Walk in shower

[StuDH]

I’m having a walk in shower fitted. I’m only at the design stage and would welcome some advice.

I want a fixed showed head plus a hand held flexible spray.

I’ve been told that only one will work at a time i.e. turn on the hand held and the water is diverted from the spray head ( which makes sense ).

Is there a device available that allows both to be used at the same time. I was thinking of having some thing like this :
http://www.screwfix.com/p/salamande...ter-boosting-pump-1-6/75286?_requestid=146717.
( A Salamander booster pump from Screwfix, to increase the water flow.)

The source will be from a Worcester combi boiler.

Thanks, Stu

 

[stem]

The booster is designed for installations where the existing main water supply is poor. The booster will only increase the flow if your existing supply is less than 12 litres / minute. If it's already more than that, it won't operate.

The issue really is how much hot water can your combi boiler generate? Most are only capable of supplying one outlet at a time. Stored hot water is still the preferred solution where there could be a high demand for hot water.

 

[StuDH]

Thanks.
I've just measured the amount of hot water that my boiler can deliver; 10 Litres per minute.
I don't think an extra 2 litres per minute would justify a pump.
Looks like I'll have to get used to one spray head at a time!
Thanks, Stu.

 

[StuDH]

Hi all, I'm returning to this thread, as my plumber has been to measure for the shower with a view to giving me a quotation. He's neutral as to whether a Salamander pump would help, he takes a view similar to Stem ( above ), that it all depends on the output capacity of the Worcester boiler. Fair enough, but I've measured to output as being 10 Litres, but does this reflect my water pressure, or, the boilers ability to output?
I'm tempted to say that if a Salamander can add the extra 2 Litres, then it may be worthwhile.
The worst case is that it costs an extra £250, perhaps to do nothing, but the pump is always 'sitting' there waiting for a measure of low pressure, upon which it will try to restore some pressure.
I need the thoughts and opinions of the professionals of the forum !

Thanks, Stu.

 

[dpsservices]

You can't use a pump on a combi boiler like that

 

[dilalio]

What boiler do you have?
Look up its specs and you can find out what it will output!

 

[jeff the gasman]

If your boiler gives you 10 litres at 55c it needs to be mixed with cold to bring it to 38c so the flow will probably be nearer to 15lpm.
Don't see any problems myself.

 

[Madrab]

You need to measure your cold mains flow and pressure from a point close to where the mains enters the building, e.g. an outside tap, WM feed pipe. Get your plumber to measure that. If that's 12L/min or over then forget the pump and as @dilalio mentions find out the output of the boiler, it may only be capable of that level of output anyway.

There are several showers out there that will allow both heads running at once even at lower pressures/flows - the Mira Pronta+ ERD is one. Not cheap though.

 

[StuDH]

Thanks for the replies.
The boiler is a Worcester Greenstar 30Si
This is from the instruction manual ......
'Domestic hot water specific rate - 30 degrees C rise 14.3 l/min '
'Max. domestic hot water flow rate - 40 degrees C rise +/- 15% 10.8 l/min '

I tested the output from our cold tap - very near to where it enters the building - at 10 l/min

Thanks, Stu

 

[stem]

You can't use a pump on a combi boiler like that

Yes you can, it is specifically designed for this purpose. The manufacturers specification states "Boosts the incoming mains pressure to combi boilers" I think you are confusing it with a pump designed for stored hot water which is a different beast.

 

[Doggit]

The problems with the shower head system. The valve will direct the water to the head, or the handset, but not both at the same time, you need to look for a shower tower with a multi position control. Maybe something like this as a starting point.

https://www.victorianplumbing.co.uk/vesta-round-head-multi-function-shower-column-white

 

[Madrab]

Your current flow level, given the output of the boiler, mains flow, resistance of pipe run and outlets, is within spec for you boiler. Do you know what the dynamic pressure is? that'll define if that rate can be sustained when the cold is used at the same time as the shower. If above a couple of bar then that should be enough to give you a more than adequate shower.
Therefore back to my original post - there are showers out there that will allow both outlets to be on at the same time.

There are several showers out there that will allow both heads running at once even at lower pressures/flows - the Mira Pronta+ ERD is one. Not cheap though.

 

[StuDH]

The problems with the shower head system. The valve will direct the water to the head, or the handset, but not both at the same time, you need to look for a shower tower with a multi position control. Maybe something like this as a starting point.

https://www.victorianplumbing.co.uk/vesta-round-head-multi-function-shower-column-white

Thanks. I've been looking at the Mira Pronta+ ERD as suggested by Madrab in a previous post.

 

[Madrab]

There are others available of course and again, get your water supply checked to ensure you have an adequate supply. The Mira is an excellent shower and does work at lower pressures on both outlets but can be a little weak, ideally you want a good supply to it for max effect.
I do wish some would read posts first before adding in though, would save a lot of effort

 

[StuDH]

Your current flow level, given the output of the boiler, mains flow, resistance of pipe run and outlets, is within spec for you boiler. Do you know what the dynamic pressure is? that'll define if that rate can be sustained when the cold is used at the same time as the shower. If above a couple of bar then that should be enough to give you a more than adequate shower.
Therefore back to my original post - there are showers out there that will allow both outlets to be on at the same time.

Dynamic pressure? Is that when the water is moving? how can it be tested?

Thanks, Stu