Water pressure in British homes

[Arelia]

Good morning,
Can anyone tell me what water pressure British homes have?
Thx in advance

 

[Chuck]

AFAIK, the only thing you can rely on is a legal minimum of 7 meters (0.7 bar) static head in the communication pipe that supplies the property:

The Water Supply and Sewerage Services (Customer Service Standards) Regulations 2008

Sections 38 and 39 of the Water Industry Act 1991 (“the Act”) authorise the Secretary of State to make regulations by statutory instrument setting out service standards that must be met by water undertakers, and sections 95 and 96 make similar provision in relation to sewerage undertakers. The...

www.legislation.gov.uk

In practice, between 3 bar and 4 bar is typical but you can get 10 bar and above in some locations. Some water companies mess around with the pressure. E.g. they reduce it when repair works are needed and/or at night when demand is low.

 

[Chuck]

Another point, which might interest @Arelia, is that many British houses were built when regulations required a cold-water break-tank in the roof that is used to supply the bath taps and a vented hot water cylinder. This means that water for baths and showers is delivered with a static head that can be as low as 0.25 bar or below. In recent years unvented systems, which operate at mains pressure regulated down to 3 bar, have been permitted.

 

[Arelia]

Another point, which might interest @Arelia, is that many British houses were built when regulations required a cold-water break-tank in the roof that is used to supply the bath taps and a vented hot water cylinder. This means that water for baths and showers is delivered with a static head that can be as low as 0.25 bar or below. In recent years unvented systems, which operate at mains pressure regulated down to 3 bar, have been permitted.

thx a lot for your explanation;
We make shower timers with cut off and the only country where we have had some issues with water pressure is Britain:
Probably because of this really low water pressure you are mentioning, water does not come out of the shower head.
I am enclosing this video of an Acqua Tempus installed (I think it is from a customer in the US): as you can see there is a hose that connects the AT with the tap , plus the shower hose that connects the shower head with the AT.
The problem we have had in a home , south of the UK is that water cannot beat these two hoses.
Any advice about how to solve it? I will appreciate it very much.
regards,

 

[Chuck]

The problem we have had in a home , south of the UK is that water cannot beat these two hoses.
Any advice about how to solve it? I will appreciate it very much.
regards,

The simplest option is to specify the minimum required operating pressures nice and clearly on the sales literature and installation instructions. This would stop it being installed in unsuitable locations.

You might try offering an option that replaces the standard hoses with larger diameter ones for low pressure systems?

This company, which is run by @Alan Wright who sometimes contributes to this forum, has a low-cost pump that might be combined with your product

The Shower Power Booster | Get the Perfect Shower | Inline Pump

Easy way to boost any shower or tap. Simple 3-step DIY installation & no electrician needed. As seen on BBC Dragon’s Den. Uses 95% less energy. Learn more

showerpowerbooster.co.uk

A discussion/collaboration with him might be helpful.

 

[Arelia]

The simplest option is to specify the minimum required operating pressures nice and clearly on the sales literature and installation instructions. This would stop it being installed in unsuitable locations.

You might try offering an option that replaces the standard hoses with larger diameter ones for low pressure systems?

This company, which is run by @Alan Wright who sometimes contributes to this forum, has a low-cost pump that might be combined with your product

The Shower Power Booster | Get the Perfect Shower | Inline Pump

Easy way to boost any shower or tap. Simple 3-step DIY installation & no electrician needed. As seen on BBC Dragon’s Den. Uses 95% less energy. Learn more

showerpowerbooster.co.uk

A discussion/collaboration with him might be helpful.

Hi Chuck
I do appreciate your technical help; we are sending this info to this British customer who can't make Acqua Tempus work because of low water pressure; in other homes where this Acqua Tempus has been installed, there is being no problem at all but in her house it is literally impossible to get water out of the shower head. I presume this water pump will solve the problem.
thanks a lot again
best regards