My hot water in the shower, when turned on by itself, is scolding hot. If I put the slightest amount
of cold water on, the shower is cold as hell. What can I do to make the hot water equal to the cold?
My hot water comes from a coil inside my boiler (about 8 years old). A friend told me I have to have
the hot water coil cleaned. Does that sound right? Does it work? How is it done? What is a ballpark
figure that a plumber would charge for this?

Tony

Tony wrote:

My hot water in the shower, when turned on by itself, is scolding hot. If I put the slightest amount
of cold water on, the shower is cold as hell. What can I do to make the hot water equal to the cold?
My hot water comes from a coil inside my boiler (about 8 years old). A friend told me I have to have
the hot water coil cleaned. Does that sound right? Does it work? How is it done? What is a ballpark
figure that a plumber would charge for this?

Tony

Your friend could be right. The coil often gets
crudded up so flow is minimal.

Try this test:
Run Hot water at the basin tap in the bath.
Then vary the shower controls (Hot/Cold)
and see if the Hot flow at the basin changes greatly.
If the basin does *not* change much, the coil is not at
fault.

Jim

I cannot run your test because I have a hot and cold water faucet. The shower nozzle goes from 0 to
full force and has no controls for hot / cold)

So, if I start running the hot water, as soon as I turn the shower nozzle, it simply comes out of
the shower head soft and hard, both are burning hot.

Is there some other way to test this?


Try this test:
Run Hot water at the basin tap in the bath.
Then vary the shower controls (Hot/Cold)
and see if the Hot flow at the basin changes greatly.
If the basin does *not* change much, the coil is not at
fault.

Jim

Tony wrote:

I cannot run your test because I have a hot and cold water faucet. The shower nozzle goes from 0 to
full force and has no controls for hot / cold)

So, if I start running the hot water, as soon as I turn the shower nozzle, it simply comes out of
the shower head soft and hard, both are burning hot.

Is there some other way to test this?

Hmmmmmm. I'm stumped...




Try this test:
Run Hot water at the basin tap in the bath.
Then vary the shower controls (Hot/Cold)
and see if the Hot flow at the basin changes greatly.
If the basin does *not* change much, the coil is not at
fault.

Jim

I have three knobs (cold, shower, hot)

I normally turn the hot and cold on as if I am taking a bath, and when it is a good temp, I turn the
shower on. What I do notice is the shower is not as hot as the bath. What would cause that?

Tony

On Tue, 29 Nov 2005 21:47:46 GMT, Speedy Jim wrote:

Tony wrote:

I cannot run your test because I have a hot and cold water faucet. The shower nozzle goes from 0 to
full force and has no controls for hot / cold)

So, if I start running the hot water, as soon as I turn the shower nozzle, it simply comes out of
the shower head soft and hard, both are burning hot.

Is there some other way to test this?

Hmmmmmm. I'm stumped...




Try this test:
Run Hot water at the basin tap in the bath.
Then vary the shower controls (Hot/Cold)
and see if the Hot flow at the basin changes greatly.
If the basin does *not* change much, the coil is not at
fault.

Jim

Tony wrote:

I have three knobs (cold, shower, hot)

I normally turn the hot and cold on as if I am taking a bath, and when it is a good temp, I turn the
shower on. What I do notice is the shower is not as hot as the bath. What would cause that?

Tony

There is a very definite cooling effect caused by
the fine spray from the shower head, so this might
be normal.

I'm sure you have a legitimate complaint/problem
with the Hot water, it's just hard for me to
picture the situation without being there to
"touch/feel" things in person.
Jim





On Tue, 29 Nov 2005 21:47:46 GMT, Speedy Jim wrote:


Tony wrote:


I cannot run your test because I have a hot and cold water faucet. The shower nozzle goes from 0 to
full force and has no controls for hot / cold)

So, if I start running the hot water, as soon as I turn the shower nozzle, it simply comes out of
the shower head soft and hard, both are burning hot.

Is there some other way to test this?

Hmmmmmm. I'm stumped...




Try this test:
Run Hot water at the basin tap in the bath.
Then vary the shower controls (Hot/Cold)
and see if the Hot flow at the basin changes greatly.
If the basin does *not* change much, the coil is not at
fault.

Jim

Tony

There is a very definite cooling effect caused by
the fine spray from the shower head, so this might
be normal.

I'm sure you have a legitimate complaint/problem
with the Hot water, it's just hard for me to
picture the situation without being there to
"touch/feel" things in person.
Jim


I can feel that cooling effect. It may be the shower moving the cold air that is causing it. My
concern is that I can turn the hot water on full blast and only one smidge of cold water to get an
even balance. That shows me that the pressure of each are very uneven and different.

Tony

Tony wrote:

Tony

There is a very definite cooling effect caused by
the fine spray from the shower head, so this might
be normal.

I'm sure you have a legitimate complaint/problem
with the Hot water, it's just hard for me to
picture the situation without being there to
"touch/feel" things in person.
Jim



I can feel that cooling effect. It may be the shower moving the cold air that is causing it. My
concern is that I can turn the hot water on full blast and only one smidge of cold water to get an
even balance. That shows me that the pressure of each are very uneven and different.

Tony

You could well be right about the pressure difference,
which does point to a clogged coil.
Sometimes flushing with acid will get the minerals out
but it's messy and low chance of it working. Best is
bite the bullet and order a new coil.

Jim

Does the same thing happen when you try this in the sinks?

"Speedy Jim" wrote in message
m...
Tony wrote:

Tony

There is a very definite cooling effect caused by
the fine spray from the shower head, so this might
be normal.

I'm sure you have a legitimate complaint/problem
with the Hot water, it's just hard for me to
picture the situation without being there to
"touch/feel" things in person.
Jim



I can feel that cooling effect. It may be the shower moving the cold air
that is causing it. My
concern is that I can turn the hot water on full blast and only one
smidge of cold water to get an
even balance. That shows me that the pressure of each are very uneven
and different.

Tony

You could well be right about the pressure difference,
which does point to a clogged coil.
Sometimes flushing with acid will get the minerals out
but it's messy and low chance of it working. Best is
bite the bullet and order a new coil.

Jim

On Tue, 29 Nov 2005 15:19:26 -0500, Tony
wrote:

My hot water in the shower, when turned on by itself, is scolding hot. If I put the slightest amount
of cold water on, the shower is cold as hell. What can I do to make the hot water equal to the cold?
My hot water comes from a coil inside my boiler (about 8 years old). A friend told me I have to have
the hot water coil cleaned. Does that sound right? Does it work? How is it done? What is a ballpark
figure that a plumber would charge for this?

Likely a dumb obvious suggestion, but have you cleaned the shower
head? Soak it in vinegar, scrape all hard water encrustations off and
poke through all the holes, disassembling it if needed. At least, this
works for us to restore hot water to normal.

--
Luke
__________________________________________________ ____________________
"Our enemies are innovative and resourceful, and so are we. They never
stop thinking about new ways to harm our country and our people, and
neither do we." -- George W. Bush, August 5, 2004

On Wed, 30 Nov 2005 09:07:52 -0700, Luke wrote:

On Tue, 29 Nov 2005 15:19:26 -0500, Tony
wrote:

My hot water in the shower, when turned on by itself, is scolding hot. If I put the slightest amount
of cold water on, the shower is cold as hell. What can I do to make the hot water equal to the cold?
My hot water comes from a coil inside my boiler (about 8 years old). A friend told me I have to have
the hot water coil cleaned. Does that sound right? Does it work? How is it done? What is a ballpark
figure that a plumber would charge for this?

Likely a dumb obvious suggestion, but have you cleaned the shower
head? Soak it in vinegar, scrape all hard water encrustations off and
poke through all the holes, disassembling it if needed. At least, this
works for us to restore hot water to normal.

I removed the shower head altogether so that only the stem was left. I turned the hot water on full
blast and the water was scortching hot. I then turned on the cold water just a bit and the water was
cool. So, it seems to me that it isnt the shower head. It seems like there is not an equal balance
of Hot and Cold water coming through the shower. All other faucets (kitchen, bathrooms,) seem to run
equal H & C but the problem is only in the shower. Is there something I should look for in my boiler
room where the pipes are?

Tony

I removed the shower head altogether so that only the stem was
left. I turned the hot water on full blast and the water was
scortching hot. I then turned on the cold water just a bit and the
water was cool. So, it seems to me that it isnt the shower head. It
seems like there is not an equal balance of Hot and Cold water
coming through the shower. All other faucets (kitchen, bathrooms,)
seem to run equal H & C but the problem is only in the shower. Is
there something I should look for in my boiler room where the pipes
are?

Hmmm, sounds like the flow/pressure on the hot side is low, so the
cold water overwhelms the hot. Since it is only in the shower,
perhaps it is a problem with the hot water valve in the shower. Maybe
it doesn't open all the way.

Try filling a bucket with hot water from the shower, without the
shower head, and time how long it takes with the hot water open all
the way.. Then fill the same bucket with cold water. If the hot
water takes longer, then there is a flow problem. If they take about
the same time, then, I dunno.

--- Chip

Charles H. Buchholtz wrote:
I removed the shower head altogether so that only the stem was
left. I turned the hot water on full blast and the water was
scortching hot. I then turned on the cold water just a bit and the
water was cool. So, it seems to me that it isnt the shower head. It
seems like there is not an equal balance of Hot and Cold water
coming through the shower. All other faucets (kitchen, bathrooms,)
seem to run equal H & C but the problem is only in the shower. Is
there something I should look for in my boiler room where the pipes
are?

Hmmm, sounds like the flow/pressure on the hot side is low, so the
cold water overwhelms the hot. Since it is only in the shower,
perhaps it is a problem with the hot water valve in the shower. Maybe
it doesn't open all the way.

Try filling a bucket with hot water from the shower, without the
shower head, and time how long it takes with the hot water open all
the way.. Then fill the same bucket with cold water. If the hot
water takes longer, then there is a flow problem. If they take about
the same time, then, I dunno.

--- Chip


Also, did you say that when the water is set to run into the bath, that
the hot and cold mix and adjust normally? If that is the case, then
there must be something screwed up where the diverter valve is. When
the shower is going, is all the water going to the shower or is some of
it continuing to run into the tub?

On Mon, 6 Feb 2006 18:00:20 +0000 (UTC), (Charles H. Buchholtz) wrote:

I removed the shower head altogether so that only the stem was
left. I turned the hot water on full blast and the water was
scortching hot. I then turned on the cold water just a bit and the
water was cool. So, it seems to me that it isnt the shower head. It
seems like there is not an equal balance of Hot and Cold water
coming through the shower. All other faucets (kitchen, bathrooms,)
seem to run equal H & C but the problem is only in the shower. Is
there something I should look for in my boiler room where the pipes
are?

Hmmm, sounds like the flow/pressure on the hot side is low, so the
cold water overwhelms the hot. Since it is only in the shower,
perhaps it is a problem with the hot water valve in the shower. Maybe
it doesn't open all the way.

Try filling a bucket with hot water from the shower, without the
shower head, and time how long it takes with the hot water open all
the way.. Then fill the same bucket with cold water. If the hot
water takes longer, then there is a flow problem. If they take about
the same time, then, I dunno.

--- Chip


I didnt do the bucket test but I did run the water in the bath instead of the shower. There is an
obvious increase in pressure of cold water compared to the Hot water. I tried them both seperately
and, while the hot is good, the cold clearly is coming out with more force, maybe 2:1.

If this does sound like a flow problem, is there something that I can check to be sure or do myself
without hiring an expensive plumber?

Thanks

Tony