Pumped shower systems

[tommyplumb]

Hello, first time on the forum!

I have a few questions regarding my pumped shower system. I will explain the present system.
I have a non thermostatic shower mixer made by Hans Grohe (stainless steel very nice looking) fed by a Hans Grohe pump. The pump is next to the Hot water cylinder and is fed from the Cold water storage tank in the loft and the Hot water cylinder via an Essex flange. The hot water cylinder is on the same floor as the bathroom. All the pipes connected to the shower system are 22mm.

My pump is shot and I would like to get rid of the pump and just have a simple gravity shower.

I have bypassed the pump and as I expected the flow to the shower is fairly weak.

My questions are....
1. Are the mixers and shower heads for pumped systems different for pumped and gravity systems?
2. If this is the case should it just be a case of replacing the fittings for suitable for a simple gravity fed system?

Thanks, Tom.

 

[MarkAqua]

a lot are, if not all - you have either a low pressure shower body or a high pressure body. I could be totally wrong but I would assume that you have a HP body being that it was fed via a pump and now your using it on LP.

Although if your bathroom is on the top floor and your cold water storage is only say 1.2M from the shower head its never going to be much pressure.

 

[Guest123]

Perhaps you should consider fitting a power shower, which has an inbuilt pump and will use the same pipework as your existing with a little modification. Of course it will need wired up by an electrician as well, but a good powerful option and much quieter in operation.

 

[MarkAqua]

That would be most sensible option. Am I right in thinking you dont need to run an idependant supply from consumer unit too? can be off a radial to a FS? (I'm not saying i would be wiring one I mean from a cost point of view to a customer)

 

[Guest123]

That would be most sensible option. Am I right in thinking you dont need to run an idependant supply from consumer unit too? can be off a radial to a FS? (I'm not saying i would be wiring one I mean from a cost point of view to a customer)

Yes, or if required a RCD socket. My sparks deal with that and supply the customer with a safety certificate after testing.

Most Power Showers average about 14 litres a minute flow, so a really good shower alternative than a standard pumped or gravity system.

 

[petercj]

One of the best power showers on the market: low voltage for ultimate safety and ease of fitting; delivers up to 18 litres per minute; full range of parts available from an A class manufacturer; 3 year warranty. Not the cheapest, but the best rarely is.

Aqualisa Aquastream Thermostatic Power Shower - Aqualisa available at Plumbworld

 

[tommyplumb]

Thanks for the replys chaps.

I'm pretty much 100% certain the mixer and head are designed for a high pressure system. I've measured the height from the outlet of the cold water storage tank to the shower head and it's just over 2 meters. The tank is fitted quite high and it's a tall loft, should this give good enough pressure? My pipe work is easy to acces so I might try anexperiment and by pass the mixer valve and connect a shower head directly to the inlet and see what the flow is like.
I really want to avoid pumps of any type if possible. Can anyone recommend a good low pressure thermostatic shower mixer.

 

[Shower Engineer]

Hans Grohe is a German manufacturer so it will be a high pressure fitting.

Lots of thermostatic showers are suitable for 2M head just check the instructions first.

 

[tommyplumb]

Yes it's really top notch kit, all brushed stainless steel, I'm just naffed off with the fact it needs a pump and it's not thermostatically controlled.

I forgot to mention it's also a diverter. The mixer/diverter if you are sitting in the bath is on the left, the shower exits the wall facing you and there is a spout exiting the wall in a different place. So i'll need a low pressure, thermostatically controlled mixer/diverter!!!

The reason I need to get rid of pumped systems is two fold
1. I like simplicity and gravity never fails.
2. In the winter all my hot water is heated by a wood burner which means I can't control the temp of the water as accuratly as traditional systems. Pumps don't like water much above 60deg, for some reason they struggle to pump it and it can damage them. It knackered my pump on the hot side, it pumped the hot water much slower than the cold.

never simple is it!! unless of course there is a cheap, reliable pump that can pump water effectively above 65deg?

 

[Shower Engineer]

Just fit a Stuart Turner Monsoon 3 Bar pump (best pump money can buy) and fit a blending thermostat before the pump to reduce the hot water temperature.