21st floor condo low water pressure issue...need advice

[WaveHunter]

I just moved into a 21st floor condo with very low water pressure.  I’m only renting for 9 months so I’m only looking for a economical DIY solution.  My only issue is with boosting water pressure for the shower; pressure for faucets and toilet are ok.

 

the condo has two water heaters; one for the kitchen sink (located underneath sink), and another in the bathroom for bathroom sink and shower.

 

Is it possible to get a simple “booster” pump to attach to bathroom water heater inlet from Lazada, that I can simply install myself?  I see a lot of listings for these type of pumps on Lazada and AliExpress, but the product descriptions and buyer feedback are mostly written in Thai and the Lazada site does not auto-translate so I don’t have a clue which ones might be effective for my needs.

 

Can anyone provide product recommendations?  I asked the maintenance staff at the condo for advice and they could offer none.

 

Id really appreciate advice because I’m one of those people that really hate starting the day with a weak shower LOL!

[4reaL]

You can add a small pump to the direct water line to into the condo = for 9 months it may be a worthwhile investment for you comfort.

 

HomePro etc. has this type of mini pump that need electric power and then find someone to install it by cutting the blue PVC pipe and attaching it.

[johng]

Its quite possible that there is a lot of crud/corrosion  stones  blocking the pipes and/or taps

try taking the shower head off and see if the pressure is better  if not then close the main water inlet valve and take the shower tap off from the wall careful they like to break !!!  with tap removed

open/shut rapidly a good few times the water inlet valve to try flushing the crud out  also inspect the tap for crud.

 

[mahjongguy]

Has everything relevant been inspected? Input to the heater, output from the heater, shower head assembly? It doesn't take much debris to slow the flow.

[lopburi3]

28 minutes ago, 4reaL said:

You can add a small pump to the direct water line

You should never pump from a supply line.   

[WaveHunter]

7 minutes ago, johng said:

Its quite possible that there is a lot of crud/corrosion  stones  blocking the pipes and/or taps

try taking the shower head off and see if the pressure is better  if not then close the main water inlet valve and take the shower tap off from the wall careful they like to break !!!  with tap removed

open/shut rapidly a good few times the water inlet valve to try flushing the crud out  also inspect the tap for crud.

 

Good advice!  I just took the aerator off the bathroom sink and it was loaded with gritty crud!  Same with the shower!  It’s improved maybe 25%.  

 

Still probably need a pump but that’s a big improvement so thanks for suggestion ???? 

[WaveHunter]

47 minutes ago, 4reaL said:

You can add a small pump to the direct water line to into the condo = for 9 months it may be a worthwhile investment for you comfort.

 

HomePro etc. has this type of mini pump that need electric power and then find someone to install it by cutting the blue PVC pipe and attaching it.

The supply/output lines for the water heater are my only access to water supply and they use metal braided lines with screw-in connectors, so any mini-pump I get would have to connect this way.  Any suggestions?

 

[Kwasaki]

1 hour ago, WaveHunter said:

I'd really appreciate advice because I’m one of those people that really hate starting the day with a weak shower LOL!

Try the pump as suggested if there's still not enough water getting to the pump buy a small water storage tank that get filled with the condo incoming water a day pump water from tank, your get your power shower then. 

[4reaL]

1 hour ago, WaveHunter said:

The supply/output lines for the water heater are my only access to water supply and they use metal braided lines with screw-in connectors, so any mini-pump I get would have to connect this way.  Any suggestions?

 

 

 

Edit:

 

Those braided lines look like <deleted>, so if you can remove them and check for crud inside then remove any kinks in the line - maybe  a simple solution to a hard problem.

 

 

otherwise:

 

There are access closets normally in the hallway or ceiling where the condo units water feed is to your bathroom, the pump would be installed there, electric needed would tap into one of the power lines there also if there are no readily available outlets.

 

High floors in many condos in TH often have poor water pressure and the pump I'm suggesting are made exactly for this issue - maybe offer your landlord the improvement if you buy the pump? 

 

Last one I bought one was around 2500baht .

 

 

 

 

Edited November 28, 2020 by 4reaL

[NanLaew]

Get those braided lines replaced, making sure that higher grade ones are used as cheap ones won't last. Replace the faucet/tap aerators as well. They can be had at Homepro these days.

 

Also, based on the OP saying he found crud in the tap aerator, if those are galvanized pipe nipples between the hidden pipework and the braided hoses, they may be really constricted with calcium build-up as well.

 

As mentioned earlier, placing a pump on a water mains inlet is illegal and you can't do it on MWA or PWA mains. Years ago on my first build in Thailand with chronically low water pressure, I placed my spare water pump on the inlet to fill my storage tank quicker. I had no problems with water pressure but my six neighbors along the cul-de-sac would only get a whistle of air from their taps when my pump was on! I then put a timer on it so that it only kicked on for a few hours overnight. After I was advised it was illegal, I doubled up on my water storage and removed the pump.

 

However, since condominium plumbing becomes the owners business once it is past the unit meter, maybe these booster pumps are permitted? AFAIK, pump-assisted commercial shower units and water heaters aren't available in Thailand. We had them in Myanmar, they were imported from Malaysia.

 

[sometimewoodworker]

3 hours ago, lopburi3 said:

You should never pump from a supply line.   

True. BUT only if it’s the main incoming supply from the company supply. In this case as it’s a condo it’s perfectly OK

[Kwasaki]

1 hour ago, NanLaew said:

As mentioned earlier, placing a pump on a water mains inlet is illegal and you can't do it on MWA or PWA mains. 

That's why you put a tank that the main water fills and then put the pump after. 

[Dmaxdan]

Perhaps the simplest and cheapest solution is to buy a shower head with very tiny holes. (Many are available on Lazada) Forcing water through a smaller hole will always increase the pressure. Think about what happens when you put your thumb over the end of a hose pipe. 

 

Edited November 28, 2020 by Dmaxdan

[WaveHunter]

TaLked with the Juristic Person of the condo and she said that a water pump could make the pipes in the wall burst!

 

She showed me the pipes outside my condo in the hallway and they look very old and not in the best shape, but I find it hard to believe a small booster pump could do that.  What do you guys think?

[Oldie]

15 minutes ago, WaveHunter said:

TaLked with the Juristic Person of the condo and she said that a water pump could make the pipes in the wall burst!

 

She showed me the pipes outside my condo in the hallway and they look very old and not in the best shape, but I find it hard to believe a small booster pump could do that.  What do you guys think?

That you will be responsible if a pipe bursts. 

[lopburi3]

16 minutes ago, WaveHunter said:

TaLked with the Juristic Person of the condo and she said that a water pump could make the pipes in the wall burst!

 

She showed me the pipes outside my condo in the hallway and they look very old and not in the best shape, but I find it hard to believe a small booster pump could do that.  What do you guys think?

I think it would be illegal without OK of Condo and if you can not move suspect post above about using water saving showers that act to give a stronger spray with less water might be safe option.  And yes indeed many people run into issues when they apply higher pressure in home plumbing here.  At the most would not do anything other than use point of use shower with built in water pump (which as noted have not be openly sold here for many years).  Can you perhaps switch to another condo unit?

[Yellowtail]

40 minutes ago, Dmaxdan said:

Perhaps the simplest and cheapest solution is to buy a shower head with very tiny holes. (Many are available on Lazada) Forcing water through a smaller hole will always increase the pressure. Think about what happens when you put your thumb over the end of a hose pipe. 

 

 

In much the same way that turning the water off will increase the pressure. 

[johng]

14 minutes ago, Oldie said:

That you will be responsible if a pipe bursts. 

Yes I think you're right about that..the "mistake" was asking the Juristic Person  now if anything goes wrong with the water pipes  who's the first suspect  ???  ????   of course there are

Juristic Person's  who are reasonable,honest and fair  I'm not suggesting the OP's isn't  but you don't know until you know !

[Yellowtail]

Just now, johng said:

Yes I think you're right about that..the "mistake" was asking the Juristic Person  now if anything goes wrong with the water pipes  who's the first suspect  ???  ????   of course there are

Juristic Person's  who are reasonable,honest and fair  I'm not suggesting the OP's isn't  but you don't know until you know !

 

Well if they tell you not to put a pump in because the pipes will burst and you put a pump in anyway, I think it is reasonable that you be held responsible if pipes the burst...

[johng]

Yes I agree.

[Pilotman]

Move and next time, don't rent so high. 

[Dmaxdan]

6 minutes ago, Yellowtail said:

 

In much the same way that turning the water off will increase the pressure. 

Would you like me to give you another analogy as to why forcing water through a smaller space increases pressure?

Picture this, a slow, meandering river suddenly flows through a narrow rocky gorge. What happens? any guesses? No? Okay, I will enlighten you. You get rapids. This is because the same amount of water is now being forced through a smaller space. The exact same principal applies to shower heads. The smaller the holes, the more the pressure increases. Like it or not, that is a scientific fact. 

[johng]

In a 21 storey building the water pressure on the lower floors could be tremendous if they have water tanks on the roof  ????

[Cake Monster]

32 minutes ago, Oldie said:

That you will be responsible if a pipe bursts. 

Placing any kind of Pump, or restricting the Shower Head Etc with small holes will certainly give you more pressure.

Unfortunetley the down side to this, is that here will be considerably more back pressure in the Water pie, which could lead to leaks and possible ruptures.

You will then be responsible for the Repairs, and this could be to several other Condo Apartments.

My advice is because the Room is Rented by you, the Landlord is responsible. Get him to sort the issue out, or terminate the contract citing poor water supply.

[Yellowtail]

20 minutes ago, johng said:

In a 21 storey building the water pressure on the lower floors could be tremendous if they have water tanks on the roof  ????

 

They should have regulators on each floor so it is the same on all floors.

[Yellowtail]

23 minutes ago, Dmaxdan said:

Would you like me to give you another analogy as to why forcing water through a smaller space increases pressure?

Picture this, a slow, meandering river suddenly flows through a narrow rocky gorge. What happens? any guesses? No? Okay, I will enlighten you. You get rapids. This is because the same amount of water is now being forced through a smaller space. The exact same principal applies to shower heads. The smaller the holes, the more the pressure increases. Like it or not, that is a scientific fact. 

 

Clearly you're not an engineer.

[johng]

8 minutes ago, Yellowtail said:

They should have regulators on each floor

T.I.T   ????

[xylophone]

7 hours ago, WaveHunter said:

Good advice!  I just took the aerator off the bathroom sink and it was loaded with gritty crud!  Same with the shower!  It’s improved maybe 25%.  

 

Still probably need a pump but that’s a big improvement so thanks for suggestion ???? 

Don't forget the shower unit inlet pipe as it joins the unit, as inside the screw fitting/just inside the unit, there is also a small filter and this can also cause problems.

[treetops]

Maybe just change the shower head - it could be blocked with years of gunge.  I've just done that and it made a world of difference.

[ExpatOilWorker]

1 hour ago, johng said:

In a 21 storey building the water pressure on the lower floors could be tremendous if they have water tanks on the roof  ????

 

Nope. The water tank is at the roof of all high-rise buildings, but they have pressure reduction valves typically ever 8th floors down.