Let me explain what I mean. Most googling leads to tub related setups, but my setups do not include tubs.
Lately I have been seeing these diverters in many newer bathrooms(my own new one in SG, and one in India). What they have is one tap to control direction of flow (tap / Shower / Hand shower (if any) ), one to control the flow rate and temperature, and a little knob u need to pull, which I believe is the diverter. To turn on the shower, the first tap has to be appropriately turned, the flow tap has to be turned on, and THEN the diverter has to be pulled.
If the diverter is not pulled, regardless of the first tap, the water flows out of the tap. The diverter only stays in place until the flow tap is open, which means when you turn off the shower to soap up, the diverter releases, and all the water in the shower system releases down the tap.
This seems ridiculously wasteful and complicated to me (2 steps instead of 1 to turn on the shower). What is the point of this? Does it serve any advantage at all?
My guess is maybe this is 2 different setups merged into one.. Either way I have macgyvered the diverter to stay always pulled 😛
I am sorry I dont have pictures, the flow tap/diverter is similar to one of https://www.pinterest.com/brockmawson/bathshower-mixer/ and the first tap is just one that turns to pick the outlet.
Update: This is more of a question to satisfy my curiosity, I am reasonably satisfied with my hack fix to hold the diverter out, and this is a rented unit, I am not looking to alter it.
Best Answer
What you need is a valve designed just for shower only. Not a valve assembly with a diverter, which are specifically designed for tub/shower combination:
No diverter here, most any manufacturer that you have seen offering the tub/shower valve sets also makes the shower only units. To answer your question, the point of the diverter valve is so you can fill the bathtub without water spraying on you out of the shower head.