Leaking shower

[AlanR]

I'm not having much luck lately.
You may have seen my problem with my Limestone Flags.
Now my newish shower is leaking, a quad enclosure, tray to ceiling tiles.
Had an extension built, new boiler, refitted bathroom.
the plumber fitted tray, tiled, fitted enclosure, Manhattan make.
After a while, a drip from below the tray, and from round the edge of the tray.
We had him trying to find the leak for months. took a bottom row tile out, and resealed. .
Now it's leaking again, same places. Decided to regrout and seal myself, no confidence in plumber.
The grout did not go full depth of the tiles, should it?
Found one tile second row up only held in by the grout, adhesive on tile but not stuck to wall. Wall dry
Plastered blockwork,
Tiles below loose, removed them. He stuck the tile back with silicone.
Wall damp/wet, mold on sealer.
Loose tiles behind the enclosure wall plate. means having to remove enclosurewhich is sealed to tray and wall.
Would a tiler be the best to ask and would one take on this job.
Sorry it's a long one again.
HELP! PLEASE

[GirlRacerRed]

hi Alan

We could really do with knowing what kind of adhesive your plumber used to fix your tiles to the wall, and also what trowel he used.

Grout should go the full depth of the tile yes. If the grout is only thin, then water can start to break it down much more easily. grout joints should be full of grout like you say.

Also, what preparation work was done to the walls before the tiles went on? For the adhesive to be stuck to the tile and not the wall sounds to me like the wall was PVA'd first.

Any additional information you can give will really help

[jay]

pics would help as well as the advice above

[AlanR]

IMG_0384.jpgIMG_0385.jpgIMG_0380.jpgIMG_0386.jpgWhat adhesive, grout, or trowl he used I don't know. I was at work.
I don't think he treated the walls.
I have some pics, I'll see if I can attach them
The whole tile which was loose looks to have the adhesive put on the tile, not the wall. don't know if they are all like this.
The tile round the corner bottom row is loose. As are the whole 2nd row and part tile bottom row to the right, which are both under the enclosuer frame

[GirlRacerRed]

Alan

how long ago was all this installed?

I'm worried about what kind of adhesive your plumber used and his method of fixing them to the wall. You need to contact him and ask him exactly what he used.

And how long did you wait between having the walls re-plastered before your plumber started fixing tiles to it?

[Ceramica Tiling]

Hi alan, basically the tiles have not boned to the wall. The water has worked its way in the grout joints. Looks like there is no grout in the tiles anyway. The guy didnt have a clue......

[AlanR]

The bathroom is not part of the extension and the walls were only skimed
after removing the old tiles.
The wall had two to three weeks drying time. The shower was in use, early November last year.
It had been fully grouted, even if it was not thick enough, I removed the grout yesterday, when I found the loose tiles.
The tiles had some spacers in but they seem thin. Couldn't use an abrasive grout rake as they are too thick. Used a Plasplugs type with teeth.

[Ceramica Tiling]

The tiles clearly have not bonded to the plaster wall to create a water tight seal. From experiance water will creep in the smallist crack and over time find a way out at another location. Water is the strongest element you can not cut or break it and it has carved out our landscape in the form of glaciers....

Anyway to fix your problem

1.Take of shower door and tiles
2.Tank shower walls
3.Solid bed fix tiles with ardex 77
4.Grout with ardex fs
5.Door back on
6.Silicone where needed.......

[whitebeam]

Where the walls primed in any kind of fashion

[Scott]

That is rough! It need to be redone completely. Sorry

[AlanR]

Thanks every one for your contributions
I rang a professional, a TILER this time!
As this is the only shower we have, I need to get it usable asap.
whitebeam, I do like your signature, It's very true.
Thanks again every one.

[GirlRacerRed]

Alan

you really should speak to your original plumber who re-fitted your bathroom and did your tiling. as he's been back to try and fix the leak, he must accept that there is something wrong with his workmanship regarding the tiling. you are well within your rights to ask this guy to rectify the problems you've been having. unfortunately in this case, as the tiles are now debonding because of the leaking water, you are faced with the horrible option of stripping it all out and starting again. my only concern is that you will be out of pocket and having to pay twice for work that the plumber clearly should not have agreed to do in the first place, as the tiling and preparation for such appears to be beyond his abilities.

I'd be pursuing the plumber for the cost of a full re-fit if he's incapable of fixing it himself.

[mikethetile]

the whole lot needs stripping off and retiling, theres insufficiant coverage of adhesive behind those tiles

[jay]

you need to re do the whole shower use waterproofing this time around good luck

[aph257]

rip it out and start again with a proper tiler.