Best way to repair shower leak

4/10/2016 at 10:28:20 PM

Hi There,

Unfortunately there is no quick fix. Your shower pan most likely has a whole somewhere in it and usually when plumbers either nail or screw down the shower pan to studs they tend to rust out completely and water then penetrates through rusted nail or screw. I'm a firm believer that you do it right once so my idea is to remove all tiles on floor and a few rows of tile on walls and water proof using kerdi memebrane. But I would rre move all tiles and use kerdi membrane and water proof completely. If you don't you will eventually rot out your sub structure.

Thanks,

Robert

4/11/2016 at 6:06:04 PM

Hi Erin

Any chance it could be the drain flange not secured properly to the shower pan? Possible the water is running off to a corner underneath the pan.

Dave 360

4/11/2016 at 8:25:19 PM

I would tend to agree with Dave 360 that the drain is the issue. The drain cover is generally a threaded connection that when torqued down seals to the plastic base. If the proper gasket material between drain flange and base is not present or has failed that is the entry point for the water.

Unless a hole or crack in the base is visible, this is probably the case. Next step is if the drain connections at some point down stream have failed ie in the ceiling below, a small hole needs to be cut in somewhere to see of and where it is leaking. I wonder if you can see in there from the existing hole that is in your picture?

Hope this helps!

Matt

Matt of All Trades Inc.

4/13/2016 at 8:44:27 AM

Hi,

One way to tell if its the drain or a crack or void is to place a dam around each corner. I use plumbers puddy but a wet towel works or anything you think will hold water for a while. Fill the dam with water as high as needed and see what happens, food dye helps to see, but us care not to use to much it may stain. Finding leaks takes time, and small cracks near edges of a fiberglass pan can be repaired (think boats).

John