Zebra
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Ha ha. I feel for that poor zebra waiting for his or her turn in the mud patch - "How long are you going to be in there?!"LadyArowana said:
- Thread starter plasticpigeon
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DJH
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Not now dear... :shock:
Feltwell
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One other consideration is what happens if your boiler breaks down.
We have a conventional gas boiler with hot water cylinder, with no electric immersion heater - so when the boiler dies (which it has, twice :roll: ) for the 3 days that we've waited to get the right parts we've had no central heating or hot water.
In those circumstances we've been very glad of the fires in the lounge and dining room, and the electric shower - so at least some rooms are warm and you can have a hot shower!
There's no right or wrong answer here, go with what you prefer. We like our electric shower but if you do go down that route then do go for a 10.5kW or greater unit, the less powerful 8-9kW units give a really poor flow rate when it's very cold outside and the incoming water takes a lot of heating.
Bear in mind that a 10.5kW will need quite a hefty supply cable, 10mm2 I'd say - if you've a cable already in place then do check it, many older lower-rated showers were installed with a 6mm cable. It does depend on how long the run is, is the cable exposed, get a qualified electrician to advise you and do the final connection even if you run the cable, etc etc.
We have a conventional gas boiler with hot water cylinder, with no electric immersion heater - so when the boiler dies (which it has, twice :roll: ) for the 3 days that we've waited to get the right parts we've had no central heating or hot water.
In those circumstances we've been very glad of the fires in the lounge and dining room, and the electric shower - so at least some rooms are warm and you can have a hot shower!
There's no right or wrong answer here, go with what you prefer. We like our electric shower but if you do go down that route then do go for a 10.5kW or greater unit, the less powerful 8-9kW units give a really poor flow rate when it's very cold outside and the incoming water takes a lot of heating.
Bear in mind that a 10.5kW will need quite a hefty supply cable, 10mm2 I'd say - if you've a cable already in place then do check it, many older lower-rated showers were installed with a 6mm cable. It does depend on how long the run is, is the cable exposed, get a qualified electrician to advise you and do the final connection even if you run the cable, etc etc.
plasticpigeon
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Thanks Feltwell, it is definitely a 10mm^2 cable, and we have a decent electric shower, but no bath at the mo, so we are going to reorganise. I think that either will be ok, so I shall go with what my girlfriend prefers, that is usually what happens anyway!!!
MatthewC
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Well, we have a combi and have no issues with having good showers (poss 5-10 minutes each, in quick succession), so I'm not sure what the issue is that other people have.Lime said:
However, this thread is giving a very interesting insight into people's shower/bath habits 8)
Zebra
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In my flat I had the same problem with the combi. In the winter the water coming in was colder, and even when turned right up to maximum, the shower wasn't hot enough. I discovered by accident that when the cold water supply was reduced, the shower was much better - the loo was flushed when I was in the shower, which diverted cold water to refilling the cistern. I solved the problem in the end by installing an isolation valve on the cold supply to the shower, accessible from inside a cupboard, so that I could seasonally adjust the cold water supply to the shower.
Feltwell
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MatthewC said:
I quite envy those who seem to be quite satisfied with a quick shower.
It's usually 25 minutes or so for me, 20 if I rush. Same for Mrs F. One of the reasons why I wouldn't like a shower that ran from the hot water tank - I'd be frightened of it running out part way through!