shower-head heater disaster. yikexxxx

AZB

Platinum
Jan 2, 2002
12,290
519
113
Do we all know what an electric shower-head heater is? Well here is a picture of one, not the one I had in my bathroom, but similar.

medium.jpg


Turns out, I took a normal shower this morning. As you turn the water on from the knob, the water flow from inside the water-heater shower-head turns on the heater from a floater switch. Which gets activated from the flow of water through the shower head. The water comes out hot. No problem so far.
I have been using it for years without any problems. Today?s shower was no different. As I turn off the water, the switch inside the shower-head turns off the heating filament inside the unit. All good and set so far.
I go to work and I come home in the afternoon to eat in my house. I instantly smell a strong burning smell coming from somewhere. Burning plastic. I run towards my inverter to see if that burnt out. All fine there. I run in the room to check if the iron is left on there. Nop, nada. So I pass by the bathroom and smell the burning plastic smell even stronger. I pull off the shower curtain and this is what I see.
Yikexxxx. The burnt remains of my water-heater unit.
2ldiw3q.jpg

Seems like the switch inside got stuck and left it on. The unit burnt itself and melted out. If the shower curtain was ignited it could have been a disaster.
I will put a cut off hard switch next time. 
Thanks god all it good and nothing else got fried.
AZB
 

socuban

New member
Nov 24, 2002
509
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0
WOW. Those hot water heaters + electricity that close to running water always made me nervous.
 

Bronxboy

Well-known member
Jul 11, 2007
14,107
595
113
Do we all know what an electric shower-head heater is? Well here is a picture of one, not the one I had in my bathroom, but similar.

medium.jpg


Turns out, I took a normal shower this morning. As you turn the water on from the knob, the water flow from inside the water-heater shower-head turns on the heater from a floater switch. Which gets activated from the flow of water through the shower head. The water comes out hot. No problem so far.
I have been using it for years without any problems. Today?s shower was no different. As I turn off the water, the switch inside the shower-head turns off the heating filament inside the unit. All good and set so far.
I go to work and I come home in the afternoon to eat in my house. I instantly smell a trong burning smell coming from somewhere. Burning plastic. I run towards my inverter to see if that burnt out. All fine there. I run in the room to check if the iron is left on there. Nop, nada. So I pass by the bathroom and smell the burning plastic smell even stronger. I pull off the shower curtain and this is what I see.
Yikexxxx. The burnt remains of my water-heater unit.
2ldiw3q.jpg

Seems like the switch inside got stuck and left it on. The unit burnt itself and melted out. If the shower curtain was ignited it could have been a disaster.
I will put a cut off hard switch next time. 
Thanks god all it good and nothing else got fried.
AZB


You are very lucky!!!
 

Tallman1818

New member
Nov 19, 2007
393
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How did this happend?? I had the very same heater on my old Apartment in Santiago, but never had a problem with it.
 

Ezequiel

Bronze
Jun 4, 2008
1,801
81
48
Do we all know what an electric shower-head heater is? Well here is a picture of one, not the one I had in my bathroom, but similar.

medium.jpg


Turns out, I took a normal shower this morning. As you turn the water on from the knob, the water flow from inside the water-heater shower-head turns on the heater from a floater switch. Which gets activated from the flow of water through the shower head. The water comes out hot. No problem so far.
I have been using it for years without any problems. Today’s shower was no different. As I turn off the water, the switch inside the shower-head turns off the heating filament inside the unit. All good and set so far.
I go to work and I come home in the afternoon to eat in my house. I instantly smell a strong burning smell coming from somewhere. Burning plastic. I run towards my inverter to see if that burnt out. All fine there. I run in the room to check if the iron is left on there. Nop, nada. So I pass by the bathroom and smell the burning plastic smell even stronger. I pull off the shower curtain and this is what I see.
Yikexxxx. The burnt remains of my water-heater unit.
2ldiw3q.jpg

Seems like the switch inside got stuck and left it on. The unit burnt itself and melted out. If the shower curtain was ignited it could have been a disaster.
I will put a cut off hard switch next time. 
Thanks god all it good and nothing else got fried.
AZB


It happens after a few year, the same happened to our shower heater, with the only different, that my father was still in bathroom, he got so scared that he didn't buy another one, we were forced to take COLD shower everyday :paranoid:.
 
Last edited:

AZB

Platinum
Jan 2, 2002
12,290
519
113
it looks like someone amended the proper fittings with bit of old tape

ufff , its not that simple. old tape, new tape, this is not the case. the water floater switch inside got stuck and left the heating element stayed on even after the water was shut off. So the heating element inside the unit got super hot (without water running through) and melted the unit. case closed.
AZB
 

granca

Bronze
Aug 20, 2007
1,418
48
0
87
I always thought that J R Hartley was an expert on fly fishing not shower heads but any way where can I buy one and what are they called in Dominican?