Showers

[Monkey 1]

The shower room is almost finished on our boat now so It's time to decide what shower fittings to use. This is completely new to me so I'm lost!

Are there any you would recommend for a narrowboat? I'm guessing a household shower wouldn't be very powerful on a boat as the water pressure won't be as high, am I right to think that?

 

[RLWP]

Our current shower is a cheapo one from B&Q and works fine. Mind you, we have two pumps, one for hot water, one for cold so flow is rarely a problem

 

Richard

[Keeping Up]

Our current shower is a cheapo one from B&Q and works fine. We have just one pump and flow is rarely a problem

[GSer]

I used a household one, the cheap(ish)'ceramic seals' type from B&Q, my pump does both hot and cold but it's a nice enough shower. I used a separate pump for the bathroom to prevent any filling up the kettle in the galley/scalding in the shower episodes.

Edited April 25, 2012 by GSer

[Guest]

The shower room is almost finished on our boat now so It's time to decide what shower fittings to use. This is completely new to me so I'm lost!

Are there any you would recommend for a narrowboat? I'm guessing a household shower wouldn't be very powerful on a boat as the water pressure won't be as high, am I right to think that?

 

 

Ours looks like ones we have had in caravans before, in fact ours needs changing (broken wall clip) and this was what I was going to get. We have no problems with flow or pressure.

 

It's supplied by two Shurflo pumps.

 

(Though seeing the posts above I may go the B&Q route too.)

[Monkey 1]

That's great thank you! Makes life easyer

 

So just a standard mixer like this should do the job?

 

I guess if the shower does turn out to be a bit weak, a new head with smaller/less holes would help perhaps. Or a better water pump.

[GSer]

Yes, i've seen that type used in a fair few hire boat installations so i'd guess they are reliable or easy to fix if broken.

[Barry]

Be careful what you buy

 

Some shower mixers are designed for the lower pressures found in gravity fed systems in houses - others are designed to be used with the higher pressures in a pumped system

 

Oh and double check when the B&Q guy tells you that what you have selected is the correct one for your needs

 

Don't ask me how I know this....

[bizzard]

Mines a watering can rose fed from a Paloma gas water heater,cheap and excellent.

[steelaway]

That's great thank you! Makes life easyer

 

So just a standard mixer like this should do the job?

 

I guess if the shower does turn out to be a bit weak, a new head with smaller/less holes would help perhaps. Or a better water pump.

 

 

 

Hi

 

I have a similar one on my boat from a single pump.

The shower head will be only a few inches above your head because of the hight restrictions and it's more than enough.

Remember to take it of in winter, they can freeze and split.

 

Alex

[Monkey 1]

Thanks for the tip Bazza, I'll watch out for that.

 

Bizzard, I like your style! That arrangement would be more than adequate for me, but my wife? I'm not so sure

 

Steelaway, I'm 6ft so i'll be lucky to get it over my head at all I'll be crouching to wash my hair, what's left of it anyway. My wife is small so she will be ok.

[bizzard]

Thanks for the tip Bazza, I'll watch out for that.

 

Bizzard, I like your style! That arrangement would be more than adequate for me, but my wife? I'm not so sure

 

Steelaway, I'm 6ft so i'll be lucky to get it over my head at all I'll be crouching to wash my hair, what's left of it anyway. My wife is small so she will be ok.

If let into the ceiling with a nice posh bezzel surround they look like a big LED light.

[system 4-50]

Is there a mixer that is good at being drained down without having to remove it?

[Dekazer]

We bought a completely normal one from B&Q, which works very well with our 1 pump plus accumulator set up.

 

Seriously though, how expensive are taps?! I almost wept when I saw the prices

[bizzard]

We bought a completely normal one from B&Q, which works very well with our 1 pump plus accumulator set up.

 

Seriously though, how expensive are taps?! I almost wept when I saw the prices

I use just one standard steam or water red wheeled gate valve,about £4 i think it was.

[Robbo]

Are there any you would recommend for a narrowboat? I'm guessing a household shower wouldn't be very powerful on a boat as the water pressure won't be as high, am I right to think that?

 

You'll have a power shower on the boat so it will be better than most home showers! Check your pump it will say how many litres a minute it can do, most shower heads will be around 10.

[dor]

Our current shower is a cheapo one from B&Q and works fine. Mind you, we have two pumps, one for hot water, one for cold so flow is rarely a problem

 

My mixer was a basic thermostatic one from Wickes. Screwfix do similar thermostatic mixers for around £30. I initially had two pumps with separate circuits for hot & cold. Problem was the thermostat couldn't react fast enough when one or the other pumps cut in. I have now linked the two sides and just use one pump (ParMax 2.9) and it is more than adequate.

 

Some shower mixers are designed for the lower pressures found in gravity fed systems in houses - others are designed to be used with the higher pressures in a pumped system

 

Although the system is pumped on a boat, I would still go for the gravity-fed lower pressure mixer not the high pressure ones as these are designed to operate on mains pressure (with a combi) which is normally much higher than boat water pump pressure.

[steelaway]

Is there a mixer that is good at being drained down without having to remove it?

 

 

 

I think the design of these mixer bars stops them emptying even when you take of the shower hose.

I know mine is always still full of water when I take it of.

 

Alex

[Monkey 1]

 

Although the system is pumped on a boat, I would still go for the gravity-fed lower pressure mixer not the high pressure ones as these are designed to operate on mains pressure (with a combi) which is normally much higher than boat water pump pressure.

 

This was my concern, I wasn't aware of gravity fed mixers, assuming all mixers had to be fitted with a combi boiler. You learn something every day

[Barry]

Although the system is pumped on a boat, I would still go for the gravity-fed lower pressure mixer not the high pressure ones as these are designed to operate on mains pressure (with a combi) which is normally much higher than boat water pump pressure.

 

Good point well made

[Bimbly1]

If you install a bar thermostatic shower, be aware that this type don't withstand prolonged freezing conditions. I have had two where the hot side inlet valve has stuck in the closed position. Once I managed to fix it with gentle persuasion; on the next occasion, (winter 20120/11), my powers of persuasion broke it for good.

 

That said, the one I have at the moment was fine over this winter, with a little heater on during the cold spells. You may remove it as part of your winterisation process if you don't live aboard.

To save water you may want to try installing a Venturi shower head handset. I have heard mixed reports, so depends on your pump setup I suspect. Where they work well, water consumption is considerably reduced.

Good luck.

Bob.

[smileypete]

I think the design of these mixer bars stops them emptying even when you take of the shower hose.

I know mine is always still full of water when I take it of.

They have internal non return valves on the H+C inlets. I'd expect if some NRVs and drain valves (washing machine taps?) are put in the pipework further back the internal ones could be removed.

 

Anyway the bar mixers are dead easy to remove for winterising.

 

cheers,

Pete.

Edited April 26, 2012 by smileypete