Bathroom tiles

tony3619

I have a shower tray with 4 upstands and the tiles coming over the top  and the very bottom of the tile flexes when pushed. Is this normal? Im concerned water may be entering somewhere and soaking into the plasterboard behind causing the movement but there are zero indications apart from the slight tile flex. 

Photo attached as an example

FreeBear

Tiles do not flex. The backing might, which could lead to failure of the adhesive. Certainly the grout will be prone to cracking & falling out. This will lead in turn to water seeping through behind the tiles.

tony3619

FreeBear said:

Tiles do not flex. The backing might, which could lead to failure of the adhesive. Certainly the grout will be prone to cracking & falling out. This will lead in turn to water seeping through behind the tiles.

I wouldn't say it's the tiles themselves. Its the joint where the bottom of the tile meets the tray. If I press on the joint you can see movement in the sealant 

matty_bram

tony3619 said:

I have a shower tray with 4 upstands and the tiles coming over the top  and the very bottom of the tile flexes when pushed. Is this normal? Im concerned water may be entering somewhere and soaking into the plasterboard behind causing the movement but there are zero indications apart from the slight tile flex. 

Photo attached as an example

Very unlikely to be the tiles themselves. 

Assuming you have a silicon joint. That may be an issue. Even if it looks sealed, sometimes these can split and be hard to spot. 

tony3619

matty_bram said:

tony3619 said:

I have a shower tray with 4 upstands and the tiles coming over the top  and the very bottom of the tile flexes when pushed. Is this normal? Im concerned water may be entering somewhere and soaking into the plasterboard behind causing the movement but there are zero indications apart from the slight tile flex. 

Photo attached as an example

Very unlikely to be the tiles themselves. 

Assuming you have a silicon joint. That may be an issue. Even if it looks sealed, sometimes these can split and be hard to spot. 

I was thinking maybe the plasterboard doesn't extend all the way down onto the tray so the tile could have a small lip which isn't attached to anything? So with pressing it it's moving slightly? 

Also in theory even if the silicone joint wasn't fully sealed wouldn't any water run behind into the upstand? So it's contained in the tray? The tiles/ wall don't touch the tray