Its a mechanical shower which is constantly running cold. I thought it must be the mixer valve which is the lower one on the photo (which still turns easily) and I took the plate off expecting to see a brass valve held in by a couple of screws but I have this. To replace the valve should I undo the two bolts or is the plastic part removed?
I'm going to remove the cracked tile so access is not an issue.
I did email a local plumber who'd been recommended to come round but she emailed back to say showers are too complicated.
At risk of teaching Granny to suck eggs:
Questions:
Do you have a make and/or model number?
Is it a simple thermostatic mixer fed with hot and cold water at mains pressure?
If not then what?
Did it slowly fail over time or was it a sudden failure?
By what means is the water heated?
Is hot water available to feed the mixer?
If so is there any flow at all in the hot feed when running?
i.e.does it get warm/hotter when shower operated?
Is there any mechanical change/difference in the operation of the temperature setting control to indicate a problem there.
CS
Well-timed silence hath more eloquence than speech.
"A quiet shy boy who took little part in games or sport"
88 High top 2.1 WBX
I started to try to prize the plastic off but water was behind so I din't want to have it pouring out and not be able to use the bath either.
About 8 years since I bought it so can't remember the model
Gradually cooled
Just mains pressure
combi boiler
Hot water is fine to bath taps below
water is tepid so a small amount of hot is reaching
Moving the temperature lever (top) from cold to hot makes a small difference in temperature but moves freely
Last edited by Sir Brixalot on 16 Dec 2016, 22:54, edited 1 time in total.
Chances are you'll need a new cartridge, however, without a make/model number this may prove to be tricky. Showerspares.co.uk offer a brilliant service and will probably be able to recognise the cartridge from photos. Firstly, you need to remove it! Turn water off, turn shower on to drain pipe work, have towels nearby to mop up any water that will be released and figure out how to extract the offending item. Ordinarily, they're a serviceable part so it must come out easy enough with the 'right' method.
Why would the glass be anything other than half full?
Looks like you are on the way to sussing this problem but for what it is worth:
Some years ago now we replaced our, it has to be admitted brilliant, Johnson Starley warm air unit plus integral water heater with a combi boiler and rads. I can't quite remember the motivation but we were replacing our Triton electric pumped power shower parts and whole units fairly regularly due to scale.
While we were at it I fitted a I fitted a water softener. This completely solved the problem with the scale and ensured that there would be no scale build up in the combi boiler. I have never been a fan of filter/de-ionizer cartridges. The shower now just needs rinsing after use and du to the soft water is completely free from streaking. I am completely sold on water softeners for these reasons.
While on the subject I always run the shower on cold for a few seconds before switching off as I was hearing water boiling off within the unit if the shower is just switched off while running hot. This causing the element to overheat.
CS
Well-timed silence hath more eloquence than speech.
"A quiet shy boy who took little part in games or sport"
88 High top 2.1 WBX
Hi, re. The running the shower on cold before shutting down. The newer electric showers now have a run on or shut down timer to continue running gear the water through as it turns off.
