Plumbers and Sparkeys And Shower People Please Help

[benlg81]

Hi All

I have a triton rapide shower 8.5 i think from memory, it was fitted about 18months ago when i had the bathroom fitted and over the last week it has become the most annoying thing.

You can have about 5mins of shower time before it cuts out and it then comes back on again 5 mins later.

i have checked the eart cable to the pipe in the airing cupboard and that is fine i have taken off the cover and it all looks brand new and tight inside

so someone please help what do i need to do to have a longer shower?

Cheers

Ben

[bdx]

Try cleaning the shower head - the bit the water comes out, usually a build up of scale.

[benlg81]

would that cause it to stop working for 5 mins then kick back into life?

i will give it a go

[Eggle]

Sounds a little like a line problem. Do you have to turn the heat up more and more to get the same temp?
Lime sometimes coats sensors and is the sole reason I had 3 showers in 5 years at my old place.

[GreenV8S]

benlg81 said:

would that cause it to stop working for 5 mins then kick back into life?

Yes, if it restricts the water flow so that the over temperature cut-out trips.

[benlg81]

not had to turn the temp up at all recently i have just taken the head off filled with bathroom cleaner and scrubed the head with a nail brush and then tried again.

5 mins later it turned off again

i now have the head soaking in bathroom cleaner

any other ideas?

[Smiler.]

The problem will most likely be in the heating elemnet - if water flow is restricted due to scale build-up, the temp cut-out will operate.

Cleaning the head will not solve the problem.

[s3fella]

Make sure any isolation valves to the shower are in full ON position, not nearly ful on.

Is it an electric shower or a power shower? Ie does it have just a cold feed or a hot and cold feed to it?

[Deva Link]

benlg81 said:

You can have about 5mins of shower time before it cuts out and it then comes back on again 5 mins later.

The solenoid (on the water feed) failing in ours produced similar sysmptoms - although the on time was variable, could be anything from 1 -5 mins. It was quite a new Triton shower but I still had the old one so swapped the solenoids over.

[Ferg]

Showers cut power to the element when they overheat.
I'd agree with the above and suspect it's a solenoid breaking down when it gets hot.

[benlg81]

how easy is it to buy the solenoids? and to swap over?

its doing my lass's head in i am lucky as i can get sorted just in time

[benlg81]

just a quick one is it the top part on the image of the shower here?

https://ww2.tritonshowers.co.uk/webapp/wcs/stores/...

Cheers

Ben

[Deva Link]

benlg81 said:

just a quick one is it the top part on the image of the shower here?

https://ww2.tritonshowers.co.uk/webapp/wcs/stores/...

Cheers

Ben

It's at the bottom right, wher the cold water comes in. Triton offer the whole thing - "solenoid valve assembly". If you to applaince spares place (or eBay) you can buy the solenoid on its own.

Looking at the picture you can just make out the four lugs in the centre of the solenoid that hold it in place. After isolating the electricity at the main switch (*not* just at the pull cord or switch) disconnect the wires from the solenoid and if you very gently squeeze the lugs in to the centre then the solenoid just slides off. Squeeze the lugs in again to slide the new one into place. The lugs can be brittle so be careful - you don't want to snap them.

[Bigfatnath]

Ive had this on my triton rapide....

If you open the cover up there is a very small temp operated switch with a red nipple on it...

As my shower is over 10 years old this started tripping in and out,

Swapped this and hey presto...

[benlg81]

where did you get the part from? and roughly how much?

is it worth just getting a new shower?

[Deva Link]

benlg81 said:

where did you get the part from? and roughly how much?

is it worth just getting a new shower?

That's what I did - then the solenoid went on the new one after about 18mths so I replaced it with the 20yr old one from the old shower!

What's actually happening - is the water shutting off suddenly, and does yours normally have the run-on for a few seconds when you turn it off?
Or does it just go cold but stay on?

[Bigfatnath]

What you can do is link this little switch out......in other words, crimp the 2 wires going to the switch together, thus bypassing it.

But then this links the overheat protection out ....this is ok to use but dont leave the shower on with no one in there...



Now where are my cowboy boots...

[Bigfatnath]

benlg81 said:

just a quick one is it the top part on the image of the shower here?

https://ww2.tritonshowers.co.uk/webapp/wcs/stores/...

Cheers

Ben

The part that is most probably gone is the thermal cut out...

[benlg81]

the shower just stops all of a sudden stays hot all the way until it just ends

which bit will i have to look at the top part.

or the bottom part.

is the bodge safe enough to do it is only used for 10 mins at a time twice daily.

[Deva Link]

benlg81 said:

the shower just stops all of a sudden stays hot all the way until it just ends

That would tend to point to a solenoid fault. If you get the solenoid itself (not the complete assembly) then it's easy to change so it's not a great less if that's not the fault.