Confusing and Misleading specs on GPM shower heads
stir_fryi SE Mich
4 years ago
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catbuilder
4 years ago
Nancy in Mich
4 years agoRelated Discussions
Totally confused with shower fixtures...
Comments (3)Am I reading this correctly, you have two showers? One in the tub and one in a stall with a frameless door? Which one is the Costco tower for? We also purchased a shower tower from Costco. Have had it for about a year now and I still like it. It included jets and all the ones they had at that time did also. Does the one you bought not also include jets? Costco also had a hansgrohe single handle sink faucet that we purchased for our guest bathroom for about $50, Don't know if they have them now, but I've seen it there several times. I actually bought it a long time ago when they had a coupon for it in anticipation of this bathroom remodel. It was only installed a few weeks ago, but so far so good....See MoreConfused by Flow rate of tub fillers
Comments (3)If you're on a well, residential well systems normally cycle between 40-60psi. There is a small pressure gauge at the base of your water holding tank. On municipal water, the pressure can either be nicely regulated, or it can be all over the place. One friend up in MA had 90psi! The high pressure was killing plumbing fixtures on his street. You can call your water service and ask the psi. But 40-60 is a steady target range. Valve manufacturers usually publish a flow vs psi chart, similar to the chart below: You might find it on a manufacturers website. You don't need to worry about your 2GPM shower head. The valve you choose will be capable of passing more than 2GPM through to the head, but the shower head itself will restrict the outflow to 2GPM. Example in the chart below, as PSI increases, the GPM flow out of the tub spout increases since the tub spout has no internal flow restrictor. But the shower head eventually caps out at 2.5GPM, since it's a "2.5GPM shower head"....See MoreHusband had a good idea...how many shower heads is too many?
Comments (14)"I'll need to investigate water flow/pressure though. We're on a well with a pump and I'm not happy with the pressure as is but what can I do?" Shower heads are rated for a maximum flow of 2.5gpm, 2.0gpm, or even 1.8gpm, usually at 80psi. If you're on a well, most well set-ups have a pressure regulator with a factory set PSI range. 40psi-60psi is common. Some others are 30-50, some 50-70. The pressure regulator, as well as a water dial pressure gauge, should be located at the base of your water tank. The regulator itself looks something like this and the regulator and water pressure dial indicator assembly could look like this. For a 40-60 rating, it means that when the house pressure drops to 40psi, the regulator switch will energize the well pump and water will be pumped from the well into the holding tank. When the pressure hits 60psi the well pump will be de-energized. As water is consumed and the pressure drops, the well will cycle on and off as needed. Too low water pressure (20 psi for example) can result in anemic flow. Too high of a pressure (above 100psi for example) can result in water hammer, or seal or cartridge leaks in your valves or faucets. You can turn on a faucet, get the water flowing, and watch the needle movement on the water pressure gauge to see the PSI settings where your regulator and well pump are cutting in and cutting out. Your plumber can adjust the regulator if needed to change the line pressure. It's not difficult. Most single shower head bathrooms are plumbed with 1/2" supply tubing to the shower valve. Talk it over with your plumber, during the reno if you have undersized tubing feeding your bathroom, you may be able to upsize it to 3/4" depending on access. That written, unless you have something unconventional in your plumbing....an excessively long run, or a lot of elbows in the plumbing...two standard shower heads can simultaneously be fed with a 1/2" supply tubing from the bathroom branch running to the 1/2" supply valves for your shower heads. Your plumber will be able to guide you through any pump pressure and supply tubing size issues....See MoreShower head on same wall as bench?
Comments (45)@Mike, Actually, in the US I think it's much more common to use glass for all or a partial wall than what we did. Most of the showers we looked at photos of for inspiration were in Europe. Glass would have let in more light, to be sure, but we've found it hard to keep clean in the past. Since we have well water (again), which tends to be full of minerals, it gets deposits on it and never looks pristine after awhile, no matter how I cleaned it. So, we opted against glass this time. As for having our fittings on the opposite wall from where they are, that is an external wall, so the plumber and builder did not recommend it. I would have liked a high horizontal window there, as we have in our hall bath, to let in light. Wish I had thought of it before it became too difficult to do. Here's what I mean -- this is our hall bath shower, and that window is so nice! Best of luck with your design. We are happy with most of the decisions we made -- but not all!...See Morestir_fryi SE Mich
4 years agogeoffrey_b
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4 years agokudzu9
4 years agolast modified: 4 years ago
PROStarCraft Custom Builders
4 years ago
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