Sealing a shower....

[Rob_B]

Hi DIY-ers!

Our showr is leaking around the edges and getting into the kitchen ceiling below, nothing major but enough to peel paint and scare us as the water trickles down the wall!

I've today totally removed all the esiting sealant and there is quite a gap between the base and the wall (say 2cm, bigger than I'd like)

We've tried the sealant tape (over the old sealant) before but it just peeled off as soon as it got a bit wet.
My current ideas are:

- Buy 2 lots of sealer and just fill it totally down the sides and hope I fix it with pure volume of sealer.

- Get some sort of tile coving tile and stick that to the wall/base with sealant? Then go over the top/bottom again (while still wet) as an extra precaution.

I wondered if I should perhaps fill the gap with something first, wood, expanding foam etc? Then seal over the top of that?

Any ideas?

Thanks for any ideas guys n' gals !

Rob

[g8ina]

I'd be tempted to pad the gap with wood first, then sealant on top.

[dave87]

What caused the gap Rob? Has the shower tray moved, or did it always have that big a gap?

[blueball]

Coving tile is probably the best bet, I wouldn't try to fill the gap to stop water penetration as all that happens is the the material itself gets wet. Better to stop the water getting in at all.

Before applying sealant make sure that the shower base and adjoining wall are completely clean and free from dust, grease and water. Buy the best quality sealant, don't skimp on cheap stuff - worth getting the anti-fungal stuff if the surround tends to go black.

What is your wall material? Is it tile?

[Rob_B]

Looks like it was always there, the old sealant was really loose when we moved in and I'd tried a couple of bridge jobs to fix it but I'm doing it right this time. Base isn't moving as I've sealed the bottom outside to the floor so I know its position.

The gap isn't equal though either, goes down to about 5mm in the corner (corner shower) then the 2cm at one of the ends.

Wall is tiled yes blue, I'll admit I've been buying cheap sealant

[GoNz0]

1st clean with a good alcohol spray.

fill as much of the gap as possible with mastic, but do it a bit at a time, leave it an hour between and stick a fan in the shower to help it go off. when the gaps all sealed buy some trim like this http://www.wickes.co.uk/plain-bath-trim/invt/166086/

stick it down with mastic and wipe away any leftovers and let it cure, after its cured you can mastic the edge for a neat finish, if your crap at a neat finish use insulation tape and mask off the trim and tiles so you have a 3mm gap to mastic, put a thin bead in and use a finger dipped in clean water with a drop of washing up liquid to smooth it off, straight away remove the tape and repeat with the soapy water to remove the lip.

i have never found a sealant finishing tool to beat a wet finger yet!

perfect result and a tripple water proof barrier.

[GoNz0]

20mm version you could use as its such a big gap!

http://www.wickes.co.uk/wide-tile-strip/invt/206948/

[Barry]

Use a seal strip, it will also give the edges a tidy look

[blueball]

I was shown a trick by a plumber years ago. Steady! Yes, using a wet finger to smooth the sealant is good but it is even better when you add a tiny bit of washing up liquid to the water; it stops the sealant sticking to your fingers and you consequently get a smoother finish on the sealant - less places for the black stuff to start to grow.

[GoNz0]

1st clean with a good alcohol spray.

fill as much of the gap as possible with mastic, but do it a bit at a time, leave it an hour between and stick a fan in the shower to help it go off. when the gaps all sealed buy some trim like this http://www.wickes.co.uk/plain-bath-trim/invt/166086/

stick it down with mastic and wipe away any leftovers and let it cure, after its cured you can mastic the edge for a neat finish, if your crap at a neat finish use insulation tape and mask off the trim and tiles so you have a 3mm gap to mastic, put a thin bead in and use a finger dipped in clean water with a drop of washing up liquid to smooth it off, straight away remove the tape and repeat with the soapy water to remove the lip.

i have never found a sealant finishing tool to beat a wet finger yet!

perfect result and a tripple water proof barrier.

Use a seal strip, it will also give the edges a tidy look

I was shown a trick by a plumber years ago. Steady! Yes, using a wet finger to smooth the sealant is good but it is even better when you add a tiny bit of washing up liquid to the water; it stops the sealant sticking to your fingers and you consequently get a smoother finish on the sealant - less places for the black stuff to start to grow.

[Rob_B]

Thanks for the suggestions guys, I just need to get to a DIY shop somehow today (which isnt easy here) Think I'll go with the plastic strips as thats probably the safest bet

[jimborae]

Rob, is this a porcelain or plastic shower tray? I had a similar problem to you, big gap around the edges (due to it not being cut into the walls correctly and the walls not being straight). However what was causing it to constantly leak was the fact that it was a plastic tray that wasn't properly supported in the centre so it kept flexing and pulling away from the edges thus breaking the mastic seal. The way I fixed it was to build a plinth for the tray and tile cement the tray to the plinth thus making sure it couldn't flex or move. I still had the gap but with no movement I could now fill, in layers, with mastic. So far I've been leak free for 5 years or more.

[Rob_B]

Its plastic and does have a little flex yes, ripping it out and supporting underneath is beyond my skills though I’m afraid :/

I’m going to try to get some plastic strip/tiles today and will try that first. If it still works its way loose then I’ll need to think of something a bit more drastic

[Barry]

This and this

Easy to install, clean and will do the job good as if not better than any other way

[jimborae]

Its plastic and does have a little flex yes, ripping it out and supporting underneath is beyond my skills though I’m afraid :/

I’m going to try to get some plastic strip/tiles today and will try that first. If it still works its way loose then I’ll need to think of something a bit more drastic

Well try it with the plastic strip and hopefully it'll cure it but I fear if it's flexing then then you'll get leaks again but I'll be happy to wrong because I know how annoying it is.

If it's any concilation I'm no great DIY'er by any stretch of mark. I just made the plinth out of treated 2x4 and plywood and cut it roughly to size with a gap for the waste pipe. Then slapped the tile cement on top and then set the shower tray in place & left it to set overnight. Admittedly taking the the unit apart was a pain and the whole job took a lot longer than just resealing it again but in the long run it was well worth it. I must say I could have shot the flat's previous owner for the way the bathroom has been installed. To say it was a cowboy job would be slandering the whole cow herding proffession!