Over 698,000 strictly plumbing related posts
Plumbing education, information, advice, help and suggestions are provided by some of the most experienced plumbers who wish to "give back" to society. Since 1996 we have been the best online (strictly) PLUMBING advice site. If you have questions about plumbing, toilets, sinks, faucets, drains, sewers, water filters, venting, water heating, showers, pumps, and other strictly PLUMBING related issues then you've come to the right place. Please refrain from asking or discussing legal questions, or pricing, or where to purchase products, or any business issues, or for contractor referrals, or any other questions or issues not specifically related to plumbing. Keep all posts positive and absolutely no advertising. Our site is completely free, without ads or pop-ups and we don't tract you. We absolutely do not sell your personal information. We are made possible by:
Author:
BigAl (IL)
I have found a water leak in my family room ceiling which is directly above a shower in one bathroom and tub shower in another bathroom. I cut out the drywall and have been monitoring any leaks and although a pipe is rather rusty in the spot of the leak we are not seeing any water dripping when people take showers or baths. Any ideas? I can send pics but not sure if supported on this site.
|
Post Reply
|
Author:
packy (MA)
do you mean the ceiling is directly 'below' the shower area?
pics are supported, just look for info below...
|
Post Reply
|
Author:
BigAl (IL)
Thanks Packy for the quick response but cannot expose my server to unknown sources with the 1970 FTP method noted below. Somebody needs some computer help desperately in this organization.
Anyway, finally was able to narrow down that there is one bathroom where people take showers it starts to leak. The small amount of water appears on the main PVC drain pipe but looks like it is spotted in a couple other areas as well. Ran the bathtub only for about 5 minutes and saw nothing but saw the water as soon as someone showered for about 5 minutes. At this point my best guess is it might be old grout or tiles that are getting weak. Seems like that is a very common source out there. Next steps are to look into estimates for new tub, shower door, green board, and re tile the walls in the shower area as my guess is having a plumber isolate and fix the problem should be pretty close to the same cost.
Edited 1 times.
|
Post Reply
|
Author:
North Carolina Plumber (NC)
The problem may as simple as a deteriorated gasket around the shower valve trim, or a leaky shower arm.
|
Post Reply
|
Author:
BigAl (IL)
Interesting - seems like a good idea that I still have the plumber show up for their assessment. Thanks for everyones input!
|
Post Reply
|
Author:
m & m (MD)
Most likely a faucet escutcheon leak, tub spout leak- where they meet the wall.
|
Post Reply
|
Author:
BigAl (IL)
Through my investigation I confirmed that the leak only shows up when someone runs the shower. I ran the tub facet for about 5 minutes and nothing. But whenever someone takes a shower, it is a very small leak.
|
Post Reply
|
Author:
packy (MA)
you need to use the process of elimination.
make sure the leak is not happening.
remove the chrome cover from the drain, stuff a good size rag into the pipe and pour a good inch of water into the base using a bucket. let it set for a few minutes. this will test the integrity of the seal under the drain flange. if no leak then pull the rag and dump a few more buckets of water. this will test the drain piping.
if no leak, remove the shower head and screw a 1/2 cap onto the shower arm. turn it on. this will test the shower pipe riser. if all this checks out then the leak is not plumbing related it is either around the chrome escutcheon or grout related.
|
Post Reply
|
Author:
BigAl (IL)
Very helpful feedback! Thank you very much!
Edited 1 times.
|
Post Reply
|
Author:
asktom (MT)
Fill the bucket somewhere other than the shower you are testing.
|
Post Reply
|
Author:
steve_g (CA)
1970's FTP method?
You only have to upload an image to photobucket.com (an image hosting site) and post the resulting link here. Nothing arcane about it.
|
Post Reply
|
Please note:
- Inappropriate messages or blatant advertising will be deleted. We cannot be held responsible for bad or inadequate advice.
- Plbg.com has no control over external content that may be linked to from messages posted here. Please follow external links with caution.
- Plbg.com is strictly for the exchange of plumbing related advice and NOT to ask about pricing/costs, nor where to find a product (try Google), nor how to operate or promote a business, nor for ethics (law) and the like questions.
- Plbg.com is also not a place to ask radiant heating (try HeatingHelp.com), electrical or even general construction type questions. We are exclusively for plumbing questions.
Search for plumbing parts on our sponsor's site:
Special thanks to our sponsor:
|