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Bar vs concealed shower valves
Exposed bar mixer valves and concealed shower valves compared: how they look, how you reach the cartridge later, what must be decided at first fix, and what low-pressure systems need.
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A mixer shower takes hot and cold water from your house supply and blends it in a valve. That valve can sit on the wall where you can see it, as a chrome bar, or be built into the wall with only the handles and a cover plate showing. Both can be thermostatic, both can feed a fixed head, a handset or both, and both need the same balanced supplies. The difference is in how they are fitted and how you get at them later.
If you are still choosing between an electric shower and a mixer, start with electric vs mixer showers. This page assumes a mixer.
Exposed bar valves
A bar valve is a horizontal chrome body fixed to the face of the wall, with temperature on one end and flow on the other. Hot and cold come out of the wall into it through short connectors, often called wall mounts or "unions". The shower hose or rigid riser comes out of the bar.
Pros. Nothing is buried. If the cartridge needs attention, the bar is in front of you. Many come with isolation in the wall fixings, so a fitter can turn off the supply to the valve without going to the stopcock. A bar can often be fitted over existing pipe ends, so it suits a replacement where the wall is not being opened.
Cons. It sticks out. Some people dislike the look, and a hot bar can be a concern in a family bathroom. The pipe centres in the wall must match the bar, which limits which models will fit an existing pair of pipes without moving them.
Concealed valves
A concealed valve has its body inside the wall or in a stud partition. Only the handles and a cover plate show. Supplies run to it inside the wall, and the outlet pipe runs inside the wall too, to a fixed head, a riser rail or a handset outlet.
Pros. A clean look. Two or three outlets can be controlled from one plate. Nothing sticks out.
Cons. The valve body is set in at first fix, before tiling, so its depth, height and outlets must be decided early. If the valve is set too deep or too shallow for the tiles, the plate will not sit right. If it leaks inside the wall, you may not know until there is damage. Getting to the cartridge is through the front once the handles and plate are off, so check before buying that the maker says the cartridge can be serviced from the front and that isolation is built in.
What to decide before first fix
For a concealed valve, settle these before the wall is closed:
- the exact model, because each has its own body depth and plate size;
- the finished wall thickness, including board, adhesive and tile;
- the height of the controls and of each outlet;
- whether isolation is built in, and how it is reached;
- that the valve will be tested before tiling, if the maker allows it.
A bar valve also needs decisions at first fix: the pipe centres, the height of the bar and the riser, and which way the hot and cold come in. Fitting a bar to pipes left at the wrong spacing usually means opening the wall. Bathroom refit order covers when each trade comes in.
Pressure and gravity systems
Mixer valves need enough pressure on both hot and cold, and the two need to be reasonably balanced. On a gravity system, with a cold tank in the loft and a vented cylinder, the pressure at the shower may be low, especially on an upper floor. Many valves list a minimum pressure, and some are sold for "high pressure" only. Read the specification against your system. A pump may be needed: see shower pump sizing. A pump is mains-powered, so its connection is for a qualified electrician. On a combi boiler or unvented cylinder, a standard shower pump is the wrong product, and boosting the mains is a separate, regulated question covered in mains booster pumps. A plumber should check the system before you buy.
Two valves Wickes lists
We haven't tested this. Figures are as the maker states them (checked 13 November 2026).
Bristan Quadrato Safe Touch thermostatic rigid riser bar mixer shower pack, chrome. Wickes lists it as a bar shower valve with a hose, telescopic riser, drench head and handset. It says the wall mount kit has built-in front-of-wall isolation valves on both the hot and cold feed. The specification gives a minimum operating pressure of 1 bar, "All pressure systems" and WRAS: Y. Those are the seller's figures. A gravity system may still not reach that at the shower, so check before buying.
Hadleigh concealed 1 outlet round thermostatic shower valve, chrome. Wickes lists it as a concealed thermostatic valve with in-built isolation for servicing, tile guidelines and a cover plate with level guides. It says it allows installation testing before second fix and can be mounted vertically or horizontally. The listing we read gave no pressure figure, and the valve is sold on its own, so a head or riser is extra. Ask the seller or your plumber about the minimum pressure.
Servicing later
Both types use a cartridge, and both get limescale. Isolate the valve, or the house supply, before any work. Shower valve cartridges explains how to identify one and when to call a plumber. Heads and hoses are covered in shower heads and hoses. How thermostatic blending works is in thermostatic mixing valves.
Is a concealed shower valve harder to repair?
Not always. Many are serviced from the front once the handles and plate are removed. The harder part is a leak from the body or pipes inside the wall. Choose a model with built-in isolation and keep the fitting instructions.
Can I swap a bar valve for a concealed one?
Usually only by opening the wall, because the concealed body and its pipes sit inside it. Plan it as part of a refit rather than a quick swap.
Will a mixer valve work on a gravity system?
Some do, but pressure at the shower may be low. Check the valve's minimum pressure against your system, and ask a plumber whether a pump is suitable.