New electric shower or replace with mixer shower?

Question

I've recently bought my first house & the electric shower has started to smell like burning. I've turned it off & won't be using it.

I've never had an electric shower before, would it be a costly job to replace the electric shower with a mixer shower?
If it matters the shower is at the opposite end to the bath taps.

If I was to replace the electric shower, it's a Triton 3+ 9.5 watt. The new ones I've seen in my budget are 4.5 watt, would this have a, lot less pressure than my current one?

I'm on a budget & have no idea about these things so which option would be cheaper to install & also cheaper to run long term?

Thank you

Neil · Accepted Answer

Hi Sarah,
Electric Shower,
Firstly, the shower most certainly shouldn't smell, it could be a fault within the shower or incorrectly rated supply cable? The cost of running an electric shower is undoubtedly more than a standard mixer arrangement. Try not to mix up pressure and the rate of flow. The higher the wattage the more water can pass through and be heated to the required temperature. When you turn cheaper electric showers to cold the flow often increases, the higher the wattage the less this would be. More wattage the higher the cost of the unit and the more costly to run.
Standard Mixer arrangement.
Are much cheaper to run of course, but the installation is often more costly. Other things to consider are:;
Is the wall tiled? as they would have to be disturbed.
The age and efficiency of your boiler..
Can you achieve the desired head pressure.
Lots to consider, apologies that I couldn't provide you with a definitive answer.
Regards
Neil

Chris · Answer

In my opinion having an electric shower is good to have. If your boiler breaks down then you have the electric shower as a back-up

Justin · Answer

You should be fine with the downgrade in power output. Anything more than 9.5kw would need an upgrade to the power supply.

Redford · Answer

Hi Sarah, 

My advice would be to change it to a conventional shower. The cost can vary due to location of hot water pipe, hot water pressure etc.

Electric showers trnd to perform better the higher wattage but with higher wattage comes thicker supply cable.

Carl · Answer

Hi, so to place to a thermostatic mixer from your bath taps is a medium sized job. The pipe work needs to be behind/ in the wall so this will
Need chasing out and plastering, then tiling or mermaid board covering the splash zone. These showers are great. However if your boilers has a fault there is no hot water. With electric showers you always have a back up. Replacing the shower for another electric shower is a much cheaper option rather than than a thermostatic shower.

Steven · Answer

Hi.

Personally I would recommend a mixer shower there are things to consider like you water pressure is it adequate to run a mixer shower ? Do you have a combi boiler ? Mixer valve itself approx £100 then just need to connect onto a hot and cold pipe under the bath . Half a day's work in total. 

There maybe no alternative but to have an electric shower if the water pressure is low. If this is the case then you need to get a shower that has the same KW rating as the existing otherwise costly electrics will need to be carried out.

Regards Steve

David · Answer

Hi it will be the same cost to replace if you fit a new electric shower your self you can get the same one that you want always try to fit the exact same shower as all the pipes and electrics will fit make sure you turn the electric off and when you  fit the new shower you need to prime the shower with water with out the shower head on as you will damage the shower safety valve if you don’t do this.

Lewis · Answer

I would recommend you replace like for like as you will have the right cable already fitted for you watts and you would waste your money getting the 4.5 one

Daniel · Answer

This would depend on your water pressure as a electric shower has a pump in it for pressure. If you have good pressure in your taps, a bath/shower mixer would be ok and you can pick one up for a lot less than an electric shower.

Justin · Answer

Hi Sarah,

The simplest option is to replace like with like. If you go for a lower wattage shower then its performance will be less than your current shower. 

Theoretically you could change to a mixer shower. However, there are a many variables which would need to be assessed, such as hot and cold water pressure; the kind of hot water system you have; location of pipes; type of mixer shower; wall construction and more. In my view a mixer shower will almost certainly me the more expensive option.

I hope this helps.

New electric shower or replace with mixer shower?

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