Hello everyone
Background
I currently have a power shower which is fed by the hot and cold tanks in the loft. It's not ideal because our boiler is very old and inefficient and also the tank quite small so we have to wait a while for it to heat up again before someone else can use the shower.
Today the shower has started to play up, after i turned it off, a few minutes later the pump turned itself on (the solenoids didn't open so no water came out).
I turned it off at the isolator (which i normally forget to to) and turned it on a while later, after a few minutes it started running the pump again
Solution
Thinking about getting an electric shower, As we are just about to start re-doing the bathroom anyway so it seems like the (almost) ideal time to change. The electric shower would solve the problem of having to wait for the water to heat up.
(i know it'll probably cost more in electricity than it currently does in gas, but to be honest im happy to pay that bit extra for the convenience).
The one i'm looking at is a Bristan Bliss, i've heard some electric showers don't have good flow rate but this one has good reviews so i'm fairly convinced
The other option would be a mixer, but this would bring back the problem of having to wait. Also as i live in a bungalow i've been told it won't have very good flow due to the tanks being only about 5ft above the shower.
I could get the boiler replaced with a combi but thats a lot of cash, and apart from the shower it doesn't really get used
(cold fill washing machine and dishwasher and a woodburner for heating)
The problem with the solution
The electric shower i've been looking at (and most others for that matter) some in 8.5 KW 9.5 KW and 10.5 KW models, with only a small increase in price between them.
At the moment there is a slight 'feature' of our electrics that when a big load is switched on (kettle, iron, washing machine etc) that the halogen lights dim just a tiny bit, not an issue for us. We had the electrics inspected before we moved in and were told any problems were fixed (a few cracked junction boxes, corroded sockets and the like were all that were reported)
With these electric showers drawing 37 - 46 amps dependant on model, i can envisage some greater problems occuring.
Additionally our main incoming fuse is 60 amps, so with the shower on and a coincidence like the oven, dishwasher or washing machine heating at the same time, this fuse could potentially blow?
The question
Do i really need a 9.5 or 10.5 kw shower when an 8.5 kw will do fine?
Also ... what should i do about the 60a fuse?
Background
I currently have a power shower which is fed by the hot and cold tanks in the loft. It's not ideal because our boiler is very old and inefficient and also the tank quite small so we have to wait a while for it to heat up again before someone else can use the shower.
Today the shower has started to play up, after i turned it off, a few minutes later the pump turned itself on (the solenoids didn't open so no water came out).
I turned it off at the isolator (which i normally forget to to) and turned it on a while later, after a few minutes it started running the pump again
Solution
Thinking about getting an electric shower, As we are just about to start re-doing the bathroom anyway so it seems like the (almost) ideal time to change. The electric shower would solve the problem of having to wait for the water to heat up.
(i know it'll probably cost more in electricity than it currently does in gas, but to be honest im happy to pay that bit extra for the convenience).
The one i'm looking at is a Bristan Bliss, i've heard some electric showers don't have good flow rate but this one has good reviews so i'm fairly convinced
The other option would be a mixer, but this would bring back the problem of having to wait. Also as i live in a bungalow i've been told it won't have very good flow due to the tanks being only about 5ft above the shower.
I could get the boiler replaced with a combi but thats a lot of cash, and apart from the shower it doesn't really get used
(cold fill washing machine and dishwasher and a woodburner for heating)
The problem with the solution
The electric shower i've been looking at (and most others for that matter) some in 8.5 KW 9.5 KW and 10.5 KW models, with only a small increase in price between them.
At the moment there is a slight 'feature' of our electrics that when a big load is switched on (kettle, iron, washing machine etc) that the halogen lights dim just a tiny bit, not an issue for us. We had the electrics inspected before we moved in and were told any problems were fixed (a few cracked junction boxes, corroded sockets and the like were all that were reported)
With these electric showers drawing 37 - 46 amps dependant on model, i can envisage some greater problems occuring.
Additionally our main incoming fuse is 60 amps, so with the shower on and a coincidence like the oven, dishwasher or washing machine heating at the same time, this fuse could potentially blow?
The question
Do i really need a 9.5 or 10.5 kw shower when an 8.5 kw will do fine?
Also ... what should i do about the 60a fuse?
