electric shower warning
- Thread starter cactikid
- Start date
Wingchundub
Newbie
Never like electric showers, our is gravity feed from unvented system, nice, hot and powerful.
Something as a kid always freaked me out with electric showers, mainly water and electric don't mix, never would have one.
Hope no one was hurt from this?
Something as a kid always freaked me out with electric showers, mainly water and electric don't mix, never would have one.
Hope no one was hurt from this?
Wingchundub
Newbie
Good bloody job window in this case was closed.
pabloescaban
VIP Member
LOL
The unit would have been isolated from mains electricity as soon as the problem started and i'm talking milliseconds - I know it's a nightmare to think you'll be sprayed with electrified shards of water but this is impossible, and I mean, you have more chance of winning the lottery, ten times, in the same day - trip switches / breakers kick in instantly when the unit is in use.
this happened because of a loose connection and could have happened to any electric point anywhere in the world, regardless of whether it was a socket, light switch, consumer unit or anything else - when electricity arcs it makes heat, this is why we have arc welding - the shower unit had no power to it a millisecond after it had failed, but by this time it's too late.
looks good though, but anyone in it at the time would have long ago knobed off complaining that they had shampoo in their eyes and the shower was 'feckin freezin'
The unit would have been isolated from mains electricity as soon as the problem started and i'm talking milliseconds - I know it's a nightmare to think you'll be sprayed with electrified shards of water but this is impossible, and I mean, you have more chance of winning the lottery, ten times, in the same day - trip switches / breakers kick in instantly when the unit is in use.
this happened because of a loose connection and could have happened to any electric point anywhere in the world, regardless of whether it was a socket, light switch, consumer unit or anything else - when electricity arcs it makes heat, this is why we have arc welding - the shower unit had no power to it a millisecond after it had failed, but by this time it's too late.
looks good though, but anyone in it at the time would have long ago knobed off complaining that they had shampoo in their eyes and the shower was 'feckin freezin'
littlefoot2
Newbie
I repaired my shower yesterday, water hot and cold all week, I removed cover and found the TOC on the water outlet had burned cable, the TOC had perished due to the heat caused by the loose cable.
steptoe
VIP Member
was it the neutral that was loose.?
for some reason people dont tend to tighten them as much as the live,
I'd second @pabloescaban that it was a loose connection, see dozens upon dozens of them every year, without fail almost always on showers.
tighten it, wiggle it about, then tighten it again.
lose connections, and undersize cables, are very common.
people changing 7kW showers on 6mm cable 32amp breaker for 9kW showers and just up the breaker size to 40amp without increasing the cable size is also a common occurrence.
lotteryherd
Newbie
Gave me quite a scare.
Mike361
Newbie
It's a unit that is fed cold water which then turns it into hotwater.
frundlemud
Member
Had electric showers for years no problems. I replace mine every few years with a newer model and only use Tri#on.
Good connections, correct cable for amperage, breaker, isolator and all pipes earth cross bonded.
Not nice when they go wrong but a good make is a good start.
Good connections, correct cable for amperage, breaker, isolator and all pipes earth cross bonded.
Not nice when they go wrong but a good make is a good start.
wooshman
VIP Member
Just because you are from Canada doesn't make you backwards hahahah (sorry)
Our water is so hard with chalk and limescale our electric shower died after about a month when the pressure valve went and the water just came out the overflow which can't be reset but has to be replaced. It has built up and blocked a hole. Never again. Have a combi boiler now so loads of hot water and pressure and a lot of bottles of limescale remover for after a shower.
formandvoid
TK Veteran
You were lucky m8,I run an electrical Wholesalers and I have seen many things like this over the years and as Steptoe said it is nearly always down to the cables not being tightened up properly.
steptoe
VIP Member
Wickes own brand are simply triton rebadged, and a whack cheaper.
aldan
VIP Member
sort of like a tankless hot water heater?
steptoe
VIP Member
Yep, sort of, it's got a tiny little ( 2pint? ) tank inside with an electric heater element, similar to an instant hot water tap, Quooker being one brand of tap, but obviously not as hot.
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