Has anyone ever had customers complaining that they find it impossible to operate 45/50 Amp. ceiling shower cord switches. They just haven't got the strength.
Was was your solution?
Z.
Option one, fit an easy to operate rocker switch such as a cooker switch, OUTSIDE the bath or shower room.
Option two, use a pull cord light switch that controls a contactor.
Option three, advise the user to leave the existing pull cord switch turned on. For functional switching use the control built into the shower.
Option four, extend the cord in order that the user may more easily use BOTH hands.
Option two, use a pull cord light switch that controls a contactor.
Begs the question why the shower pull switch is there in the first place … if it's for isolation (or mechanical maintenance) a typical lightswitch & contactor (with no local indication of contact separation) probably isn't going to be suitable.
- Andy.
WD40 and preloading may help using a heavy pulling handle on the cord ………. ensure a strong cord.
? Otherwise carry out a test to the latest edition of BS EN 60669-1:2000+A2:2008 - Switches for household and similar fixed-electrical installations - Part 1: General requirements
20.9 The operating member of a cord-operated switch shall have adequate strength.
Compliance is checked on a new specimen by the following test:
The switch is mounted on a support as in normal use.
A pull of 100 N is applied for 1 min on the operating member as in normal use, after which a
pull of 50 N is applied for 1 min in the most unfavourable direction within a conical surface with the centre being the operating cord and the angle not exceeding 80 ° to the vertical.
After the test the switch shall show no damage within the meaning of this standard. The operating member shall not have broken and the cord-operated switch shall still operate.
Jaymack
O.k. I have considered all of the above options. Some of which require much effort labour and cost.
Situation. Old boy has an electrically heated shower with a circular blue illuminated on/off button on its cover that is easy to push for ON or OFF. The shower has a staged shutdown, so OFF is not instant and may take 10 to 15 seconds.
The waste water is pumped away as the shower tray is very low, designed for disabled use with no step up.
The customer reported that he could not turn the shower off and the shower tray filled with water and was about to flood the floor. (Not a wet room).
In a panic, either because the shower was not turning OFF due to a fault, or because the old boy became confused, he tried to pull the cord to turn OFF the shower, but the switch would not operate for him. He phoned me and I assumed a faulty cord switch.
A new cord switch was fitted and operated correctly after installation as demonstrated to the customer. The shower also switched ON and OFF correctly. The waste water pump was also working correctly.
The customer phoned me last evening to say that he could not turn OFF the cord switch. He even tried to wind the cord around his hand but he could not get it to operate. Perhaps he has weak hands or in infirm.
He is concerned about another possible flooding issue, so needs the back up of a cord switch.
I showed him where the shower M.C.B. is located in case he needs it. It is easily accessed.
Perhaps a large plastic tri-angle pull on the end of the cord may assist?
End of story.
Z.
I think you need someone with more experience to work on such an install.
The customer is wrong.
The pump should have a ‘run on’ feature' built in. The pump should not turn off if there is still water flowing. The shower runs on after the button is pressed to get out all of the hot water inside the element. This will stop both limescale build up in the element, and , more importantly, also stops someone turning it back on 2 minutes later and having boiling water shot at them. This is a safety feature which should not be bypassed.
The shower should never be turned off at the pull cord while the shut down run on feature is working. Most, if not all, thermostatic showers have this feature.
If the pull cord is ridiculously tight, then it has probably been overheated at some point, usually by a loose connection inside it. Sometimes it is obvious that it has overheated, sometimes not, but either way, if it is too tight to pull, the switch needs changing.
And the pump needs investigating, they should not allow water to pool in the tray/floor.
alanblaby:
I think you need someone with more experience to work on such an install.
The customer is wrong.
The pump should have a ‘run on’ feature' built in. The pump should not turn off if there is still water flowing. The shower runs on after the button is pressed to get out all of the hot water inside the element. This will stop both limescale build up in the element, and , more importantly, also stops someone turning it back on 2 minutes later and having boiling water shot at them. This is a safety feature which should not be bypassed.
The shower should never be turned off at the pull cord while the shut down run on feature is working. Most, if not all, thermostatic showers have this feature.
If the pull cord is ridiculously tight, then it has probably been overheated at some point, usually by a loose connection inside it. Sometimes it is obvious that it has overheated, sometimes not, but either way, if it is too tight to pull, the switch needs changing.
And the pump needs investigating, they should not allow water to pool in the tray/floor.
Yes I am aware of all of the above. The install is an existing one, not a new one. It has been operating successfully. The cord switch is new. I am beginning to think that the problems are operator error or feebleness.
Z.
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