Hot Water and Immersion issues in my apartment

sheroman01

The immersion switch in my apartment was sparking/not working fully for 15 days, and I was also without hot water for 3 weeks. I mentioned to the landlord that when the hot water was working, it only lasted 2 minutes in the shower, then goes cold.

The LL texted me to say that the hot water and immersion was fixed last Friday however I still have two issues:

1. When the landlord got the plumber to fix the immersion last Friday, they left the immersion on all weekend. I only arrived back Sunday night and noticed it switched on. I know it was a mistake but ultimately it's me who has to pay for this now, after being without hot water for so long. What should I do in this case?

2. The hot water in the sink in the kitchen is working fine. The hot water still only lasts 2 minutes in the shower. The LL texted me on Friday to say the hot water in the shower is working - either they didn't check, or they believe a cold shower is acceptable. How do I deal with this? Inform them again until it's fixed?

aido79

sheroman01 wrote: »

The immersion switch in my apartment was sparking/not working fully for 15 days, and I was also without hot water for 3 weeks. I mentioned to the landlord that when the hot water was working, it only lasted 2 minutes in the shower, then goes cold.

The LL texted me to say that the hot water and immersion was fixed last Friday however I still have two issues:

1. When the landlord got the plumber to fix the immersion last Friday, they left the immersion on all weekend. I only arrived back Sunday night and noticed it switched on. I know it was a mistake but ultimately it's me who has to pay for this now, after being without hot water for so long. What should I do in this case?

2. The hot water in the sink in the kitchen is working fine. The hot water still only lasts 2 minutes in the shower. The LL texted me on Friday to say the hot water in the shower is working - either they didn't check, or they believe a cold shower is acceptable. How do I deal with this? Inform them again until it's fixed?

I would hazard a guess that the root of the problem is that the landlord got a plumber to do an electricians job and he wired the immersion switch incorrectly.
The bath and sink may be mixed up.

sheroman01

aido79 wrote: »

I would hazard a guess that the root of the problem is that the landlord got a plumber to do an electricians job and he wired the immersion switch incorrectly.
The bath and sink may be mixed up.

It's funny you say that - she said plumber but that he can fix electrical problems too. Do you mean he mixed up the sink in the bathroom with the sink in the kitchen? Would that be the case though as the immersion should heat up three things; the kitchen sink, bathroom sink and shower?

Samuel T. Cogley

No the immersion heats the water in the tank. There is usually a switch that says Bath (heat the whole tank) and Sink (heat the top third of the tank). If not then I expect the bottom immersion heater is still defective.

aido79

sheroman01 wrote: »

It's funny you say that - she said plumber but that he can fix electrical problems too.

I would have my doubts about this to be honest.

sheroman01 wrote: »

do you mean he mixed up the sink in the bathroom with the sink in the kitchen? Would that be the case though as the immersion should heat up three things; the kitchen sink, bathroom sink and shower?

If he did this then he is neither a good plumber nor a good electrician but it has been explained correctly above.
You obviously have a lack of understanding of how an immersion works so this may also be part of the problem.

sheroman01

Samuel T. Cogley wrote: »

No the immersion heats the water in the tank. There is usually a switch that says Bath (heat the whole tank) and Sink (heat the top third of the tank). If not then I expect the bottom immersion heater is still defective.

Thanks. I've seen similar setups like that alright but in this apartment it's just an on/off switch, and heats the small tank under the kitchen sink. I'm in a studio,so the bathroom is quite close by.

aido79 wrote: »

I would have my doubts about this to be honest.



If he did this then he is neither a good plumber nor a good electrician but it has been explained correctly above.
You obviously have a lack of understanding of how an immersion works so this may also be part of the problem.

It's true that I don't know the ins and outs of how an immersion works exactly, but my lack of understanding is hardly a reason as to why I have no hot water in my shower

I appreciate the advice and possible cause of the issue, but unfortunately I'm not a plumber nor an electrician. I guess I will call her again and explain it's not fully fixed. It is quite telling that you reference this guy not being very good at his job, because this is the second he has come out in the past two/three weeks and I'm still left with problems. What do I do if the landlord insists it's fixed? I have a feeling this is the way it will go...

Also, is there anything I can do in relation to them leaving the immersion on all weekend? I know it's probably a grey area but could it possibly be deducted from my rent?

TheChizler

If your cylinder is well insulated and no water is being used then having it on all weekend isn't going to cost much at all. It'll heat it up once and keep it topped up. And if it's not working as you say then it definitely won't cost you much! Unless you have a massive leak somewhere and that's where all the hot water is going, but you'd notice that.

What do you normally do when you want a shower? What switches are on?

sheroman01

TheChizler wrote: »

If your cylinder is well insulated and no water is being used then having it on all weekend isn't going to cost much at all. It'll heat it up once and keep it topped up. And if it's not working as you say then it definitely won't cost you much! Unless you have a massive leak somewhere and that's where all the hot water is going, but you'd notice that.

What do you normally do when you want a shower? What switches are on?

I've only been in the studio 1 month, and only had 1 "working" showers (don't worry, I've been showering in the gym/work in the meantime!). I just pressed the immersion switch, it lights up, and then waited around an hour or two for the tank to heat up. This was per landlord's instructions - she said just press the switch and that's it. Like, there is hot water getting to the shower - but it just lasts 2 minutes.

Caranica

You say it's a small tank underneath the kitchen sink. Is it possible the capacity only heats enough water for a 2 minute shower?

sheroman01

Caranica wrote: »

You say it's a small tank underneath the kitchen sink. Is it possible the capacity only heats enough water for a 2 minute shower?

I'm starting to think that's a possibility. The landlord has never confirmed this but I may ask. However, the hot water is working absolutely fine in the sink - very hot and lasts 10 minutes or so (I tried this after my shower, so it wasn't a case of me wasting the hot water )

Sleeper12

The immersion and the shower temperature could be two separate issues.

Depending on what type of shower you have it could be that the thermostatic cartridge needs replacing in the shower itself.

TheChizler

Any chance of a picture of the hot water cylinder?

Edit: just realised I'm getting into stuff more suited for the plumbing forum. From an A&P point of view you should ask the landlord to get the plumber back out and show him the shower getting cold after two minutes.

sheroman01

TheChizler wrote: »

Any chance of a picture of the hot water cylinder?

Edit: just realised I'm getting into stuff more suited for the plumbing forum. From an A&P point of view you should ask the landlord to get the plumber back out and show him the shower getting cold after two minutes.

Yeah this has veered off into a plumbing forum But I appreciate the help nonetheless! Yeah, will just have to show the landlord/plumber when they come over.

C3PO

As somebody else suggested, it sounds to me like you only have a small undersink water heater (not a full immersion cylinder) and it only heats sufficient water for a two minute shower!