Electric or power shower

Cal04

We have a power shower in the bathroom which is perfect in the winter as it is heated by either the stove or oil which is used to heat the house. This is the only hwating in house. In the summer, the immersion heats it.

Trying to cut down on our electricity bill and I feel that the immersion is adding alot of the cost. The electric shower in the ensuite is broken and I'm considering replacing it, but have been told that is much heavier on electricity than the immersion is. The thing about the immersion is that I don't know how long it takes to heat so it is on for at least half an hour to an hour whereas we'd have instant hot water with the shower.

Any advice please.

naughtysmurf

Interesting question, I don’t know the answer to your question, I’m sure someone will do the sums & will be along to answer but some of the pumped electric showers on the market have an A energy rating like the Triton T90SR & your immersion has to heat up a chunk of water, the shower will heat up what you actually need, we’ve an immersion in our house, I doubt it’s been turned on once in the last 18 years

id imagine the immersion uses a bit to heat the tank from cold to allow a few showers, I have heard that you’re as well off to leave the immersion on all the time & let the thermostat kick in when needed so you’re only topping up the heat as required rather than heating from cold but don’t know if that’s true or not.

greasepalm

I have a Triton shower in bathroom and might be on its last legs with the screeches it does when starting as been a while since i used it.

I also have a tall immersion due to solar panels to heat up the water + 70 i noticed earlier in the day with bright sunshine.

When i got the bathroom done up i got a soaker rain head shower and a pump fitted beside the immersion.

Mira shower in downstairs ensuite as could be used if needed.

Gas heats rads more than immersion and i hit the switch to top for my shower i need to take.

Triton and Mira heat up cold water feeds and my rain soaker needs hot water from the immersion.

So many modern choices to go for but if you have a backup to use it can be handy like if your coil went in the immersion you still have electric shower to heat up cold water.

CoBo55

Can you turn off the rads and just heat the water from the oil? I did a big refurb on my bathroom a few years ago and installed a T90sr, it's great at what it does but it's an absolute sow on electricity I'm sorry now that I didn't just go for a power shower heating the water from the oil. I considered changing it but your man wanted €800 and wanted to put it beside the T90SR which would have looked ridiculous.

greasepalm

Would people be running an oil burner in the middle of summer when one is sweating in the heat?

1641

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120641216#Comment_120641216

We always turn off the rads in the summer months and use the oil boiler to heat the water. An hour provides ample hot water for the power shower and domestic hot water. I haven't tried to reduce the time any further but it may be possible. The only time we use the immersion is during fairly short shoulder periods in Autumn and Spring when the rads are still on but heating not needed on some days/nights.

MrMusician18

An electric shower is more cost efficient than an immersion as you only heat the exact quantity of water you need for your shower.

e.r

Another vote for T90SR great electric shower

CoBo55

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120641253#Comment_120641253

With the radiators turned off obviously, I run it for 30 minutes every day it gives plenty of hot water for washing up etc, keeps the burner and circulation pump right too.

CoBo55

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120641312#Comment_120641312

Nobody is saying they're a bad shower, but with the present cost of electricity they're expensive to run especially if you've teenagers.

Flinty997

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120641469#Comment_120641469

I've been wondering the same.

My plan is to keep the electric shower, but when I redo the main bathroom, I'll replace the bath with a shower that I can heat with the Gas boiler.

Sleeper12

Short answer is a 5 minutes shower is far cheaper using an electric shower compared to a power shower.

More expensive power shower gives a more pleasurable shower experience compared to the cheaper to run electric shower

zg3409

Not to be simplistic or negative but cheapest is to not have a shower every day.

Next cheapest is a short shower using little water. The Triton instant shower uses little water and is relatively cheap to run and never goes cold. That said in winter the amount of water per minute can be very low meaning it takes longer to wash away suds and get the job done.

Most plumbers will not recommend instant showers as winter performance is poor. Most will recommend a hot tank with a pump. This gives a "hotel" like shower but it uses loads of water and loads of hot water. Per minute this is more expensive but more pleasurable and may result in a better clean.

The way you hear the water is important. With an instant shower you only have one option, electricity, and price of electricity doubled recently.

With an immersion it heats the tank with electricity buy when tank is hot it switches off. In winter you may be able to heat water with cheaper oil or gas.

I have night rate meter so I can heat water on night rate.

If you tank is not very well insulated then fo this immediately with 2 lagging jackets. This can keep the heat in and reduce running costs.

Personally I could not go from pumped immersion back to instant electric it's just so inferior in winter. Most plumbers will agree.

denismc

We have a standard 120 lt immersion cylinder well insulated and we heat it in summer with excess solar from our panels.

It takes about 3-3.5 kWh of electricity to heat it fully from about 25 to 60 degrees which will give enough hot water for a bath or a very long hot power shower .

We also have a 10 kW electric shower which in theory uses about 2.5kWh for a 15 minute shower.

So in terms of energy usage there isn't much of a difference but as someone else pointed the power shower is much more comfortable.

DC999

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120648226#Comment_120648226

In summer our 10kW shower is using only 4kW as the lower temp setting is perfect.

But that goes closer to 10kW in winter when the water is colder. And the lower setting on the shower is too cold.

Electric showers use wayyyyy less water per minute. Up to 3 times I read. So they have to be less expensive to run.

denismc

Yes, they use less water , better for the environment but unless you're paying for metered water the cost to you is going to be negligible.

kirk.

The problem with the instantaneous showers is people staying in too long

Other than that they're a cheap option to run

Cal04

Thank you everyone.

Think I'll install an electric one in the ensuite for a quick shower option.

We have a basic immersion switch in the hall near the hotness. Can immersion switches with a timer be installed instead or is there such a thing?

kirk.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120649680#Comment_120649680

You can add a timer if you have an existing immersion switch , not replace the switch

Cal04

There is an existing one yes.

SteelyDanJalapeno

The Triton T90 pumps about 9 litres per minute, or 540 litres an hour.

I believe it's a 9kwhr shower so that would cost you 9 x your unit rate from your utility, excluding standing charge etc, probably around 40cent x 9 is 3.60euro

It takes my innefficient immersion about 4.8 kws to heat my 200ltr tank to 60degrees, or if it was 540 litres, it would be more like 12.96kws x unit rate or 5.1euro.

All very rough, but comparing like for like the cost saved will boil down to heater efficiency, the Triton will be a little better for me above.

You'll save heaps more in the long run with the Triton thou as it won't pump half as much water out versus the tanked solution, you'll lose have the money literally down the drain with the pumped/tank solution.

Flip the whole argument thou if you have PV and can heat the tank for free

Sleeper12

Just to clarify. A Triton t90sr puts out 3 to 5 litres of warm water per minute. 3 on the coldest day of the year & up to 5 on the hottest day of the year. The end result depends on the temperature of the water in the cold water tank in the attic

kildarejohn

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120683300#Comment_120683300

I think Steely has made a bit of an error in the calculations. The calculations for the Immersion are for heating to 60c, but of course nobody could stand a shower as hot as that. The usual shower temp is more like 30c. A power shower mixes hot and cold water to get desired temp, so only half the water used comes from the hot water cylinder. So the figure of 5.1 eur for immersion should be halved, making it cheaper than electric shower. Of course, if your cylinder is well insulated and heated at Night Rate, then the power shower is much cheaper.

Steely says "You'll save heaps more in the long run with the Triton thou as it won't pump half as much water out" - but surely the amount of water coming out of a power shower is simply controlled with a knob, if you want to save money then simply turn the knob to lower flow!

Flinty997

Power shower has higher flow rate potentially than an electric shower. Open to correction.

SteelyDanJalapeno

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120692612#Comment_120692612

Yeah point taken nobody will have a 60 degree shower, but I was trying to normalize it.

I think there's a solid argument for both, we wouldn't be without the electric shower when in a push, but the power shower is obviously a much better experience.

The cost difference to have a shower is gonna be negligible I feel, however depending on your starting point, getting a good tank, pump, immersion, mixer etc could cost thousands.

And you'll end up heating water that you won't always use all of, so literally throwing away money there.

Again, Solar can really help offset for the power shower