shower leaking onto ceiling

another_login

Hello

I moved into a new build house around 18 months ago . I have minimal problems but some of my neighbours have had issues with leaky showers

The shower sealant in my ensuite wasn't good and it was leaking a little out the side so that the wall was getting damp. I repaired and (I think) resealed the shower cubicle properly myself

Tonight I look up and see damp patches on the ceiling. I would like to think I would have noticed them if they had happened before but cannot guarantee it

I did something really stupid this morning though , I left the shower on at 815am, and only noticed at 7pm that night, as I was out all day. It wasn't on full blast maybe about 1/3 strength. I have never lived in an upstairs downstairs house (ground floor flats) before, so am not really aware of shower leaks

I am assuming that the cause of the leak is because of me leaving the shower on? Is that correct ?

If so - how to I get rid of the stain- just let it dry and repaint?

I have a photo but I don't seem to be able to upload images

thanks for any advice. I would just assume it is because of me - but the fact that neighbors have had issues with showers has made me a bit worried

dgtazzman

I'd be making sure what the cause of the damp patches are first. If the shower is properly sealed and the water isn't overflowing out of the cubicle (i.e. the drain is keeping up) there probably shouldn't be any damp patches, even if you did leave the shower on all day.

As for the patches, you can buy a special sealing paint for them, which you can then cover up with your regular paint, but last time I had a leak, I just painted it over with Dulux. After 4 coats, it looked like new...

spirit

When I bought this house (14 yrs old) 6 months ago, I immediately discovered that both showers leaked and I had large damp patches appearing on the ceiling below.

The plumber said he could either take down a bit of the ceiling to investigage the cause (they initially thought it might be push fittings) or dig up the ceramic tiled floors of the bathrooms.

I chose the first option, being the cheaper one. I didn't have push fittings (I wonder if yours does?) These are I'm told prone to leaking.

They took of a few of the bottom rows of tiles in one of the showers and found that the builder had tiled straight on to breeze block! Over time grouting will eventually fail they said and so the breeze was like cake, all soft and crumbly.

Since the builder hadn't put any waterproof backing board, I had that put in both showers and then new tiling.

That sorted the leaks.

G_M

1) the shower tray overflowed (partially blocked drain? Continuous flow of water too fast)
2) the shower head was directing water outside the tray onto the floor
3) the shower curtain/screen was outside the tray
4) the shower tray is cracked
5) the drain in the tray (or a pipe leading from the drain) is leaking

These are the potential sources I can think of.

4) = buy a new tray (or compkete unit)
5) can only be identified by exposing the pipe and drain which means either taking up the tray, or geting at it from below via ceiling in room below.

another_login

thanks all, It's a little en-suite so it'a all encapsulated

the ceiling marks seem to be -

1) a continuous line which follows the path of the fronts door of the cubicle (I have checked and the carpet isn't wet, so it doesn't look like the water got out)

2)a few dots , which appear to be around the base of the tray .

Bizarrely I have carpet in the bathroom, so I am having a tiler in to tile the floor, he has also offered to reseal the shower though the dry floor implies that it's inside sealing that's the problem. I suppose that's the sealant that attaches the tray to the tiles?

The wall ceiling appears to be drying and some of the smaller dots have dissipated. Though there is still a large stripe, so I will be getting some sealing paint. I imagine it's a nightmare to match white paint.

Does anyone know of an app that you can use to give you the color code through the camera. That would be so useful

The drain isn't fantastic - so perhaps it did overflow and forced the water down the apparent gaps between the walls and tiles, that seems likeliest to me


thanks all , really appreciate this

G_M

The location of the stain in the ceiling below can give no real indication of the source of the leak. water can run diagonally or in all sorts of directions as it finds its way down.

If you suspect the drain may be partially blocked, inspect it for hair (very common) and use a drain unblocker of some kind.

SuzieSue

G_M wrote: »

If you suspect the drain may be partially blocked, inspect it for hair (very common) and use a drain unblocker of some kind.

If you use a chemical unblocker wear protective glasses - my friend would probably have been blinded if she hadn't been wearing normal glasses but she was still left with scars on her face after using one.

another_login

thanks, yes good point about the flowability of water

I regularly clean the drain , but it's still a bit slow. So certainly needs more attention. I have used soda , but it makes me nervous, so was thinking on the bicarb and vinegar route. I plan to leave the en suite for a week or so, wait for the stain to dry an then use if again to see if there is a real leak or if it was a one off.

Interestingly the water seems to be drying out without leaving much of a stain, so I might be lucky

AdrianC

another_login wrote: »

I regularly clean the drain , but it's still a bit slow. So certainly needs more attention.

When you realised and turned the shower off, was the water level at the top of the tray, overflowing?

If not, then that's a red herring. It must be leaking somewhere - where the jet was playing onto a seam on the enclosure, from a sealant line, or from the trap underneath.