Shower on Ceiling Light Flickers - advice needed please

[Deleted account]

Thanks showerq for the brilliant detailed reply. From everything I've read I suspect it's down the the supply companies, but I could be wrong. It's difficult to diagnose from afar. I really wish you all the luck.

I am a I little concerned you didn't get any certification.

Cheers peter

 

[guest1010]

Hi - the company may have their Electrical registration listed on their website or paperwork. If you're interested someone here may be nearby and be able to have a look at the issue close up.

Hi Wilko,

I've contacted NICEIC and ELECSA (who I was told are the same company from the man I spoke to at their technical dept.) and also ECA. They have all said contact the electric board as it sounds like a supply issue. Hopefully now they have agreed to send someone out again they can let us know. If all is fine (and I hope so) then I don't know what our next step is.

 

[littlespark]

Did the shower installer walk away without operating the shower? The lights must have been flickering straight away. That should have told the installer something was a miss.
It may be that they have installed something larger than was there before, but that would dim the lights, not cause a flicker.

The shower pull cord is linked to a fan? For extraction? These are normally wired in with the lighswitch rather than the shower.

If you can, please post a photograph of your shower and your consumer unit/meter/etc. (ps, the service head is where the supply cable goes through a big fuse, and normally is sealed so us mortals cannot tamper)

We don't want to badmouth any company on the public forum, so don't name them.

 

[guest1010]

Thanks showerq for the brilliant detailed reply. From everything I've read I suspect it's down the the supply companies, but I could be wrong. It's difficult to diagnose from afar. I really wish you all the luck.

I am a I little concerned you didn't get any certification.

Cheers peter

Many thanks again, Peter.

I shall ask they shower company for the certificate. Fingers crossed and again many thanks to you all.

 

[Pete999]

Did the shower installer walk away without operating the shower? The lights must have been flickering straight away. That should have told the installer something was a miss.
It may be that they have installed something larger than was there before, but that would dim the lights, not cause a flicker.

The shower pull cord is linked to a fan? For extraction? These are normally wired in with the lighswitch rather than the shower.

If you can, please post a photograph of your shower and your consumer unit/meter/etc. (ps, the service head is where the supply cable goes through a big fuse, and normally is sealed so us mortals cannot tamper)

We don't want to badmouth any company on the public forum, so don't name them.

Flicker and Dim may mean the same to some Mate, before we start why not wait until the OP comes back with answers to the questions posed, I've seen dafter things than what I am questioning, and of course we are all diagnosing the problem from afar.

 

[guest1010]

Did the shower installer walk away without operating the shower? The lights must have been flickering straight away. That should have told the installer something was a miss.
It may be that they have installed something larger than was there before, but that would dim the lights, not cause a flicker.

The shower pull cord is linked to a fan? For extraction? These are normally wired in with the lighswitch rather than the shower.

If you can, please post a photograph of your shower and your consumer unit/meter/etc. (ps, the service head is where the supply cable goes through a big fuse, and normally is sealed so us mortals cannot tamper)

We don't want to badmouth any company on the public forum, so don't name them.

Hi Littlespark, Thanks for your reply.

They tested the shower before they left, however, the flickering only started in the evening on the day it was installed.

I recorded the whistle and played it as it didn't happen when they were here. A few hours later after they replaced the washers, solenoid and ball valve the same whistle happen again and is continuing when the shower is on as is the lights flickering. We are waiting for them to come out and look at it again.

Thank you about the pull cord - we shall double check as no one has mentioned or suggested that before. Thank you.

 

[telectrix]

@littlespark. ain't you ever heard of the seal fairy? .

(ps, the service head is where the supply cable goes through a big fuse, and normally is sealed so us mortals cannot tamper)

 

[Wilko]

... If all is fine (and I hope so) then I don't know what our next step is.

Certainly don't despair, as what's made by man, can be fixed by man. Just maybe not the fine folks you've been blessed with so far.

 

[Deleted account]

alaerm bells ringing. why is a fan running off the shower circuit, unless it had been designed as such by manufacturers?

O dear. I've seen this before. Extractor permanent live and neutral fed from lighting circuit. Switched live from shower.
It functionally worked fine at the address I was at but obviously wrong.

This property was previously owned by a builder. He had done a lot of interesting things including the shower run off 2.5 mm. I've no idea how it coped, but the cable was fine, no evidence of overheating. This turned into a full rewire of the whole house as the socket circuits and lighting were a joke too. First time I've made a customer cry when going over what I'd found.

 

[guest1010]

Certainly don't despair, as what's made by man, can be fixed by man. Just maybe not the fine folks you've been blessed with so far.

You are certainly right. I'm lost what to do and I think I'm actually past breaking point. I won't mention the names of the companies but their attitudes is very difficult to cope with.

 

[guest1010]

O dear. I've seen this before. Extractor permanent live and neutral fed from lighting circuit. Switched live from shower.
It functionally worked fine at the address I was at but obviously wrong.

This property was previously owned by a builder. He had done a lot of interesting things including the shower run off 2.5 mm. I've no idea how it coped, but the cable was fine, no evidence of overheating. This turned into a full rewire of the whole house as the socket circuits and lighting were a joke too. First time I've made a customer cry when going over what I'd found.

I will ask the shower company about the pull cord when they come out, however, it won't be for another 3 weeks due to their workload.

I am very grateful to you all for all your replies. Thank you again and I shall post again once we know a reply from the shower company or electric board.

 

[guest1010]

O dear. I've seen this before. Extractor permanent live and neutral fed from lighting circuit. Switched live from shower.
It functionally worked fine at the address I was at but obviously wrong.

This property was previously owned by a builder. He had done a lot of interesting things including the shower run off 2.5 mm. I've no idea how it coped, but the cable was fine, no evidence of overheating. This turned into a full rewire of the whole house as the socket circuits and lighting were a joke too. First time I've made a customer cry when going over what I'd found.

I will ask the shower company about the pull cord when they come out, however, it won't be for another 3 weeks due to their workload.

Sorry this is a double post.

 

[freddo]

Hope you get it sorted, had a similar fault, high resistance neutral on joint to overhead cable.

 

[littlespark]

Lol. That video needs a pumping choon as a backing track

 

[Pete999]

Just to put my mind at ease, what size was the old Shower? what size ie the new one?

 

[guest1010]

Hope you get it sorted, had a similar fault, high resistance neutral on joint to overhead cable.

It is not as flickering like that, however, it is visible and the electrician has seen it flicker.

 

[guest1010]

Just to put my mind at ease, what size was the old Shower? what size ie the new one?

The old one was a 9.5kw standard shower.

The new one is 9.5kw care shower.

The shower company has assured us that they are the same and the cables are all okay.

They are refusing to comment on the flickering though.

 

[Pete999]

The old one was a 9.5kw standard shower.

The new one is 9.5kw care shower.

The shower company has assured us that they are the same and the cables are all okay.

They are refusing to comment on the flickering though.

Thanks Mate then I will go along with a dodgy N somewhere, switch, Shower, also as others concerned with the fan linked with the Shower, can you name the company that fitted the shower by PM if you want to that is. The certificate you have requested, that must have caused a few heart flutter within the shower company. A bit like a lot of Kitchen fitting outfits, as long as it works, jobs a goodun.

 

[Midwest]

OP from your detailed response it might not be aimed squarely at your supply, as said by telectrix. But as you had a similar issue before the new shower was installed, similarly it just can't be leveed to the new shower.

Something is amiss hear, and it might not be the shower. You might have to start at the beginning again in terms of investigation.

PS dismiss the actual electric shower appliance, as historic events have proved, its not the instigator. Somethings wrong in your supply or wiring installation.

 

[Richard Burns]

The initial dip in a light when a high powered appliance is turned on is quite common as the voltage will drop when the heavy load is applied, it probably shouldn't but often does.
Generally a continuing flicker in the power supply tends to indicate a loose connection that is sparking somewhat and causing the power to go on and off. This would usually be before any split of power to the heavy appliance and whatever is flickering, however with a 9.5kW shower it may be that the shower is just causing the starting flick every time is goes on and off within it's own circuit.
If the problem is due to the incoming supply then it would likely have happened before with the previous shower.
I would tend to concentrate my attention to the point at which the two consumer units are separated and any wiring before that back to your main fuse.
However because this is a new shower the initial inspection would be to check the security of the wiring connections within the shower and work back from there. The whine may also be symptomatic of the shower turning on and off rapidly, though this may not be obvious.
The fan being connected to the shower is also a worry, but unless there are loose connections is unlikely to be the cause of the fault.