If you have spent a fair bit of time browsing through the range of shower pumps we have on sale, you may have noticed a piece of notation you were not familiar with – the letter B. Accompanying the brand of shower pump, the number of impellers it has, and its listing as positive or negative head, is a two digit number that lies somewhere within the 1.0 to 5.0 range. This number is an indication of a shower pump’s bar rating. To give you a better insight into exactly what bar is, how it works and how it should affect your decision to buy or not buy a particular shower pump, we have put together this helpful guide.
What is bar?
First things first, an explanation of bar is required. Bar is a metric unit of atmospheric air pressure, and the bar rating of a shower pump is a reflection of its ability to generate pressure. The higher the bar rating, the higher pressure the shower pump is capable of generating. More precisely, 1 bar of pressure is equal to the pressure exerted by 10m of water. Although there are instances of pumps with a full range of bar ratings from 0.5B right through to 5.0B, the vast majority of shower pumps lie somewhere in the 1.5B to 4.5B range.
What bar shower pump do I need?
The sheer scale of the room you aim to service with your shower pump is perhaps the simplest yet strongest indication you can garner of the bar rating you’ll need. A pump with a 0B or 0.5B rating (a rating which you’ll really struggle to find) is incapable of generating any of its own pressure, meaning it is largely reliant on gravity to shift water from A to B. At the opposite end of the spectrum are pumps with a rating of 4.0B, which possess the ability to move masses of water. So much so, that a Grundfos shower pumps guide suggests that a pump with a rating of 4.0B can service two bathroom suites single-handedly. From that, you should have a better idea of the kind of bar rating your shower pump is likely to need.
What other factors should I consider?
Alongside bar, there are a number of other factors you should consider before committing to buy a certain shower pump. Just as important, if not more so, is the positive or negative head status of your shower pump. So too is the pump’s centrifugal or regenerative status. You can read about the implications of positive and negative head shower pumps, as well as centrifugal and regenerative shower pumps here.
What next?
Hopefully, you have a far greater understanding of bar, and how differences in its rating are likely to affect the kind of shower pump you require. If you need a more detailed explanation, or want some clarification on the specifications of a particular product, you can contact us by phone (0800 008 6405) email ([email protected]) or through the contact page on our website.
