Newly tiled shower/bath is leaking

[billhicks]

I just fitted a new bathroom in our house. I did everything except the tiling. There's a bath with a shower over it, all tiled round as is common. I did all the prep work for the tiling which included tanking the wet area around the bath/shower...(FYI I used the Dunlop shower tanking kit).

Tiler siliconed round the bath before putting tiles over (with the idea it would extra protection I guess) and finished the job, looked good. I did the final siliconing myself after I fitted shower screen...I used top quality Dow Corning silicone.

Anyways, used the shower for the first time today and noticed a couple of wet patches under the bath (haven't fitted bath panel yet). Upon investigation I see the water coming down the edges of the bath where it meets the wall. First thought is there's a hole in the silicone around the edge of the bath. I check it and it's perfect.

I then did a bit more testing with the shower head. First I aimed it just at the silicone around the bath, no leaks, hmmm. I then moved the shower head up 6 inches or so onto the tiles and that's when the leaks start. So I can only conclude that the water is getting into the grout, running down the tanked wall and dripping down the edges of the bath..../?? sound plausible?

The thing is, the grouting looks fine so I'm not entirely sure what to say, it's a bit of a mystery. Any ideas? If I ring the tiler back, what's he likely to do?

I've read many times that grout isn't waterproof, so given I can't see any defects in the grout. Perhaps using seal guard is a good idea?

 

[davy_G]

The water wont 'seep' through the grout that quick unless its cracked and the tiles are boast.
Is there any movement in the bath with you stand in it? Fill it with water and check the silicone is still intact with the wall and the bath doesnt move at all.

 

[faithhealer]

sounds like the tiles are dot and dabbed if the water can run through that fast. I like to silicon between the wall and bath as well!
Welcome to the forum by the way!

 

[billhicks]

The water wont 'seep' through the grout that quick unless its cracked and the tiles are boast.
Is there any movement in the bath with you stand in it? Fill it with water and check the silicone is still intact with the wall and the bath doesnt move at all.

Bath doesn't move in the slightest and the silicone is perfect as far as I can see. I've been round with the magnifying glass and it's looks all good. Like I said in my OP, if I spray water just over the silicone it doesn't leak. The leaks only start when I spray higher up onto the first couple rows of tiles.

 

[billhicks]

sounds like the tiles are dot and dabbed if the water can run through that fast. I like to silicon between the wall and bath as well!
Welcome to the forum by the way!

Thanks. I saw him use a spreader.

 

[jay]

hi did you silicone around tap fittings eg tap to wall spout to wall:8: not cover plates

 

[billhicks]

hi did you silicone around tap fittings eg tap to wall spout to wall:8: not cover plates

well, the only thing coming out of the wall is the shower (bar mixer) and I siliconed round that before putting cover plates on.

 

[faithhealer]

Bit of a poser there 'bill'. Don't find tilers using 'spreaders' though. Trowels yes! Try again spraying water and see if you can pinpoint the fault

 

[billhicks]

Bit of a poser there 'bill'. Don't find tilers using 'spreaders' though. Trowels yes! Try again spraying water and see if you can pinpoint the fault

perhaps it was a trowel I dunno but he wasn't dotting and dabbing AFAIK.

 

[billhicks]

I've attached a couple of pics..

Please excuse all the silicone around the base of the tap. It's an old bath with diamond shaped holes and was a pain to get a decent seal on the base of the taps.

The clear silicone blob you see is what the tiler used before tiling as I mentioned in the OP.

Arrows show where it leaks(note drip). Right in the corner I can just about see a hairline crack in the grout which would possibly explain the leak there but cannot see anything for the leak in the middle.

 

[White Room]

If the area was tanked was it lipped onto the bath edge with the tape/mesh or just the walls

 

[jay]

try water above mixer and then try water below just to be sure :8:

 

[billhicks]

If the area was tanked was it lipped onto the bath edge with the tape/mesh or just the walls

Just the walls. Should it have been lipped onto the bath edge?

 

[billhicks]

try water above mixer and then try water below just to be sure :8:

I have, the leak is within 10 inches of the bath top.

 

[White Room]

Yes mate, it's so if any water reachs the back of the wall this situation is avoided

 

[jay]

your on the money whitebeam all yours:8:

 

[billhicks]

Yes mate, it's so if any water reachs the back of the wall this situation is avoided

I understand the logic but seems rather difficult to do in practice especially if the walls aren't so straight and the edge of the bath is curved. If the tiles are 10mm, you don't have much room to lip onto the bath.

Also, tiler did silicone the joint between bath and wall before tiling.

Is sealing the grout doing to help prevent water getting through?

 

[White Room]

Where the bath edge touchs the wall a channel could've been cut out so that the bath sits up against the brick/blockwork. I take it that you cannot see the curve of the bath where the tiles are, 10mm is a good thickness. If you wanted to tank to the bath edge this would'nt be difficult. Mark the bath with a pencil line where the tiles touch the edge after removing any silicone, remove lower tiles, use some masking tape onto the edge of the bath where the pencil line is, apply your wet tanking system and lay the tape but don't leave a dip between the wall and bath edge and use more of the rubber solution. When dry fix tiles, your tile fixer should have known this concerning the bath edge.

 

[James Spelrem]

to me it sounds like the shower head is leaking or the mixer valve and is taking its time to get down the wall really sorry mate thats no fun at all so if the shower shoots into the center of the tub there is no leaking at all? didn't mean for it to rhyme or repeat

 

[billhicks]

to me it sounds like the shower head is leaking or the mixer valve and is taking its time to get down the wall really sorry mate thats no fun at all so if the shower shoots into the center of the tub there is no leaking at all? didn't mean for it to rhyme or repeat

That's right. If the shower is aimed into the middle of the bath, no leaks. So it's definitely not the mixer.

I need to find a solution though. Only thing I can think of it to seal the grout.

 

[jay]

hi whitebeam has given you good advise your bath should be recesed and w/p run down onto bath as stated you shouldnt silicone directly on to w/p best to use mastic and run w/p over read post again thanks :8:

 

[Gazebo]

Hi all, just reading the comments on this post and viewing the photos and all i can suggest is, in the photo under the bath it looks like there is water dripping down the hep20/polypipe feeding the mixer valve. small drip dwon pipe.
Are you sure if you only run the shower in the bath for 5 mins it doesnt leak.
Did you silicone the bath to the wall as it doesnt look like there is any boarding behind the tap end of bath(did you board upto top of bath) not best practice in my view.

Is the vertical joint in corner of bath siliconed.?
Still keep persevering and all will become clear im sure.

When you say you shouldnt silicone upto w/p what do you mean.?
Do you mean you shouldnt use sanitary silicone to stick the bath to the tanking.???

When i put baths in i silicone all edges to be fixed, batten underneath, silicone top of batten, stick bath in, silicone again around bath edges being careful not to leave it raised to hamper tiling, Then final silicone bead applied neatly with my fugenboy.

Good Luck

 

[jay]

hi Gazebo realy depends on w/p but best practice is as whitebeam said rec bath and bring w/p down and onto bath as described to make w/p enclosure complete yes bath is siliconed in but best to use compatable product (mastic silicone) depends on w/p is compatable with norm mastic and tape over to top edge of bath making a complete w/proofing not a bit of this and that :8:

 

[billhicks]

hi whitebeam has given you good advise your bath should be recesed and w/p run down onto bath as stated you shouldnt silicone directly on to w/p best to use mastic and run w/p over read post again thanks :8:

Sorry but taking out the bath and chiseling out the plaster is not an option at this stage. Also, the bath has a lip all the way round and doing so would lose the lip on a couple sides meaning the gap between tiles and bath would be different.

 

[billhicks]

Hi all, just reading the comments on this post and viewing the photos and all i can suggest is, in the photo under the bath it looks like there is water dripping down the hep20/polypipe feeding the mixer valve. small drip dwon pipe.
Are you sure if you only run the shower in the bath for 5 mins it doesnt leak.
Did you silicone the bath to the wall as it doesnt look like there is any boarding behind the tap end of bath(did you board upto top of bath) not best practice in my view.

Is the vertical joint in corner of bath siliconed.?
Still keep persevering and all will become clear im sure.

When you say you shouldnt silicone upto w/p what do you mean.?
Do you mean you shouldnt use sanitary silicone to stick the bath to the tanking.???

When i put baths in i silicone all edges to be fixed, batten underneath, silicone top of batten, stick bath in, silicone again around bath edges being careful not to leave it raised to hamper tiling, Then final silicone bead applied neatly with my fugenboy.

Good Luck

The 'drip' you can see on the pipe is actually hanging off the silicone blob in front of the pipe, it's silicone. I can clearly see where the drips are coming from and it's not the mixer.

The bath is silicone to the wall, just so happens at that end of the bath the plasterboard is cut off at the edge of the bath so I could access pipework.

The vertical joint in the corner is NOT siliconed, I will do this and hopefully cure the leak in the corner.

BUT I still need to figure out how to stop the leak in the middle. Like I said, it's not possible for me to remove the bath an chisel out plaster. There must be a less destructive answer? No one has commented on grout sealing?