Hi, moved in a year ago, double storey terrace house. I have a Grundfos SCALA 2 pump connected after the water tank. My bathrooms all come with cold water supply only. Attached picture is my current setup.




Basically I find the water pressure to be very normal or low (like dripping water) even with my SCALA 2 pump and instant water heater pump turned on, not enough pressure to drive the rainshower the hand shower is fine though quite strong

quick question, my hoses as you can see are quite long and the rainshower installation is quite high up, since water needs to climb up against gravity, could that be the cause why the pressure is weak?

but anyway, I memang intend on renovating my bathroom after MCO, I want to change to joven storage tank heater (don't know how many liters I need for one bathroom) and hide above the plaster ceiling and change from instant water heater to something like this, thinking to get either Grohe or Hansgrohe (got better brand that is more competitively priced to recommend?)

I am aiming for this type, concealed pipes, rainshower i think I want at least 12 inches.




should be doable right? A bit hard for me to find information on what to take note of, I know will need to hack off most of the gray tiles and add in hot water piping (HDPE? copper?) the electrical point also will pull up to above plaster ceiling to connect to water tank.

My number one concern is, whether the water pressure will be strong enough to power a 12" rainshower with good constant flow or not, I want to achieve at least the same pressure as in this video, if not I worry no point spending so much money on renovation and can't achieve..

Also, should I consult kaodim.com for this? My previous contractor went missing already, looking for reliable contractor to renovate two bathrooms, location Semenyih, if you got someone to recommend or if you are interested in this job please whatsapp me at 016-6863683 - Wayne

try to change your pipe from water heater to a short one

its not only about water pressure but also important is the flow rate. the flow rate for instant heaters is very low, thats why you dont get the type of rain shower experience you think you be getting.

changing to tank type will solve this problem. have to hack a bit though to conceal a short copper pipe and also to install a new mixer etc. also try take a look at your ceiling space (space between plaster and concrete ceiling) to see if you got enough space for a tank

This post has been edited by idoblu: Jan 18 2021, 09:03 AM

I think you better check for any clogged inside the pipes/hoses/heater. it shouldnt be this low pressure/flow rate.
Dismantle the inlet hose to the water heater and on the pump to check for water flow rate before the water reaches heater. If the water flow rate is ok, then it could be something clogged inside water heater or the hoses to the rainshower unit.

i have 2 bathrooms exactly same setup as yours but i dont have any issue on the pressure and flowrate.

Basically flow rate just check via existing tap and hose. If you can stop the max water flow using one thunb then it is confirmed slow.

My setup at home is Scala2, Joven JH35 and Grohe Euphoria 260. Can easily achieve the full flow rate at 1.5bar. But then I set my pump at 3bar for since probably the flow rate would drop if multiple tap are opened.

If you plan to buy German brand fixtures, I would recommend buying from Amazon.de. They use DHL to ship and all my shipment came in good condition despite there is almost no additional packaging on top of the original boxes.

thanks for the feedback, I'm just slightly worried on the warranty part. How painful was the tax?

Amazon already collected tax deposit when you purchase them. So, you would know the max you'd have to pay before checking out. Any amount taxed more that Amazon collected, they will cover for you. The tricks of buying from Amazon.de, the more you buy, the lesser the tax+shipping charged per item. Like mine, I end up paying around RM1800 for shower set that is sold for RM3,688 in Malaysia. I am not really worried about the warranty since it is only 5 years warranty and with 50% savings, I could easily buy another one as spare parts

The most important thing is for you to install and check immediately the function or defect of the items within the return period. Normally manufacturing defect is noticeable within the first few use and if you think it is defective, you can return them back to Amazon. To do that, make sure you complete the piping installation + retiling before ordering. Shipment takes around 1-2 weeks.

my developer given me heater tank, but the rain shower is coming down from the ceiling. end up, i decide to hack to wall and make the rain/hand shower come from the wall rather from ceiling. it cost me around 1.5k

oh right I just recall that I purchased from Amazon.co.uk before, the tax deposit will be helpful

I'm not super sure if I should be doing the reno works before the items arrive.. what if they don't fit

Oh I forgot, if you want to buy built in shower mixer, definitely you'd have to buy them before renovation. But if you're buying the external one like mine, you can just install the hot and water outlet first before buying the mixer. External shower mixer from Europe is pretty standard in size, G1/2 outlet spaced at 150mm apart. But make sure to find installation manual online first before purchasing just in case the model you're buying have special installation requirement.

I prefer external shower mixer since it is easier to carry out maintenance activity since you don't have to hack anything to replace anything (other than the hot & cold water pipes itself which normally last much much longer than your shower mixer).

Hi TS, just sharing my experience, if u r planning to get german brand fixture, AND u hav TIME, feel free to survey both amazon de and local dealer.

Currently quite a few local dealer r doing promotions. If u hav time, u can contact them...(if no MCO, visiting their shop/showroom would be best, as u can touch, hav a look and feel the actual item. My mom kena poison at the showroom last time... )

cuz I just surveyed a showerhead from hansgrohe and the price from both amazon de and local dealer r similar/(for my case, a local dealer's quote is actually slightly cheaper than amazon de, not sure whether it is bcuz i ask a few items together... )

Depends on the price difference to value the warranty, if it's 50% cheaper, getting without warranty is a no brainer like mr/ms blanket mentioned, u can get a 2nd set anytime. But If 10~30% cheaper, then tat's all up to u whether warranty and the shop's service worth the price.

Just a suggestion. Not related to any of the dealer out there...

Good luck in renovation shopping.

in terms of water volume and such it shouldn't matter whether it's external or concealed right? personally very much prefer concealed but yeah now I'm worried about failure of the system
thanks bro, mind recommending me some stores that you've dealt with? appreciate it!

hi shaoching, after your conversion to rain/hand shower, did you notice any drop in water pressure from the rainshower?

Volume flow rate depends on the mixer model itself be it external or concealed. Another good thing about external is that you can always put a cheap one first and upgrade later in the future. The most important thing is to get the plumbing + storage heater ready.

Here is my heavily “discounted” external shower mixer. It comes in set with hand shower & rain shower. Ignore the odd looking hose since it was still stiff, fresh out of the box when I took the photo.

really appreciate the photo, blanket! By the way, do you notice any easy scuffing, scratching on your Grohe?

FYI I think I figured out my rainshower's issue, the mixer is faulty.

I have only been using the shower system for one month. So far so good. No scuffing or scratching. But then it is too early to tell. I think as long as you don’t use abrasive material to clean, there shouldn’t be any problem. I would recommend one buying thermostatic mixer as the temperature doesn’t fluctuate when the pressure dropped. Unlike normal mixer where you have to retune the mixer everytime the pressure dropped.

Since your mixer is faulty, I guess you have to replace the cartridge, or probably the whole mixer itself. Since it would probably involve hacking, it could be a good time for you to upgrade to hot water storage system.

i thought u are using instant water heater and connect to handheld+rainshower unit?

mixer means there is a switch to control the ratio of hot:cold water. Usually used for centralized or tank system.

This post has been edited by CanonLee: Jan 20 2021, 02:57 PM

yeah my bad, it's the switcher knob thing on the shower handle that switches from rainshower to handshower, that knob

then just change the whole unit will solve the issue.

If you are thinking to renovate the bathroom and going for tank type, then you will need a rainshower mixer. I am using tank type, connected with HDPE pipes (both hot and cold) to 3 mixers inside my bathroom. 1 x rainshower mixer; 1 x basin mixer tap; 1 x bathtub mixer. the same cold water line used for another 2 branches which are to WC and bidet.

This post has been edited by CanonLee: Jan 20 2021, 04:26 PM