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Article is behind a paywall, so I did not read it. But here in Finland, most showers at homes and in hotels have traditionally used a Finnish brand which had a
by kukkeliskuu 3y ago
Article is behind a paywall, so I did not read it.
But here in Finland, most showers at homes and in hotels have traditionally used a Finnish brand which had a nice, simple design with two controls: one for both temperature and water volume (up and down is water volume, left and right is the temperature), and another for choosing the shower head (over the head or the hand held one), if the shower had two heads.
But apparently that is changing now as well, and even the showers from that company are becoming more complex. The biggest change is that the now the control for choosing the shower head has been combined with water volume control. Temperature has another control. Also, instead of red and blue colors, plus and minus are used as symbol. They are often not as visible as red and blue. I guess that is "innovation".
My 7 year old daughter sometimes has problems with these newer showers, as they work slightly differently depending on the model.
- deleted 3y ago[deleted]
- Someone 3y ago> one for both temperature and water volume (up and down is water volume, left and right is the temperature) Sounds inferior to having two controls. IMO the best designs have them separate. If you live alone, you set the temperature once and from then on only use the volume one. The magic that allows that is the thermostatic mixing valve (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thermostatic_mixing_valve https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thermostatic_mixing_valve)
- mrweasel 3y agoI've replaced so many those thermostatic mixing valve shower controls, they absolutely suck. The build quality, even for the high end, is terrible. They don't deal well with hard water, high levels of lime in the water. Technically you're suppose to let cold water run through them after each shower to avoid it, but that means adjusting the knob every time you use it, and most of them are plastic, gripping a brass valve and that breaks the plastic over time (like 6 months to a year). I've given up and just buy the cheapest single control fitting I can find. The ones I've installed last have lasted 5 years so far without issue. You can't beat simplicity, $500 fixture breaks within a year, a $40 one will last a lifetime.
- kukkeliskuu 3y agoMy experience is similar, that most of the thermostatic mixing valves suck. But the one thermostatic mixing valve that has been very common in Finland (link below) works really well in my experience. I am just surprised that inferior products are becoming more common. Maybe people think that the good design is too common. https://www.talotarvike.com/media/catalog/product/o/r/oras_1870_product_plain.jpg https://www.talotarvike.com/media/catalog/product/o/r/oras_1...
- ginko 3y agoThat's a single lever mixer, not a thermostat.
- kukkeliskuu 3y agoGood that you corrected my vocabulary.
- mrweasel 3y agoYeah, as pointed out, not a thermostat, but that is one of the models I've used to replace thermostats. They work really well.
- sitharus 3y agoThe worst showers I’ve found are the ones installed in the 70s and 80s here in New Zealand. There’s no pressure control, only temperature control with off after full cold. The shower head is fixed and has the control integrated so you have to reach up to turn the shower on or adjust the temperature. This guarantees you get blasted with freezing water every time, and the shower head has to be set low enough so everyone can reach it. If you’re over 178cm / 5’10 (I think, I don’t do feetses) you’ll have to bend down to wash your hair.
- jemmyw 3y agoI used one of these last weekend at the place I was staying. It also only had 2 temperatures: too hot and cold.