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The very popular general plumbing, toilets, sinks, faucets, pump problems, questions and answers discussion Forum
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Author:
Ronni (CT)
My 2-1/2 year old tile shower is leaking into the floor below the bathroom. Dampens the wood structure, we can see because we opened the ceiling below. Have done tests of all piping, plumber opened up the mixer, no leaks there. No leak when water only goes down drain. No leak when drain stuffed and water run into the base. Tile guy also tested extensively, regrouted apparent holes, still leaks. Water is not coming from outside edge of shower into bathroom. Caulked extensively inside, still leaks. Leaks only when person is inside showering. Had shower restrictor on, was removed, leak much more extensive now. After another caulking, leak only showed on the wood at the 5th shower, and the staining seems to have shifted: there is a spot in one place that was wet before, now partly dry, and wet where it wasn’t before. Original contractor says to open up the sheetrock behind the shower, but I don’t want another hole in my house. What should we do next?
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Author:
dlh (TX)
what kind of shower base do you have? is it tile and grout or a preformed base such as acrylic or fiberglass?
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PLUMBERS "Protecting The Health Of The Nation"
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Author:
dlh (TX)
did you caulk around the trim on the valve and the shower head?
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PLUMBERS "Protecting The Health Of The Nation"
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Author:
Ronni (CT)
the base is (marble) tile and grout
yes, have caulked around the valve and the showerhead
Edited 2 times.
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Author:
Scott D. Plumber (VA)
Its not going to be good news. It's in the tile work. Had the same problem at my own new house. Had to tear out all the floor, the tiled seat and about the first 18" of the walls and have it redone. THe seat was a problem and had to be redone again! I am confidnet my tile guy is a good contractor but I just got lucky and had the one PAI job from "heck". It only cost me agrivation, but he really had a time getting it all sealed so it would stay tight.
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Give your kids a great start on the future! Encourage them learn a trade. Even if they go on to do other things, it's always nice to know that they have something to fall back on. Call your local technical training center or trade school to learn more.
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Author:
dlh (TX)
i dont know what to tell you then other than the water splashing off a body in there is going somewhere it shouldnt since you said it only leaks if someone is in the shower
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PLUMBERS "Protecting The Health Of The Nation"
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Author:
sum (FL)
If you remove your shower head and then cap off the shower arm then turn on the mixer does it still leak?
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Author:
Ronni (CT)
I'm not sure -- will have to check with our plumber, he might have done it.
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Author:
nosaj (CT)
What was used under the marble tile to make it water tight? Sounds like a tile leak... How was the membrane lapped into the drain? How high did the person bring the water-proof membrane up the wall? How did they blend the membrane into a water-proof backer (think cement board)? Was the grout sealed? Where was the last place you caulked? You changed the problem, so you are right on top of it...or eliminated some of it...
Jason
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Author:
LemonPlumber (FL)
ronnie.Get a test ball.insert it into the drain piping below the flange of the marble base fill the marble base with water until it has one inch of water covering the marble base.with in one half hour you will be breaking out the wet vac.if a plumber installed a pan under this marble base,and then the marble guys screwed it up.
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Good Luck. Insulate your hot piping, although costly, it will pay you back every day.
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Author:
hj
You apparently are NOT testing enough to find where the leak is coming from, and until that is done, there is no way to fix it, or tell you how to fix it. Do you have a tiled soap recess? That is often the source of leaks.
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Author:
sum (FL)
you had the plumber there, the tile guy there and the original contractor there and still could not find the source of the leak? and this is 2-1/2 years later presumably been leaking all this time? You have a very slow leak that you can't see or feel immediately when you diagnose and can only tell by it's effect afterwards by seeing the dampened wood? Not even a drip can be seen when the shower is running in full force?
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Author:
Ronni (CT)
sum (FL), that's correct, the wood below the shower shows a stain and only at the 5th shower after it's been dried out. To the best of my knowledge, it has not been leaking the entire time but who knows??
hj - We don't have a recessed soap holder, but we do have a small marble shelf installed in the corner opposite the showerhead, 21 inches above the floor.
There is a glass shower door, also.
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Author:
LemonPlumber (FL)
shower door?not one that has a track on the sides and along the bottom?check the corners?stand in the shower with the door closed spray water on the door.
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Good Luck. Insulate your hot piping, although costly, it will pay you back every day.
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Author:
Reanimator (CO)
Also check the solder joint at the top of the valve (which is why the contractor said to open the wall up behind it). Not to question your plumber's abilities, but if they don't open the cartridge to test, they'll never see a pinhole leak when the shower is used. While it's open, look for drips from above, you might just need to re-tape and dope the shower arm..
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Author:
silverflux (CA)
I was called on a simular situation,after multible other plumbers.I noticed the home owner was quite large in size. After talking it over with her,she agreed to put on her bathing suit and clime into the shower and run only Cold water. The combination of her weight and cold water did the trick and the hairline crack in the shower pan was discovered.Ha,Ha Thats a true story! Good luck.
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Author:
Ronni (CT)
silverflux, how did you know it was a crack in the pan just from that test, since you can't see the pan in an intact shower?
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Author:
dlh (TX)
by plugging the drain pipe and seeing if water leaks out
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PLUMBERS "Protecting The Health Of The Nation"
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Author:
Ronni (CT)
OK, the latest here -- my husband caulked over the grout -- the 1st time it took 5 showers for the leak to show up. He caulked more -- the next time, it took 12 showers for it to get wet. Does this mean it's the tile for sure, or could it still be the pan?
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Author:
dlh (TX)
it is most likely both since the pan is supposed to catch the water that does get past the tile and grout depending on where he is caulking. if he is doing it on the walls or the top of the threshold then i doubt its the pan
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PLUMBERS "Protecting The Health Of The Nation"
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Author:
Ronni (CT)
What do you suggest we do next? We're at our wit's end with this!!
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Author:
dlh (TX)
plug the drain with a test ball and fill the shower to the top of the threshold and wait an hour or so and see if the water level went down. if it did then the pan is bad an if it didnt then it is most likely a grout problem
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PLUMBERS "Protecting The Health Of The Nation"
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Author:
Ronni (CT)
UPDATE:
We inserted a test ball and filled the shower floor to the threshold. Instead of stopping after an hour, we left it there all day. After several hours, the leak staining appeared in the usual place, which we had NOT been able to recreate previously except by using the shower. It also made an active, dripping leak (not just a stain) in a nearby area, which we also had not seen since the initial leak.
Edited 1 times.
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