Loose, cracked or damage tiles. Missing tile grout. Paint bubbling on the walls. Cracks in the walls.
Leaking showers can cause significant damage to your property. But just how severe the damage goes depend on how long you let the problem persist. One way to avoid the threat of water damage to your home is to identify the early signs of a leak.
Shower leaks might seem like a minor problem, but they can actually cause a lot of damage if left unrepaired. For example, a small leak can ruin your ceiling, while a more serious leak could cause mold to grow in your walls.
Is it safe to use a leaking electric shower? In a word – No. Electricity and water are not compatible. If you notice any leaks in your electric shower, immediately turn off the power fuse and call professional plumbers.
Can I make the vendor pay for the repairs to a leaking shower? If you are buying an existing home with a leaking shower you will probably be left with the bill. This is because a leaking shower is not considered a structural defect.
Not only do you need to check for clogs in the shower drain, but you also need to check the drain gasket. The drain gasket is a rubber ring that sits directly underneath the shower drain. This rubber gasket forms a watertight seal around the shower drain, which stops shower pan leaks.
Leaking Shower
Repairing the seal around your shower door will cost much less than if you need to completely repair and replace the shower walls or basin. You'll pay around $150 to $500 to fix most leaks from a shower on average.
This usually occurs between the floor and wall joints of the shower recess. Up to 90% of showers built onto a stud wall will eventually leak because a gap will occur between the tiled wall and the shower recess floor.
Yes, if the leak is minor, you don't have to take down the whole wall. Professional plumbers can handle all your plumbing issues before they can cause structural damage, rot and mold in the house.
The main signs to look for are dampness on walls, on the floor, or the ceiling, and a musty odor in the bathroom, even when not in use. Eliminate other causes and easy fixes first, and then, once you're certain it's behind the walls, do the work to pinpoint the cause and source of the shower leak.
Most shower leaks are the result of faulty parts and worn-down seals. You can trace leaks to the showerhead, floor, walls, door, or drain. Find the source by running your shower and observing the water.
Many homes have drywall behind the shower tiles. So when water gets behind the tiles, the drywall sucks it up. This causes the drywall to expand, which can put pressure on your shower tiles. Over time, cracks can form in the shower tiles.
The most likely cause of a shower leaking from the bottom is a faulty shower drain or cracked shower tray. The seal between the shower wall and the shower tray may have eroded. If the seal is not intact, water can escape from the gap between the shower wall and the shower tray.
In fact, water damage can ruin your home faster than you might think. Within the first 24 hours of a leak or flood, mold development, damage to floors, walls, and electrics, and even structural issues can occur. This is why it's always best to quickly hire a water cleanup pro near you for a consultation and repair.
Unfortunately, incidents like this do happen from time to time, whether it be because of frozen pipes, corrosion or water pressure causing badly-fitted joints to give way.
A typical shower valve replacement costs around $375. You could pay as little as $20 to replace the valve or you could spend as much as $750. Just how much your replacement valve installation costs depends on the type of valve you're replacing, the extent of work and the going rates for plumbers in your area.
If your grout is visibly cracked or crumbling, it's likely going to be letting water behind your tiles. Even if your grout doesn't appear to be damaged, if it's not water-resistant it could potentially be the source of the leak.
If the problem is directly behind an area of tiles, it's probably the result of water seeping into the backer board. Tile damage around the shower base often indicates a plumbing leak behind the shower tiles. In this case, you may want to call a licensed plumber to take care of pipe repairs.
Leaking Inside the Wall
The remedy for this is similar to the showerhead fix: Remove the shower arm, clean the threads, and reinstall the arm (or replace it if it's cracked or corroded) with a new application of plumber's tape. The arm simply twists into the elbow like a bolt into a nut.
One of the tell-tale signs of a water leak coming from a shower valve behind the wall is water stains. If you have an upstairs bathroom, you may notice dried water stains on the ceiling below the shower. Most times shower valve leaks behind the wall are very slow.
The good news is that leakage from a shower pan is damage that is usually covered by your homeowner's insurance policy. However, you should act quickly when you suspect a leak, to make sure you don't miss reporting deadlines in your insurance contract.
It should be sufficient to reseal your shower every one to two years, depending on how frequently the shower system is used.
One of the main reasons a shower leak might lead water into the basement is because of a failing shower pan. Shower pans constitute the ground of the shower and can be made of tile or fiberglass. The latter can be ineffective because the adhesive might come undone or flex if not properly installed.