Pump for power shower cutting out

Manuel

Hi,
Lately the pump in the hot press keeps cutting out (and in and out) when I run the power shower in the en-suite. The only way to stop it cutting out seems to be to lift the shower head off and let it hang down to full length (something to do with pressure then I guess?). Once I do that I can put it back up and it seems to stay going then for the duration.

Any advice about what I could do? And if I need professional help do I need my electrician or plumber? It has worked fine since installed two years ago.

Many thanks,
/M.

ART6

Manuel wrote: »

Hi,
Lately the pump in the hot press keeps cutting out (and in and out) when I run the power shower in the en-suite. The only way to stop it cutting out seems to be to lift the shower head off and let it hang down to full length (something to do with pressure then I guess?). Once I do that I can put it back up and it seems to stay going then for the duration.

Any advice about what I could do? And if I need professional help do I need my electrician or plumber? It has worked fine since installed two years ago.

Many thanks,
/M.

The heater for your shower will be a small copper cylinder in the shower controller housing and it will have a pressure switch that will only allow the shower to turn on when there is sufficient pressure. Meanwhile, the pump may also have a pressure switch that cuts it out if the pressure gets too high. In addition, air in the system could make the pump "hunt" -- in other words pump and then not pump as it gets air in it. That would make the shower controller keep on switching off.

Having said that, I would think the best guess is associated with the shower head flexible pipe or the head itself. The spiral wound flexible pipe to the head is a synthetic rubber tube inside the metal winding, and over time it can perish so that on bends it tends to collapse and stop the flow to the head. If that happens either the pump or the heater will cut out. Hanging the pipe down might straighten it out for the time being and allow you to use the shower. The way to find out is to disconnect the pipe from the control box in the shower cubicle and then turn on the shower in the normal way. If the pump then doesn't cut out, replace the flexible pipe and/or the shower head.

Manuel

Excellent advice ART6, thanks a million.

After disconnecting the flexible pipe, on inspection it did appear to be collapsed internally near one end, and hence potentially in other places also I guess.

Shower worked fine with the pipe disconnected, so hopefully with a new pipe I'll be back in business.

Very relieved that my pump doesn't appear to be the problem after all.

Top man. Thanks again.

/M.

gsxr1

some shower mixer valves have filters in them and they need cleaned ever so often, especially on places where new building was going on in the area. .