I recently moved into a condo on the 26th

floor and the water pressure from the shower head is very low.

The building engineer told me that there is nothing he could do, since the higher the floor,

the lower the pressure.

I was informed that I might be able to purchase a high pressure shower head to boost the velocity of water pressure coming from the shower head when the pressure is low.

Has anybody come across this type of shower head?

If so, was it effective and where would I buy one?

 

Yeah they seem to let air into the flow which really gives it a boost.

Pretty sure I bought one from HomePro - they are normally a bit larger, but if the water pressure is really low I'm not sure if it will fix it - but it's worth a try....

 

6 hours ago, TBKK said:

I recently moved into a condo on the 26th

 

Long term lease?

Dedicated shower heater on the wall or multipoint heater for all hot water taps?

Rain type showerhead or hand held?

 

Panasonic make a shower heater with a built-in pump. You'll have to jump through some hoops to get one but if it is a long term fix it might be worth it. 

 

 

The OP is probably looking for an inline booster pump.  Lots of models available on Lazada.

 

I searched Lazada for "booster pump" when I got limited results including "inline".

 

It's more involved than a simple shower head, and will require some plumbing.  But a shower head alone won't boost pressure.

 

Edit:  I'd add that before taking that step, I'd check the existing shower head to see if it's scaled up, full of grit, or has a tiny little water saving orifice in it.  Fixing that may be enough to get the OP a satisfying shower, even at the low pressure.

 

On 8/8/2025 at 8:39 AM, TBKK said:

I recently moved into a condo on the 26th

floor and the water pressure from the shower head is very low.

The building engineer told me that there is nothing he could do, since the higher the floor,

the lower the pressure.

I was informed that I might be able to purchase a high pressure shower head to boost the velocity of water pressure coming from the shower head when the pressure is low.

Has anybody come across this type of shower head?

If so, was it effective and where would I buy one?

 

Is the water pressure also low at other outlets such as kitchen or bathroom sink?  If everything is low pressure then you probably need to do the shower head as you mentioned.  But, if the pressure on other outlets seem higher, then your shower valve may have a blockage (a problem I had in the past).  Normally there are screens installed at the input to the shower valve and they can get plugged up, especially if the condo has done any work on the water lines which can knock loose a bunch of debris (which will collect at the screens if they are installed).  The only way (that I know of) to check if you have plugged screens is to turn off the water supply and physically pull the valve off the wall, then turn water back on and see if any debris comes out.  Get a Plummer if you are not comfortable removing the valve yourself.  Also, did you check with any of the other residents living on your floor to see if they have similar problem?

On 8/8/2025 at 8:39 AM, TBKK said:

Has anybody come across this type of shower head?

If so, was it effective and where would I buy one?

They have some on Lazada.  I bought one that said it increased pressure 900%.  It did nothing.  What I did notice is that the holes in the shower head were very small.  I guess that was to increase the pressure.

 

I did see some that had impellers in them.  Maybe they would work better.

Theres no such thing as a shower head that makes more pressure.

If you make the holes smaller, it increases pressure BUT the volume drops.
Remember that shower that felt like needles ?  Yup, thats what that was.

https://shopee.co.th/product/569323396/23986509860?gads_t_sig=VTJGc2RHVmtYMTlxTFVSVVRrdENkWVp3RFo3Mkw5czd4Z0hzdEF1WVFiblE4a3JHZDVjd2VlZUcweTRuRGhVMnZHa2lrQzE3Y3A3WnlEbWR4Y1lBaVEzdnlBNmpHMXB2VGZ6K2R1S05vc0xJS0FnR0N6TTdMd0dTUHlvbVR0NHBNNGFpV3V1eGtHMGhIZUtjZ3o4MGVRPT0&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=1541030086&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIru2i_emJjwMVNqhmAh2CPwc-EAQYBCABEgJG5_D_BwE

Thanks for that information.

The water pressure is low at kitchen and bathroom sink also.

Looks like I will have to purchase one of these " booster pumps" if I want to resolve this issue.

Never the less , you would like to have more flow !

That is not possible, the flow is delivered by the main pump of the building, if there (probably) is.

There could be something wrong with main system and therefor you dont have enough water.

Pressure regulator, or pump. Maybe they installed later on extra piping and didnt increase pump flow.

So the pump is too small in capacity.

But mentioned as well, blocking of water pipes, maybe a main valve half open?

 

26 stories is 26 X 2 meters (give or take) = 54 meters. 54 meters is 5.4 bar of pressure loss.

So down you start with 10 bar and on your floor it is 4.6 bar. And im not counting the loss then of the resistance of pipe, diameter of pipes, valves in pipes, bends in pipes. They all are negative influences on system.  

 

If you use a booster pump with bigger flow to give, you could have plumbing problems.

Water is taken out in inlet, but if there is not anymore, you will have air sucked into pump.

Also in piping/plumbing and a vacuum can exist, destroying it. Then you have more problems.

Pipes arent specified for vacuum and will break down pipes.

You take booster pup too big in flow, you will have nasty problems. No water.

 

You can only use a booster pump which is limited to the max flow of the system.

You have to find out , how many water is coming out in a certain time.

You fill a bucket of 10 ltr, valve wide open and see how long it takes before bucket is full. Measure time.

Then you can divide 10 ltr on amount of time , which shows you then the max flow on max open valve.

 So if the 10 ltr is done in 2 minutes = 1 ltr/0.2 minutes or 5 ltr/min.

Of course you can make it any dimension of flow, depending on what booster pump is giving as max flow intake.

Data of pump.

 

Be aware ! you do this in a moment of time. You dont know if other people in condo's also use water.

If they also use water, your flow is going down. So you could have earlier mentioned problems, destruction.

Choosing the pump is critical.

 

How can you solve?  Put in a buffertank of 100 ltr(?) with open connection on top ! Air inlet for tank.

There need to be 2 electric levelswitches and 2 electric valves. One on inlet , working on max level of tank

switching off water inlet and one switching on low level and stops booster pump.

Maybe the latter is extra, as the pump will give you no water anymore when tank is empty.

And because of the tank with air inlet ! your plumbing is protected.

However you can have fluttering then of the pump, water - no water, when no low level switch

Then you have 100 ltr for booster pump to shower or connected to all, everywhere until water in tank is gone.

Not specific , you need a booster pump then, you can also use normal pump.

But you have 100 ltr water until the tank chosen is empty. For tank, space is essential and how big.

 

One of the big advantages in renting, is to be able to move out if anything really annoying or unacceptable occurs in the current residence, In Thailand, asking for something to be fixed or repaired when one is a foreigner, can be a challenge. 

 

You are giving them your money. So just smile, be a hypocrite like some are, pack and walk away and let some place better get your money. 

1 hour ago, TBKK said:

Thanks for that information.

The water pressure is low at kitchen and bathroom sink also.

Looks like I will have to purchase one of these " booster pumps" if I want to resolve this issue.

 

Seems like you need three?

5 minutes ago, xtrnuno41 said:

26 stories is 26 X 2 meters (give or take) = 54 meters. 54 meters is 5.4 bar of pressure loss.

So down you start with 10 bar and on your floor it is 4.6 bar. And im not counting the loss then of the resistance of pipe, diameter of pipes, valves in pipes, bends in pipes. They all are negative influences on system.  

 

Most tall buildings have a water tank and a pump on the roof.   That way, gravity works for you and not against you.  That's an oversimplification, especially if it's a real tall building.

3 hours ago, Slowhand225 said:

Theres no such thing as a shower head that makes more pressure.

There are shower heads to reduce the pressure, so maybe they are referring to ditching one of those if installed

3 hours ago, TBKK said:

Thanks for that information.

The water pressure is low at kitchen and bathroom sink also.

Looks like I will have to purchase one of these " booster pumps" if I want to resolve this issue.

 

My header tank pressure is just 8psi, and manage quite well with a shower head/rose with 300 extremenly fine holes.    Six rows of five = thirty groups of ten very small holes that are in  triangular patterns, and I dont reckon you'll achieve a longer throw any other way. 

The 300 holes are about 0.2mm dia max. and throw about 1.5 metres. The face is 60mm by 35mm (mid length) in a tapered squarish design.   Hand held.

If you cant get them, try modifying the smallest  hole shower rose you can buy and  start applying small silastic beads  to selected spaced holes (perhaps on the inside of the disc depending on design) and the remainder holes will throw longer. Experiment by blocking more and more till you are satisfied. 

      NO  a pump will not give more water volume/flow thats not there in the first place ! 

With or without a pump It simply needs much smaller holes.        Bought two at local hardware store, one for solar hot water and the other for the gas emergency shower heater which has some flow restrictions so produces less throw, but is better than a cold shower.        Keep in mind blockages othes have spoken about.

 

1 hour ago, impulse said:

 

Most tall buildings have a water tank and a pump on the roof.   That way, gravity works for you and not against you.  That's an oversimplification, especially if it's a real tall building.

Well in this case I was recalling City Home in Hatyai, on ground floor, machine room with big pumps.

Mostly , you dont see, but this one was open to see.

The pumps are centrifugal types, so easier for inlet as they are not self sucking.

Most pumps are centrifugal and need low intake .

Only if another big pump would be in front then it could be done.

Though you need then several spring return valves if you go up

You dont want the suction section to be empty, it will never work.

Also a crime to get all air out then before working.

So pumps on the roof? supply pumps then , not for taking in.

Yes, gravity will help then.

 

On roof top they had a "garden".

 

It seems, "my" country build the biggest pumps, 50000 ltr/SEC ! In Guiness world record book !

We even have 4 of them ! Can you imagine per second !

About 5400 HP ! So if they start them, lights will go out.

Sorry I cant find the hand held shower head I referred to but beware of the misleading ads that state "high pressure".  Sure the smaller the holes gives a higher pressure squirt and yet they also give a stated operating pressure about 9psi.

But some also are rated about 4psi and there are some rated for camping R/V low pressures.

Again- suggest you go for the smallest almost-not-visible holes. Good luck.