How to choose the right shower for your bathroom and home renovation?
Recently, many homeowners are switching their bathrooms over from a bath to a shower. If you are planning a new bathroom and looking for a new shower – here are a few things to consider when browsing home renovation shower and bathroom options.
Here’s our tips and information to help you choose your new shower
First thing to consider, what type of water system do you have?
Before buying a new shower, you need to consider the water system already in place at the property. This will affect what models you can select.
For example, an electric shower will work with any water system – but mixer or digital showers need a high pressure water system.
Looking for inspiration for your bathroom and home renovation? Take a look through our past project case studies here: https://www.redboxlondon.com/case-studies/
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- What is an electric shower?
Electric showers are an economical solution – they heat the cold water supply on demand.
As you are only heating the water you need for the shower; you do not waste as much energy.
Benefits:
- On demand hot water – you do not need to switch on the hot water and wait for the boiler to heat up to take a shower.
- Fairly Easy and quick to install.
- Can be economical & therefore good for the environment
- Can work with a low pressure water system.
- What is a Mixer shower?
A mixer shower takes both hot and water supplies blending it to the required temperature when needed. They tend to be a little more stylish than the electric shower designs.
Mixer showers are perfect for any home with a hot water supply but work better with a high pressure water system. However, some models are also available to work with a low-pressure water system so make sure you check before buying.
Benefits:
- Modern designs with advanced functions
- Look better than electric shower units.
Note to consider: Mixer showers do not have their own hot water supply, so if your boiler is slow to heat up or breaks down – you will be left with cold showers.
If you have got an unreliable boiler, it might be time to replace it, or consider another shower type.
- What are Power Showers?
Power showers work similarly to mixer showers in that they combine hot and cold water supplies. However, they differ in that they contain a pump to boost the flow of water through the shower head. This is a great option for homes with low-pressure water systems.
There are two types of pumps – plastic or metal. Plastic of course is cheaper and can be noisier whilst the metal options are a more expensive but will likely last longer and be quieter.
Benefits:
- Ideal for low-pressure water system homes
- Boosts the water pressure for a stronger shower.
- Combines hot and cold water supplies.
Note to consider: Power showers are a lot more expensive than electric or mixer showers, and they also use a lot more water. This type of shower costs a lot more to run and uses more energy – therefore is not as good for the environment or your heating/water bills.
- What are Digital showers?
The latest innovation in shower design, the Digital shower, offers features including precise temperatures and wireless control units that can be installed anywhere in your bathroom.
They work in a similar way as the mixer and power showers, taking water from your hot and cold water supplies but the bonus is you can specifically set the ideal temperature and get it right every time before even setting foot in the shower.
Benefits:
- Accurate water temperature
- Wireless access to set temperature before getting in the shower.
- Control unit can be hidden from sight to help match a sleek bathroom design.
- Ideal for low pressure systems
- Often includes a pump turning them into digital power showers.
If you are planning to do work in your home planning is key, we hope these tips and ideas for home renovation shower and bathroom options has helped, reach out to start planning your bathroom renovation.
For inspiration see some of our website and Instagram photos as these can really help with inspirational ideas. If you would like more ideas or advice, then, by all means, drop us an email with a list of what you’d like to achieve, and we’ll advise you as to how to make your budget stretch as far as possible.