Should I turn off my shower heater when not in use?

[Jinxed]

My condo has one of those boxes above the shower where you can adjust the temperature of the water. Wondering if I should switch it off when not in use - does it save any power if I do?

[berybert]

If the shower has a light that is on to show the power is working you will save the money it takes to light the light.

So that could be as much as 2 baht a year. And don't forget you are also helping to save the planet.

[GuiseppeD]

Be careful, only Italian contractors should be used to make sure your electrics are in order.  If you fiddle with the box then you might be electrocuted to death if not declared safe by an Italian.

[Jinxed]

7 minutes ago, berybert said:

If the shower has a light that is on to show the power is working you will save the money it takes to light the light.

So that could be as much as 2 baht a year. And don't forget you are also helping to save the planet.

 

That makes sense, the heating of the water isn't using my electricity - its the whole buildings water supply.. i don't have a separate tank for me I'm not that special

 

EDIT: Also, I have no light

Edited January 2, 2017 by Jinxed

[kannot]

3 hours ago, Jinxed said:

 

That makes sense, the heating of the water isn't using my electricity - its the whole buildings water supply.. i don't have a separate tank for me I'm not that special

 

EDIT: Also, I have no light

yes it  sure take a "bright  spark" to spot a  sarcastic  comment

[mania]

5 hours ago, Jinxed said:

 

That makes sense, the heating of the water isn't using my electricity - its the whole buildings water supply.. i don't have a separate tank for me I'm not that special

 

EDIT: Also, I have no light

 

Actually the heating of water is using your electricity

 

But your right you do not have a tank

 

Thailand rarely has tank heaters

They use instant heaters that flash heat small amounts of water as it passes thru

 

So as to your original question...no need to turn it off as when

water is not passing thru it/ your not using hot water... no heating  is occurring

 

 

Edited January 2, 2017 by mania

[Crossy]

It's not going to be using any power, but many Thais turn off electrical appliances when not in use due to a worry (often real) of safety issues with iffy wiring.

 

It costs nothing to turn it off if you want.

[mania]

5 minutes ago, Crossy said:

It's not going to be using any power, but many Thais turn off electrical appliances when not in use due to a worry (often real) of safety issues with iffy wiring.

 

It costs nothing to turn it off if you want.

 

I agree with everything except........In this case be careful

I have seen these heaters wired right in shower area .....so you are standing in the bath

& heater is on wall right there

 

OP states above shower so I am betting his is done that way too

I would not touch any switch in Thailand while standing in any water

Have also read about a few tourists who made that mistake.

 

 

 

[Crossy]

1 minute ago, mania said:

I agree with everything except........In this case be careful

I have seen these heaters wired right in shower area .....so you are standing in the bath

& heater is on wall right there

 

OP states above shower so I am betting his is done that way too

I would not touch any switch in Thailand while standing in any water

Have also read about a few tourists who made that mistake.

 

Yup^^^, cannot disagree.

 

Our OP says "... boxes above the shower where you can adjust the temperature  ..." so I assumed that it is the shower unit itself which he wants to turn off (ours has an 'off"position on the temperature dial).

 

If it's a separate switch then no way would one want to touch it with wet hands whilst standing in water.

 

[uptheos]

20 minutes ago, mania said:

 

I agree with everything except........In this case be careful

I have seen these heaters wired right in shower area .....so you are standing in the bath

& heater is on wall right there

 

OP states above shower so I am betting his is done that way too

I would not touch any switch in Thailand while standing in any water

Have also read about a few tourists who made that mistake.

 

I haven't, but I'd like to see links stating the above.

Edited January 3, 2017 by Crossy
Fixed the quote.

[Crossy]

13 minutes ago, uptheos said:

I haven't, but I'd like to see links stating the above.

 

Not seen any stories directly attributing death to touching switches, but the number of tourists electrocuted in the shower (or swimming pool) is more than somewhat alarming.

 

 

[thailand49]

My has been on for ten plus years and seems to still be going strong?

[jacko45k]

1 hour ago, mania said:

 

I agree with everything except........In this case be careful

I have seen these heaters wired right in shower area .....so you are standing in the bath

& heater is on wall right there

 

OP states above shower so I am betting his is done that way too

I would not touch any switch in Thailand while standing in any water

Have also read about a few tourists who made that mistake.

 

 

 

Yes, I get out of the shower to adjust the temperature but can never get it quite right!

[lopburi3]

If you read the manual I suspect it will clearly say to always turn unit off when not in use (I know - who reads manuals and safety instructions?)

 

If rated multi-point the flow control is designed as a full turn off switch but when only rated single use expect maker is not that confident so probably is best to turn off.  But if grounded and on RCCB as designed I would not be too concerned as there is nothing flammable in shower area.  

[Kerryd]

All my (3) water heaters have a small LED light to indicate when they are actually heating. The light is normally off when there is no water flow or the temperature dial is set to the lowest setting ("off"). 

 

If you do not see a light when the water is running;

a ) if the water is coming out hot, the light may be burnt out (like my shower heater one),

b ) if the water is coming out luke warm (room temperature), check the ECB breaker on the heater (reset if needed),

c ) if that doesn't work, check the main circuit breaker panel in your condo, or

d ) if the breakers are on, check the water flow (pressure) - my bathroom sink heater apparently only works when I have normal water pressure. When the pressure drops for some reason (Bang Lamung Water ) the heater won't kick in at all. If the pressure is normal though, I can open the tap just a wee little bit and get steaming hot water out of it - great for shaving ! The kitchen sink and the shower heaters (different models) seem to work regardless of the pressure. 

 

I had an issue with the bathroom sink heater about a year after I had it installed, as the contractor did a crappy job on the secondary circuit breaker. Had it replaced and no problems since then.

 

If I'm going out for short periods (i.e. a week or three) I don't bother unplugging/turning anything off. If I'm expecting to be gone longer (or going out of the country) I will usually shut everything down, unplug all electrical appliances/power bars and turn off all the breakers. Not many places (I've seen) are (electrically) grounded, nor are smoke detectors commonplace. Hate to come home to a smoking ruin because an electrical surge fried everything and started a fire. 

[hansnl]

2 hours ago, mania said:

 

Actually the heating of water is using your electricity

 

But your right you do not have a tank

 

Thailand rarely has tank heaters

They use instant heaters that flash heat small amounts of water as it passes thru

 

So as to your original question...no need to turn it off as when

water is not passing thru it/ your not using hot water... no heating  is occurring

 

 

On the other hand, if one way or another, the tap is opened accidentally without you knowing or realising it, it might cost you quite a lot of money for electrics.

Advice:

When wanting hot water, open the tap first and then switch on the heater.

Ready?

Switch of the heater first and then close the tap.

Why?

Things can go wrong with electrics in Thailand, and they tend to go wrong.

[AlQaholic]

If you see sparks and flames coming out of it, you should probably turn it off.....

[themerg]

Yes. to save electricity. to extend the life of the unit.

I turn off water into shower heater.

Turn off control on heater.

Turn off electric breaker on shower heater.

[Srikcir]

1 hour ago, Crossy said:

 

Not seen any stories directly attributing death to touching switches, but the number of tourists electrocuted in the shower (or swimming pool) is more than somewhat alarming.

 

 

Only story (2011) I can find: http://www.thelocal.se/20110404/32990

[luk AJ]

I think nothing more important than check if the heater is connected with ground. For ON/OFF I would never touch this, no water flow = off


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[1FinickyOne]

We turn ours off from February to December... but even in cold season, only turn it on when needed... 

[Batboy]

I learnt that there is another reset button that is inside these shower water heaters that is on top of the copper heating tank as well. So if you reset your external ELB and the unit still does not heat the water, turn off the power to the heating unit and take the front cover off and look on top of the copper heating tank to see if there is a reset button. Press this button and close the front cover, turn the power on and check if the heating unit is again heating the water. This is generally only what the service guys do when you call them and charge you about 1.5 to 2k THB to do it or you end up paying up to 6k THB for a new one when you don't need to

[lopburi3]

1 hour ago, hansnl said:

On the other hand, if one way or another, the tap is opened accidentally without you knowing or realising it, it might cost you quite a lot of money for electrics.

Advice:

When wanting hot water, open the tap first and then switch on the heater.

Ready?

Switch of the heater first and then close the tap.

Why?

Things can go wrong with electrics in Thailand, and they tend to go wrong.

Actually it makes more sense to be to turn unit on while you and area are dry and then turn water on if actually turning on/off each use.  

[dinga]

On a slightly different aspect, I turn the heater unit off but then continue running the water until the temperature of the stream returns to ambient.  Figure this may be better for the unit and extend its life - any truth in that? 

[Suradit69]

3 hours ago, mania said:

I would not touch any switch in Thailand while standing in any water

 

Probably a good idea in any country.

[Suradit69]

9 minutes ago, dinga said:

On a slightly different aspect, I turn the heater unit off but then continue running the water until the temperature of the stream returns to ambient.  Figure this may be better for the unit and extend its life - any truth in that? 

 

I've had several "on demand" water heaters, though not the type actually located in the shower. I never turn the power off and never run off the hot water. They each have had 5 year warranties and so far each has died almost exactly 5 years after installation.

 

 

 

Edited January 3, 2017 by Suradit69

[chuang]

Switch it off it may saves life one day....

[mania]

33 minutes ago, Suradit69 said:

 

Probably a good idea in any country.

 

True but I have never been in any other country where you could from the tub/shower :)

[CaptainS]

10 hours ago, berybert said:

If the shower has a light that is on to show the power is working you will save the money it takes to light the light.

So that could be as much as 2 baht a year. And don't forget you are also helping to save the planet.

 

I did never check my water heater, but in general don´t underestimate what devices eat up on energy in stand-by modes. My induction cooker eats up 30 W an hour for doing nothing (if I don´t unplug it) thats 86 baht per month (if 4 baht per unit), quite something I think. Specially since people probably have a few more devices. For example my Samsung TV takes 15 W (another 43 baht a month) , a similar TV model in the EU it would take less than 1 W on stand-by because of the regulations over there, but here the manufacturers just don´t care, producing it a bit cheaper but costing people a lot in energy.

For a whole household it may add up to a few hundred bath per month (or a few thousand per year ), that quite some money, specially for the poorer locals.

 

[dbrenn]

4 hours ago, Crossy said:

 

Yup^^^, cannot disagree.

 

Our OP says "... boxes above the shower where you can adjust the temperature  ..." so I assumed that it is the shower unit itself which he wants to turn off (ours has an 'off"position on the temperature dial).

 

If it's a separate switch then no way would one want to touch it with wet hands whilst standing in water.

 

Right. Earthing is non existent in Thailand. When my shower unit was installed, the 'electrician' simply hammered a nail into the corner of an (insulating) concrete wall and attached the earth wire to it. He was adamant that this was a job well done. 

 

Very important to use earth leakage circuit breakers here. They save lives.