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 An example of a shower pump


Shower with built in pump
Water Pressure in the Bathroom
by Sam McAusland

Choosing a tap or shower for your bathroom is more than just how it looks. You need to make sure it is used on the water system it is designed for. After all you do not want to choose an expensive shower and get a trickle of water from it.

Firstly you will need to find out what kind of water system you have running in your home. Most modern homes will be running a combination-boiler, which is ideal for most types of showers and taps. However there are a lot of homes still run off a gravity water system, which would have a cold water storage tank and a hot water cylinder. There are other types of water systems in the home but for now we will focus on these two.

Combination Boiler

These are found in most homes running from mains pressure and heat the water when it is used. This way of heating your water disregards the need for storage tanks and hot water cylinders. Combination boilers are mains fed water systems which are high pressure and will totally rely on the incoming water pressure and flow to function correctly. You can use most taps and thermostatic showers on a combination boiler system.

Gravity Fed Hot Water System

These types of water systems use a cold water storage tank (usually in the attic) and a hot water cylinder (usually in an airing cupboard). The system works on stored water that provides your taps with the water needed. The pressure you will get at your shower/taps depends on the distance between the two. Water pressure is measured in bar. To work out how much pressure you have you will need to measure the distance between the bottom of the cold water storage tank and the bottom of the shower hose/tap. As a general guide every meter in distance between the two is about 0.1 bar. A thermostatic shower requires 0.5 bar (a 5 meter distance) to achieve a good head of water. If you do not have this you will need to select low pressure products or look at ways of boosting your pressure.

Ways to boost your pressure.

1. A shower pump - This is a very popular way to provide your shower with added pressure. This can be put in the airing cupboard or in the loft space.

2. A shower with built in pump - they work in almost the same way as an electric shower but have a small pump inside to boost the pressure.

I hope you found this blog useful. If you have any further questions please dont hesitate to ask us. Advice is always free