Why has the power shower stopped working?

[Murtette]

We have a power shower (well, I think we do...it was in the house when we moved in & the reason I think it is a power shower is that it has a start & stop button). This morning, mid way through a shower, it cut out. The person who was using it pressed the start button & nothing happened. I've since tried pressing the stop & start buttons a few times but with no effect. No water comes out & nor does the light come on. I've checked the fuse board & that's fine. Would the power shower have its own fuse socket in the same way that the oven does? If so, should I change the fuse in that? What else can I try? And if those things don't work, do I call a plumber or an electrician?
Apologies to all for my complete lack of knowledge of anything useful!

There is probably a fused electric switch for the shower somewhere - possibly on the wall outside the bathroom, high up. Or an additional pull cord in the bathroom itself. You could check the fuse there.

If that doesn't work, I would call a plumber. They would likely have more experience with fixing showers and are qualified to carry out any bathroom-related electrical work - e.g. showers, lighting.

Thank you. I have found a fuse type switch outside the bathroom so DP has gone off to get a fuse and we'll see if that works

What make is it? There are a very few expensive power showers that have all the mechansm in a box on the wall with the mixer and hose, and some even more expensive ones that have a remorte control on the mixer, and the rest of the mechanism concealed (usually) in the ceiling

Most power showers work using a flow switch that detects when you have turned the mixer tap on, and start up the pump. In most cases there is a separate pump, and an ordinary looking mixer tap on the wall. For these the pump is usually next to the hot water cylinder, or sometimes under the head end of the bath.

Do you have a cold-water tank in the loft, and a hot cylinder? Or do you have a combi boiler or something?

If you have a power shower then there will be a very perceptible noise from the electric motor that drives the pump when the shower is running.

Much more common is the electric shower, which delivers a rather weedy flow of water which it heats using an electric element in the box on the wall. This type will not have an ordinary fused connection, it will have its own high-power electrcal circuit and an unusually large electrical switch, usually a pull-cord one on the bathroom ceiling.

A power shower will fill a bucket in about half a minute. An electric shower will take at least a minute, maybe two.

Piglet we have a free standing shower cubicle. In one corner, the hose with the head attached simply comes out of the wall. About 2ft away from that is a circular knob with a hot/cold dial around the outside and, on the inside, a start button at the top & a stop button beneath that. This knob has "Aqualisa" on it. Usually, when you press the button it gets noisy (presumably the pump kicking into action), water comes out at speed & the button itself lights up. Now, none of that is happening. Outside the bathroom there are two fuse switches but they're not labelled and I've always thought one was for the towel rail & one was for the underfloor heating. It was only after I changed the fuse in the one of these that was on (the underfloor heating being off at this time of year), that I remembered that I thought that fuse was for the towel rail which you can either run off the central heating or separately.

About 2ft away from the button is a cupboard with the boiler & hot water tank in it. We then have a cold water tank in the loft. Outside the bathroom, next to the back of the boiler cupboard we have the pump. The pump seems to be working properly as the shower unit in the other bathroom (which you just turn a dial to get to work and another to adjust the temperature & there are no buttons to press) is fine.

By coincidence - or not? - our Bosch dishwasher which is less than 6 months old has also mysteriously stopped working today. We filled it after lunch, I put the tablet in as normal, pressed the buttons & we went out. Came home & went to empty it & realised it was all still dirty so thought I'd forgotten to turn it on. Turned it on and then realised nothing was happening. The lights are on in it so I don't think its an electric problem but the light which is supposed to light up if there's a problem with the water supply isn't coming on. I checked the manual which didn't seem to tell me anything useful so rang Bosch who advised me to turn if off at the mains, leave it for two hours & then try again. Did that and, again, nothing. So they're sending an engineer around on Thursday... and I now have the lunch dishes as well as this evenings! The dishwasher is more or less below the bathroom where the shower has stopped working. Is this coincidence or is it something more serious? And if that latter, should I cancel the Bosch repair man who will charge me a £80ish call out fee if it turns out there isn't a problem with the dishwasher. If I'm going to have to spend £££ getting this fixed (which won't be the first time with this house), I'd rather not waste an additional £80 on a call out fee.

And I just thought we were getting back on our feet after the most recent house disaster.

OK, I know the type of shower you mean. Are you sure the Aqualisa uses the same pump as the other shower and does not have its own?

As for the dishwasher, see if you can take its electric plug out of its socket and try it in a different socket that you have tested with an electric kettle. It is possible but unlikely to have a high-resistance joint which allows enough power to turn on the indicator light but not to run the machine. If you are handy you can also turn off the water valve where the blue plastic filling hose attaches, then see if water squirts out when you turn the valve back on a tiny bit.

Did the new fuse have any effect?

The shower circuit will most likely be protected by an RCD which is twice the width of the other breakers and will have a "T" or test button.

For anonymous switches and fuses it is useful to borrow a label maker.

My power shower has stopped working. I needed a new mixer tap but was quoted £800 for the job. I found the part I needed for £100 and tried to change it myself. The plumber turned off all the valves, etc for the shower when he came to assess the problem and provide a quote and I struggled to find them all to turn them back on. Eventually I found them all and the shower began to work again. We used the shower twice but now there is no water at all. Some advice would be very appreciated. I'm baffled.

I too have an Aqualisa power shower as described by Murtette. The on button lights up when pressed but only a trickle of water is coming out. It won't turn off now either - red on light stays on. It was working fine up to today. Any suggestions please.

something like this?

call the help desk on 01959 560010

it may save a bit of time if you have already identified your model.

or like this?