Aqualisa shower not working: faults, checks and repairs
If an Aqualisa shower has stopped working, first identify the type: a smart digital shower (such as Quartz, Optic Q, Unity Q or Visage Q), a mixer (such as Midas or Aquavalve), an electric (such as Lumi+ or eMotion) or an Aquastream power shower. Then check the simple things: power to the shower and, for a digital model, to its separate processor unit; the stop tap and any isolation valves fully open; the shower head and hose free of scale and kinks. One cause catches many households out. If the shower stopped working properly after a boiler change, it may simply be the wrong version for the new water system, because Aqualisa's pumped and thermostatic products are built for a specific supply. Under guarantee, contact Aqualisa first. Otherwise, a plumber can diagnose the supply and the valve together.
Loyal Plumbers · Updated
Discuss your plumbing workWhich Aqualisa shower is it?
Aqualisa makes four families of shower, and each fails in its own way. The range name is usually printed on the controller or the valve.
| Type | Examples in the range | Typical problems |
|---|---|---|
| Smart digital | Quartz, Optic Q, Unity Q, Visage Q, S-Range | Controller dead or unresponsive, no water, wrong temperature, leak at the remote processor |
| Mixer (thermostatic) | Midas, Aquavalve | Temperature swings, too hot or cold, weak flow, dripping when off |
| Electric | Lumi+, eMotion, E1, E2 | No power, cutting out, runs cold, water from the base of the unit |
| Power | Aquastream | Pump runs but little water, pump silent, noise, cutting out |
Checks to make before calling anyone
These take a few minutes and either fix the problem or tell the engineer where to start.
- Check the power. An electric or power shower has its own pull cord or isolator. A digital shower also has a power supply to its processor, which is often in the loft, an airing cupboard or under the bath.
- Make sure the stop tap is fully open and that any isolation valves on the shower's supply pipes have not been left closed after other work.
- Check whether the hot water is working elsewhere in the house. If no tap has hot water, the fault is the boiler or cylinder, not the shower.
- Unscrew the head and run the shower into the tray. If the flow improves, the head is scaled; our guide on how to descale a shower head covers cleaning it. Then try without the hose, which can kink or collapse inside.
- Note anything that changed recently: a new boiler, a cylinder replacement, a removed loft tank, a plumber working on the pipes, or a cold snap.
It stopped working after a new boiler
This is one of the most useful things to know about Aqualisa showers, and it explains a lot of calls. Aqualisa's digital showers come in versions for different water systems. A gravity pumped version has a pump in the processor to boost water from a loft tank and cylinder. A high pressure version is for combi boilers and unvented cylinders. They are not interchangeable.
Aqualisa's own guidance is clear that when a home changes from a gravity system to a high pressure one, a pumped processor has to be replaced. Its seals are only designed for about 1 bar, whereas the standard units handle up to 7 bar. Switching the processor's setting to high pressure only turns the pump off; it does nothing for the seals. Aqualisa says connecting a pumped unit to a high pressure system invalidates the warranty and could cause leaks that will not be covered.
Thermostatic mixers are affected too. Aqualisa lists specific cartridges and flow regulators needed when some mixer models move onto a combi boiler, and warns that its thermostatic and digital products are not designed for mixed supplies, such as mains cold with gravity hot. A shower that turned erratic or scalding-then-cold after a boiler swap may need the right cartridge, not a new shower.
If you are planning a boiler replacement or converting to an unvented cylinder, tell the installer what shower you have before the work starts. Our guides to unvented vs vented cylinder systems and to choosing a combi or system boiler explain which setups are gravity and which are high pressure.
If an Aqualisa pumped processor is leaking after a change to a combi boiler or unvented cylinder, isolate the shower's supply and switch off its power. Do not keep running it at mains pressure.
Digital showers: controller and processor faults
A digital Aqualisa has two parts: the controller you touch in the bathroom and the processor that actually mixes the water, which can be installed up to about 10 metres away. When the controller shows nothing, the processor may have lost power, the data cable between them may be damaged, or the controller itself may have failed. When the controller lights up but no water comes out, the processor may not be getting water, the filters on its inlets may be blocked, or it may have a fault.
Find the processor before an engineer arrives. It saves time, and it lets you check for leaks around it. The model's user guide on Aqualisa's website describes what the lights and any fault indications mean for your specific product. Do not open the processor cover yourself: it contains mains electrics as well as water.
Mixer, electric and power showers
A thermostatic mixer that swings between hot and cold is usually reacting to the supply, either another tap in use or a combi boiler struggling at low flow. If it does not respond to the temperature control at all, the cartridge may have scaled up. Our guide to thermostatic shower temperature problems explains how the two are told apart, and a shower that keeps dripping after it is switched off has its own guide.
An Aqualisa electric shower that cuts out mid-shower is usually tripping a safety cut-out because the flow is too low, often from a scaled head. No lights at all means the electrical supply needs checking by a qualified electrician. Water running from the bottom of an electric shower means it should be switched off and not used until it has been inspected. Our electric shower not working guide covers each case.
An Aquastream power shower is a gravity product with its own pump. If the pump runs but the flow is poor, the cold tank may be low or the supply airlocked. If a home has moved to a combi boiler, a power shower is no longer suitable and should be replaced with a mixer designed for high pressure.
Aqualisa's own repair service
Aqualisa offers up to a five-year guarantee when a product is registered, and it runs its own repair and replacement service. Its engineers work on Aqualisa showers with genuine parts, and the company says repairs are usually completed in one visit. If your shower is within guarantee, contact Aqualisa's customer support first, because work by anyone else on the valve could complicate a claim.
Mira runs a similar service for its own showers, covered in our Mira shower not working guide. Out of guarantee, you have a choice. The manufacturer's service suits a straightforward fault inside the shower. A local plumber may be quicker, and is the better option when the problem might be the supply, the boiler or cylinder, a leak around the shower, or when the shower has to be matched to a new water system.
When to call a plumber
Call a plumber rather than persevering if any of these apply.
- The shower stopped working, or started leaking, after a boiler, cylinder or tank change
- Water is leaking from the processor, behind the wall, through the ceiling below or around the tray
- There is no hot water anywhere in the house, not just in the shower
- The shower is out of guarantee and you need it working today or out of hours
- You are replacing the shower and need one that suits your current water system
Get your Aqualisa shower sorted
Loyal Plumbers covers London and everywhere inside the M25, 24 hours a day, with 10 vans on the road. We look at the whole picture: the shower valve or processor, the supply to it, and the boiler or cylinder behind it. Call 020 4652 8585 with the model name, what the shower is doing, whether anything changed recently, and whether it is still under guarantee.
Our call-out charge is £60, and the engineer explains what they have found and what the repair involves before starting. Electrical supply faults on electric showers need a qualified electrician, and we will tell you if that is where the fault lies. See our general plumbing and bathroom fitting pages for the wider work, or our emergency plumbing page if water is coming through a ceiling.
Common questions
- Why has my Aqualisa digital shower stopped working?
- Check power to the remote processor as well as the controller, make sure the supply valves are open, and try the shower without its head. If it stopped after a boiler change, a pumped processor may be on a system it was not designed for.
- Where is the processor for my Aqualisa digital shower?
- It can be up to about 10 metres from the shower. The usual places are the loft, an airing cupboard or under the bath. Find it before an engineer calls, and check around it for leaks.
- Can an Aqualisa pumped digital shower work with a combi boiler?
- Not as it is. Aqualisa says a pumped processor must be replaced when the system changes to high pressure, because its seals are designed for low pressure. Changing the setting alone does not make it safe.
- Does Aqualisa repair its own showers?
- Yes. Aqualisa has its own repair and replacement service using genuine parts, and products registered for guarantee can be covered for up to five years. Contact them first if your shower is under guarantee.
- Why does my Aqualisa mixer shower go hot and cold?
- Usually because the hot or cold supply changes when other water is used, or because a combi boiler struggles at low flow. Some models need a different cartridge or a flow regulator on a combi. A scaled cartridge can also cause it.
Sources and further reading
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