Plumbing setup help and pressure issue

[rborob]

Good afternoon all,

First off I'll apologice for how much of a n00b i am when it comes to plumbing, but I'm hoping to gain a bit more of an understanding so please bear with me

So i'm having issues with my water pressure in the shower. I thought it was the hose/head but replaced these and it's still bad...comes out ok...just no force so you have to run round to get wet

Since i've always taken for granted that my water/heating has always just "worked" i'm extremely ignorant as to what I'm looking at. So here's a massively n00bish description of what I have

A dial by the door which hasnt been touched since i moved in 6 years ago (thermostat?)
A plastic tank of water in the loft
A hot water tank in the cupboard on the landing
A boiler of some sort in the kitchen next to the controls for the hot water/central heating (combi boiler?)

Not sure why we have a combi boiler AND a hot water tank since the reading I've been doing suggests the tank is superfulous

The hot water tank looks as though it has a pump coming out of it, currently set at 3 (the max?) so i'm guessing there's no way of increasing the pressure from that, but theres a valve (gate valve?) which is fully closed underneath it and I don't know why it's closed

So i guess I'm hoping someone can shed some light on what kind of system I have and maybe help me determine if it's possible to increase the pressure in my shower. I'll attach a couple of pictures of my tank in case that helps



Many thanks in advance (I warned you I was a n00b!)

Top of tank

• rborob
• 18 Aug 2016

Side of tank

• rborob
• 18 Aug 2016

 

[Dan Robinson]

That pump has nothing to do with the shower (directly).

Is the gate valve you're on about the one on the left? If so, it is the bypass and should be open a crack.

You say you have a combi boiler, but don't say what the model is. It is unlikely you have a combi boiler.

 

[Dan Robinson]

Show us a picture of the boiler and the shower.

Possibly the inlet filters of the shower are blocked.

 

[rborob]

Hi Dan, thanks for getting back, yeah the closed one (or slightly open) is the one on the left. Here's the pictures of my shower and the kitchen boiler

 

[Dan Robinson]

Your boiler couldn't be much further from a combi .

Isolate the cold and hot supplies to the shower and remove the valve to check for blockages and give the supplies a blast through.

 

[Dan Robinson]

Good shower you have there too. Worst case will be a new cartridge should the supplies prove to be OK.

 

[rborob]

Your boiler couldn't be much further from a combi .

Isolate the cold and hot supplies to the shower and remove the valve to check for blockages and give the supplies a blast through.

Hah sorry..my ignorance is probably insulting to people who know about this.

How do i isolate the shower supplies and remove the valve?

 

[Dan Robinson]

The two gate valves to the left of your cylinder.... One is pictured. The other is not.


You'll need a very thin leccy screwdriver, a Phillips driver and a torx set.

 

[rborob]

OK thanks. I'll give it a try later this evening!

 

[HERTS P&D]

If the gate valves are stiff to turn, then call a plumber in to completely drain down and fit lever vales.

Andy

 

[Dan Robinson]

I've lead a charmed life with gate valves, but sure as schit would never fit one apart from balancing valves and pump service valves.

 

[rborob]

The two gate valves to the left of your cylinder.... One is pictured. The other is not..

There is only one gate valve to the left of the cylinder, the one pictured attached to the long pipe...

 

[Dan Robinson]

Does the pipe attached to it go into the bottom of the cylinder? If so then there is another one somewhere that supplies the cold. In the loft, on the large cistern, you'll have another bunch of valves coming out of the bottom. They should do the same job. Turn them and see if that works. Beyond that I think you're in the realms of a professional.... Don't panic, we are not all bad.

 

[picasso]

Before you call in the professionals check that the loft cistern is full of water.