incoming supply etc.
Thanks for replies.
So if less than 3 bar hitting Megaflo it should still work - so we should get same pressure/flow on 2nd floor as on ground floor?
When engineer came round the pressure wasn't checked in the bathroom (only the flow). Can I/my plumber easily check pressure? Bathroom is fully tiled.
What do you mean by all the filters? In the sink and shower? He cleaned the shower ones, couldn't work out how to get into the tap (Dornbracht IMO basin mixer single sequential).
Yes, cold and hot flow the same in the bathroom.
No idea about size of pipes I'm afraid.
We're in a 60s 3 storey townhouse.
Don't know about size of incoming water, but it is 2.8 bar and pressure and flow seem good on the ground floor.
I know the IMO have flow restrictors but if we could get 2.8 bar pressure on the tap it should give us 6 lpm. When she tested it was 2, it has been slightly improved by our plumber's visit today. The hot and the cold were the wrong way around.
So if less than 3 bar hitting Megaflo it should still work - so we should get same pressure/flow on 2nd floor as on ground floor?
When engineer came round the pressure wasn't checked in the bathroom (only the flow). Can I/my plumber easily check pressure? Bathroom is fully tiled.
What do you mean by all the filters? In the sink and shower? He cleaned the shower ones, couldn't work out how to get into the tap (Dornbracht IMO basin mixer single sequential).
Yes, cold and hot flow the same in the bathroom.
No idea about size of pipes I'm afraid.
We're in a 60s 3 storey townhouse.
Don't know about size of incoming water, but it is 2.8 bar and pressure and flow seem good on the ground floor.
I know the IMO have flow restrictors but if we could get 2.8 bar pressure on the tap it should give us 6 lpm. When she tested it was 2, it has been slightly improved by our plumber's visit today. The hot and the cold were the wrong way around.
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No. As you go up the house, pressure will drop.
Oh dear.
As a plumber, that quote strikes fear and frustration. I don't give a monkey's what it "seems". "Seems" is subjective, and variable.... if I have time I post a little story later.
That would suggest kinked hoses/pipes or partially closed service valves. Maybe even clogged check valves.
You will need to measure the pressure when taps etc.,, are running.
Will pressure drop as you go up even with a Megaflo? I thought it was meant to give you equal pressure/flow throughout?
What I meant about ground floor is water is satisfactory for our needs. It is not on second floor.
Is it easy for my plumber to check service and check valves?
When you say measure pressure when taps are running - do you mean measure mains pressure? With all taps etc in house on?
Sorry clearly I am not a plumber, just trying to understand what the problem might be.
What I meant about ground floor is water is satisfactory for our needs. It is not on second floor.
Is it easy for my plumber to check service and check valves?
When you say measure pressure when taps are running - do you mean measure mains pressure? With all taps etc in house on?
Sorry clearly I am not a plumber, just trying to understand what the problem might be.
OP you need to hold the G3 unvented cert to install or work on an unvented cylinder & from what your plumber has said i really don't think he has because if you have understood him correctly then he is talking crap.
yes the pressure will be less on the 2nd floor as it's higher.
Ricky, flow & pressure are two totally different things for example someone says i've turned the pressure down on my main stoptap NO they haven't the pressure is still the same you have just reduced the flow, before installing a combi or an unvented cylinder a working pressure test should be done because as you have found out standing pressure has diddly squat to do with working pressure.
Edit.
Sorry Dan i seem to have repeated alot of what you have already said (slow typer i'm afraid).
I would hope so unless they are totally closed in - which is daft.
1 Bar is 10 metres. So going up a floor will loose you roughly 0.3 of a bar plus change. So on the second floor you can have a noticeable drop. Long pipe runs and lots of bends will reduce this further through hydraulic resistance. Pipe size will affect the volume going through at a given pressure.
It all tangles together to form the fun and games we call the plumbing industry.
Yes. Easiest way is to tee into the pipe work and put a washing machine service valve in and use a pressure testing gauge.
A permanent method and one I use on my installs is to have a tee with a fitting reducing down to 3/8" female thread and install a 0 - 6 bar pressure gauge.
Some cylinders (not Megaflow) have this thread as part of the PRV and means you can screw the gauge straight in.
A permanent method and one I use on my installs is to have a tee with a fitting reducing down to 3/8" female thread and install a 0 - 6 bar pressure gauge.
Some cylinders (not Megaflow) have this thread as part of the PRV and means you can screw the gauge straight in.
Not even the mighty Megaflow can counteract the effects of gravity!
There is normally a filter in the pressure reducing valve at the unvented. They should be serviced anually by a qualified person!
Water supply pipes usually only trap debris at the inlet to taps etc.
Stopcocks are often a major cause of flow resistance. I like to use full bore 1/4 turn valves!
Tony
Water supply pipes usually only trap debris at the inlet to taps etc.
Stopcocks are often a major cause of flow resistance. I like to use full bore 1/4 turn valves!
Tony
Don't think you would want my mileage costs 
.
Flushing the system won't do diddly... And thinking about with a softener you should get limescale building up.
If this is a relatively new bathroom my bets are still on kinked flexible hoses.
The shower should have filters on the body with are often accessed by removing the trim plate around the knobs.
Upload a picture and let us have a look.
Any plumber worth his salt should be able to get at those as long and Ichzick from Gdańsk hasn't tiled right up to the knobs themselves.
Hate it when that happens
As CBF said - the plumber should hold a separate qualification to work on Megaflows.
.Flushing the system won't do diddly... And thinking about with a softener you should get limescale building up.
If this is a relatively new bathroom my bets are still on kinked flexible hoses.
The shower should have filters on the body with are often accessed by removing the trim plate around the knobs.
Upload a picture and let us have a look.
Any plumber worth his salt should be able to get at those as long and Ichzick from Gdańsk hasn't tiled right up to the knobs themselves.
Hate it when that happens
As CBF said - the plumber should hold a separate qualification to work on Megaflows.
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