Replace power shower with electric shower

D

dillons

Registered User
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Hi,

I recently got a Mira Event XS power shower fitted in my en-suite, I got a handyman to do this & he wired an on/off switch (like a light switch) to the wall behind shower.
I'd now like to replace the Mira power shower with a Mira or Triton electric shower because the power shower is so powerful (really great) that it empties the hot water tank before I'm even finished 1 shower & there are other people living in the house.
My question is, given that the wiring was done for the power shower, is it a big job to replace it with an electric shower or does additional wiring still need to be done back to the board because it's an electric shower?

Thanks,
Sharon.
 
I'm not an expert, but I'm pretty sure you need far more substanial wiring for the electric shower (floorboards up etc).

You could just try having shorter showers, we manage fine with 5 in the house but generally don't spend an age in there.....think of the environment. Plus you will find it really hard to get used to the lower pressure, fells like a drip after being used to a power shower!
 
The original electrician may have used heavy guage wiring so that the shower could be changed at a future date. If you can take a look at the wiring, if it's 6 mil t&e (twin conductors and earth) or 10 mil, then you're set. For reference, standard wiring to an electrical socket would be 2.5 mil. If you're going over 10kW, you'll need 10 mil cable.
Leo
 
dillons said:
I'd now like to replace the Mira power shower with a Mira or Triton electric shower because the power shower is so powerful (really great) that it empties the hot water tank before I'm even finished 1 shower & there are other people living in the house.
.
Click to expand...

Hi Dillons,
I have a suggestion rather than a solution for you: A similar thing was happening to me with not enough water, I reported it to the plumber (it was a new build at the time) and he came and altered something and now have loads of water. Unfortunately I was not there and do not know what he did, but he was only in the house for about 5 mins so can't have been anything major.
Also IMO when you get used to a power shower very hard to go back to electric.
 
I would think carefully about this one, I installed power shower last year and have never used the electric shower since. Not even sure if it still works, couldnt get used to it compared to power shower, takes soooo much longer to rinse hair, obviously this only relates to people with long hair. But I think the best solution ever if you had the room and could do it is to have both units in the one shower cabinet if you only have one, then you have the best of both worlds, if no hot water in tank, you can use the electric shower. Friend of mine did this when building house, made larger than normal shower and installed tank fed shower & electric shower.
 
pator said:
Hi Dillons,
I have a suggestion rather than a solution for you: A similar thing was happening to me with not enough water, I reported it to the plumber (it was a new build at the time) and he came and altered something and now have loads of water. Unfortunately I was not there and do not know what he did, but he was only in the house for about 5 mins so can't have been anything major.
Also IMO when you get used to a power shower very hard to go back to electric.
Click to expand...

Thanks for all the replies & suggestion.
I'm really interested if anyone has any ideas on what pator's plumber may have adjusted in 5 mins to fix this. I thought the only solution would be to get a much bigger tank which is no small job & out of budget at the moment. I might have to consider getting an electric shower in the bathroom so the people in there aren't suffering from my water eating power shower!
 
The plumber may have adjusted the thermostat on the immersion element so that it heated the tank contents to a higher temperature. This would mean you'd use less of the hotter water for your shower, as more cold would be required.
Leo
 
If you have a lot of people needing to shower then you might be as well to install the electric. Installed one myself recently and it's the business, as in my house we take showers at odd times when there may not be any hot water.

Haven't noticed any problems with the strength of the flow either, but this may depend on whether you're used to a power shower or not.
 
Leo said:
The plumber may have adjusted the thermostat on the immersion element so that it heated the tank contents to a higher temperature. This would mean you'd use less of the hotter water for your shower, as more cold would be required.
Leo
Click to expand...
Yep. This is what I did and we get two\three good showers out of the hot tank now.
 
Leo said:
The plumber may have adjusted the thermostat on the immersion element so that it heated the tank contents to a higher temperature. This would mean you'd use less of the hotter water for your shower, as more cold would be required.
Leo
Click to expand...

Thanks for that, I'll see if I can get someone to give that a go. As it is currently the water runs out during the 1st shower... I do have long hair though!

Sharon.
 
Its quite easy to do, just take the lid of the immersion and you should see a arrow and degree markings. using a flat head screw driver turn to desired temperture. I think electric showers are awful and really struggle in the cold water months to heat the extra cold water and because they heat water they have a heavy duty cable that has to run back to the fuse board with its own breaker so its highly unlikely it was wired this way.
Do you heat your hot water from a source beside immersion? e.g. oil or gas boiler. if so I could give you a few tips to increase hot water supply without increasing temperture on boiler.
 
From what you say, you need an electric showerm to pump the water but not to heat it. Therefore it should be a much cheaper situation. Get a decent plumber to give you a price for an electric pump shower / not a water heated one. Unless you're a Walrus you should be able to keep everybody happy and still have enough water.. Otherwise get a bigger immersion tank as well.
 
kittycole said:
Its quite easy to do, just take the lid of the immersion and you should see a arrow and degree markings. using a flat head screw driver turn to desired temperture. I think electric showers are awful and really struggle in the cold water months to heat the extra cold water and because they heat water they have a heavy duty cable that has to run back to the fuse board with its own breaker so its highly unlikely it was wired this way.
Do you heat your hot water from a source beside immersion? e.g. oil or gas boiler. if so I could give you a few tips to increase hot water supply without increasing temperture on boiler.
Click to expand...

Thanks Kittycole. In the winter, the gas heats the water too but we always end up using the immersion as the gas never gets it very hot so any tips to improve that would be much appreciated.

Sharon.
 
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