hansgrohe Ecostat Modern Pressure Balance Shower Valve Trim in Chrome, 04233000

It works incredibly well in our shower which we retrofitted using Delta plate and it looks beautiful. Don't forget to buy the connector inside the wall so it will distribute the water to this shower controller.Make sure you get a professional installer who knows what he's doing and also I pointed him to the website with all the details of installation.The temperature control is amazing and you can adjust the flow from very small to high pressure while retaining the same temperature. Works beautifully with shower head also purchased on Amazon.

This is the coolest thing we've added to our house in years.Our old shower hardware had separate hot and cold faucets. First the water would be cold, then it would be really hot, then we'd regulate it to the right temperature. But then as the cold water reached the house from the street, it would be cold again. The first five minutes of every shower was just trying to keep from being chilled or scalded.Now we just flip the switch and Mr. Hansgrohe regulates the temperature -- and does a much better job than we ever did. It takes 15 seconds for the shower to reach the right temp and then it just stays there. If someone flushes the toilet or runs water in the sink, the shower just adjusts.A lot of new showers use a technology called pressure-balancing which evens out the hot and cold extremes. But this faucet uses a better technology that actually has a mechanical thermostat imbedded in the diverter valve. The more advanced technology can be really expensive -- some brands and some Hansgrohe models can be $600-$900. This one is very reasonably priced but the the quality is extremely good.Controls are very simple and intuitive. The top lever goes clockwise 1/4 turn to turn on the shower. The bottom lever sets the temperature. My wife likes it a little hotter than I do, so when I get in the shower I just shift the lever a little bit clockwise, and when she gets in she does the opposite.

Thermostatic shower valves rock. And this one is quite nice. Be sure to buy the Universal Box that it installs into. And be sure to read every page of the instructions before installing, because one optional step (making it possible to have the overhead shower and hand shower operate simultaneously) is out of order -- it's placed after the "you're finished" page. That's dumb, I had to have my handyman take the knob off again to perform the optional step (5 mins. wasted, no big deal), but everything else is great. It has detents at the 9:00, 12:00 and 3:00 positions, and at the 6:00 position if you enable the above simultaneous dual shower operation. If you use a plumber or handyman, be sure to test all desired operations and settings before s/he leaves.

Useful stuff first: You will also need to buy a Hansgrohe iBoxMake sure you (or your installer) read the installation guide thoroughly before installing. My installer didn't and I had to go back and "fix" it, I'll explain later.This shower control is very well made... most things are heavy gauge metal but operates smoothly. I agree that cheaping out on the cover plate with plastic is poor form. Mine has a small scratch already within 1 week. But the look of this is just plain awesome, very modern and shiny chrome baby!Why spend extra money for thermostatic? Well, you or your kids won't get burned, that's why... I bought this for our kids' bath and love it.The top dial goes left (10 o'clock position) or right (2 o'clock position) for tub / shower. Mine is left for tub and right for shower. But I think you can change it depending on the way your iBox connects to shower / tub. The bottom dial controls the temperature. Counterclock-wise for cold water, clock-wise for hot water. There is a small button on the left side of dial where you can push and turn the dial to hotter temperature beyond "thermostatic" setting.My problem: My installer didn't pay attention to the temperature setting... Even at the hottest setting, we were only getting warm water at best. I opened up the bottom dial and adjusted it according to installation manual and then it worked like a charm. To adjust it, read the installation instructions or follow my less technical directions below:1. Turn the bottom dial so that the hand points down at 6 o'clock position.2. On the right side of the dial, there's a small access hole for an allen wrench. Turn the allen wrench counterclock-wise to loosen the dial. If your installer put a little rubber stopper in there, just push it in all the way and you can retrieve it later when the dial is off.3. Once opened, there's a gold knob looking dial (it's the thing that sticks out). Find it.4. Turn the top dial to tub or shower so you get water.5. Turn the gold knob clock-wise or counterclock-wise to adjust the water temperature. The instruction says 100 degrees, I believe. I just turned it to the maximum temperature that I think my kids should shower at.6. Turn the top dial to 12 o'clock to shut off the water.7. Put back the bottom dial (pointing at 6 o'clock) via allen wrench.8. Test it to make sure that it works.The 6 o'clock position should be the hottest that you want the water to be... then push the little button the left and turn the bottom dial to 4 o'clock position, this should make the water even hotter... My wife showers at the 4 o'clock position but I think normal people will probably burn at this temperature, so I sent it at 6 o'clock for my kids.Overall, I think this is a great product... well made with German engineering... but if they had included a metal coverplate (or will ship me one for free), I'll change it to 5 stars.

Very nice item that works well. The photos on Amazon are upside-down from the actual installation position. The valve is straight up when turned off and you move it counter-clockwise to begin water flow and increase the temperature. There are markings on the face place to indicate this usage that are not shown on the Amazon picture. There is a "0" at 12 O'Clock and "HOT" at 9 O' Clock and small "Hansgrohe" branding at 6 O' Clock. You need the iBox 01850181 Universal Rough for this. No way around that. When you buy the rough, Amazon offers you an installation option by a local installer. Amazon's estimate for install was lower than typical hourly rate for a plumber, so consider that before you buy.