Electric shower

[The Medway Handyman]

Replaced an electric shower for a customer last November.

Neptune Exotic 9:5kw replaced with a Neptune Exotic 9:5kw. Exactly like for like. They bought it, I installed it.

reckons its suddenly not getting hot enough, husband thinks its fine.

It has a power selector - cold/medium/hot and a flow control.

Popped round on my way home for a quick look and on lowest flow/highest power its hot, but not quite as hot as one might expect.

If you turn the power selector to medium the water gets colder & the same happens when you increase the flow.

AFAIK the heater element(s) in these showers either work or they don't, they can't 'half' work?

Any ideas? Or is it just the female of the species feeling the cold more?

[fred]

In article , The Medway Handyman writes

Well, it is winter, but as there are 2 elements then yes, it can half work.

When you say that turning to medium makes it colder, does it go completely cold or just cooler (and properly cold when turned to the cold running setting)?

The easy way to find out it to get the client to read the energy consumed on the meter when running for a set period (say 6 mins) with the shower set to high, then set to medium. All other major appliances off and take a baseline use reading for lighting and so on.

[ARWadsworth]

But this is TMH and he likes new toys:-)

I suggest a clamp meter.

[fred]

Might be safer to leave the lid on ;-)

If it's seen as a nuisance call out, the meter approach will let him stay hands off until the client can show there is a fault (let hubby take the flak).

[ARWadsworth]

Send the hubby down to the electric meter with the clamp meter and show him how to connect it around the meter tails and how to take readings. Then you can watch the wife in the shower and use an IR themometer to take your own readings of the shower temperature.

Later you can compare notes with each other about how long she was in the shower, her views on the water temperature, the actual temperature in the shower and the readings taken on the clamp meter.

[The Medway Handyman]

Just cooler, not cold and properly cold when on the cold setting.

[The Medway Handyman]

No, not a nuisance call, just trying to help a good customer. They bought the shower, I just installed it.

[fred]

The 3 distinct temps suggest it's a cold weather thing but the meter check will confirm it. If it shows just short of a unit after a 6min run then it's fine (or rather operating to spec).

[Newshound]

Cough splutter ROFL

[The Medway Handyman]

My Guru :-)

[ARWadsworth]

Who paid for the VAT on the shower?

dennise will be fuming about that one.

[Tim]

What's the weather like down your way? Incoming water temperature makes a big difference at this time of year. Maybe the inlet temperature has just dropped?

Tim

[Gib Bogle]

I think the weight of the wife should be determined first, to determine whether or not these measures are necessary.

[charles]

[Snip]

perhaps so if you are in a town, not so in the country

[PeterC]

I ahd a Redring that blew an element. Fortunately it was in August and the

3.75kW element went so the 4.75kW element was sufficient. 'Phoned Redring tech., said what the fault was and the bod asked me how I knew! I was offered an "engineer" to fix it under warranty but I just had the new 'kettle' sent and did it myself.

So yes, it can half-work and, if the element running is about 5kW+ the water will be warm enough at low flow.

[Terry Fields]

The Triton showers here have a control that goes from [off] through [three blue sectors] then through [three red sectors]. DHW is from a plate exchanger on the heat store, fed by mains water.

To get a hot shower in summer one sets the control to the gap between the last blue sector and the first red sector. In winter, to get the same hot shower, the setting needs to be between the second and third red sectors.

No way is the incoming mains temperature constant.

Terry Fields

[Man at B&Q]

It's winter.

As you would expect.

As you would expect.

What leads you to think it's only half working?

MBQ

[Another Dave]

+1

Another Dave

[The Medway Handyman]

I know.

I did expect that.

And that.

I don't. I said that they can't half work.

[Andy Champ]

I'm in a town, and it goes up and down here. Comes of pumping it out of the Thames.

Andy