Problem with Power Shower and Thermostatic Mixer

Joined
16 Jul 2006
Messages
58
Reaction score
2
Location
Hertfordshire
Country
United Kingdom
Hi All,

For the past couple of years we've lived with a Wickes Thermostatic Mixer Shower, which to be honest was a complete waste of time as the pressure was so poor.

We finally decided to get a pump added to the system to boost the pressure. So yesterday a friend came round and installed the pump for us.

As the shower head was pretty poor we took it off to test the pump... all worked fantastic - the pressure was brilliant, heat was perfect and the mixer seemed completely fine.

However, when we re-attached the shower head the problems started... the shower just wouldn't get hot... my friend suggested that the increased pressure caused by the shower head was causing a problem for the thermostatic mixer valve, which was causing it shut off the hot flow. He suggested we try a bigger shower head which would allow more flow - which we did - but this didn't improve anything.

He now thinks we're going to need to replace the mixer unit with a non-thermostatic one.

Can anyone provide any advice on whether this is correct, or if there's anything I can do with the existing set-up to improve things?

Many Thanks.... James
 
Sponsored Links
It sounds to me like a faulty thermostat. To be frank, if it's a Wickes one, you're lucky that it ever worked.

However, are you sure that you weren't running the cistern low?

Can you provide some information? Where do the hot and cold supplies come from? If cistern/tank then how high above the shower head is the cistern? What is the make and model of pump?
 
Hi,

Thanks for the reply...

The of the showerpump is a Salamander "Right Pump" RSP50 1.5 Bar twin impeller.

The hot supply comes from the output of the hot tank, and the cold supply comes from the cold tank (which is up in the loft). The feed has been taken from the cold pipe which comes into the airing cupboard.

The shower head is in the upstairs bathroom, so there's probably about a 1.5m difference between the height of the shower head and the base of the cold tank.

Everything works with the new pump and the mixer as long as there's no shower head attached to the hose. It only runs cold when the shower head is attached.

I ran the pump today without the shower head attached for a good 15 minutes with no problems - the water was coming out a fantastic pressure, and with good heat.

Let me know if you need more info, and if I've answered these questions ok.

Many Thanks... James
 
Sponsored Links
JamesK said:
The feed has been taken from the cold pipe which comes into the airing cupboard.
This is almost certainly your problem. The reason you need to avoid this is because the cold side of the pump is capable of starving the hot side.

The correct method is to take a dedicated outlet from the cold storage cistern.

Everything works with the new pump and the mixer as long as there's no shower head attached to the hose. It only runs cold when the shower head is attached.
I haven't worked out why this should be the case, but I still advocate sorting out the cold supply before doing anything else.
 

DIYnot Local

Staff member

If you need to find a tradesperson to get your job done, please try our local search below, or if you are doing it yourself you can find suppliers local to you.

Select the supplier or trade you require, enter your location to begin your search.


Are you a trade or supplier? You can create your listing free at DIYnot Local

 
Back
Top