I think I'm going to have to take the plunge and rip out one of our
showers to start again (it was very badly installed - not by yours
truly! - ) and continual attempts to stop the leaks over the years have
finally ended up with a badly stained downstairs ceiling, trashed
plasterboard behind the tiles, and it's now lined out with luvverly
green DPC membrane (doesn't leak at all, but 'er indoors is NOT happy).

So, now wondering what shower valve to use. Currently there's a cheap
thermostatic bar-mixer valve, which is OK and could be recycled, but
it's quite old and I'm minded to remove and store it for future
spares/repair for our other bathroom which has an identical model.

Requirements are as follows:

- Suitable for unvented HW cylinder - excellent pressure/flow, no
pumping needed.
- Riser rail/hose-type showerhead needed
- Thermostatic control
- Concealed fitting preferred

I'm a fan of Mira kit, and their blurb says the 'Excel' is the UK's
bestselling thermostatic shower:
http://www.mirashowers.com/onlinecatalog/shower_finishes.jsp?item=22916&prod_num=Excel+Biv& sim=Excel+Ev%7CExcel+Biv%7CExcel+Bir%7C1.1518.309% 7C1.1518.311&family=Excel&cat=Mixer+Showers#colour s
About 330 GBP upwards.

However, there are several other Miras of lower price (never mind other
makes) and I can't make out what the difference actually is and why I
should buy the more expensive model...

Also; I'm not particularly clued up on the shower market these days and
would like to make an informed choice! Are 'shower panels' worth
considering? Body jets? Doesn't someone produce one with his'n her
preset temperatures?

Any thoughts / reccomendations much appreciated.

David