By:Monte Leeper
Q. My bathroom, after many years, is falling apart. The toilet runs and tile is pealing off the walls. I want a shower instead of a bath tub, but we're really concerned about leaking. We know someone whose shower still leaks into their basement and it costs too much to redo the tile just to find the leak, so they have a bucket to catch the drops. We really don't want a plastic shower, but how do we prevent the leaking? What do we look for when the shower gets built? Anything you can tell us is much appreciated.
A. Showers are intended to leak. That is how they got the name shower. You're sitting there watching the ballgame and the next thing you know, a Spring shower begins, right in your den. The game is rained out. It's the best innovation in realism since "surround sound."
But, if you want a little less reality, there are several tips to help get a waterproof shower to work for you. Tip number one is to hire a competent contractor, plumber, tile installer and electrician. This is done by interviewing, checking references, seeing their work, and making sure they have done this before and do not have complaints registered against them.
Tip number two is to have a good contract, which should include drawings of the work to be done and your list of the actual fixtures you plan to have installed--including all the little things, like fittings, flanges, handles, do-hickeys and thinga-ma-bobs. If you fail to have a good agreement, including a specific note that says that the installation shall be guaranteed to be waterproof and warranted for at least 1 year (and more if you can get them to agree), then you will be removing tiles while muttering colorful expressions to yourself.
Tip number three is to review the work during installation. I drive my employees crazy by telling them to "think like water" when designing. Water is lazy. It likes to take the shortest path and lets gravity do the work. Why wander uphill aimlessly across a room if it can just roll to that hidden floor opening around the unsealed toilet base and rest inside the ceiling below. Ask questions without being difficult and get the opinion of the architect you were supposed to have hired in order to obtain a permit.
Tip four--look for the little things, such as the curb under the shower door to see if it has a slope to allow water to drip down hill and back to the shower floor drain. Were the walls sealed with a skim-coat plaster finish before tile was applied? Did they use concrete board, such as "Durrock" or "Wonderboard" or the inferior green board sheetrock? Is the floor drain a square shape to avoid inaccurate tile cutting or is it round requiring nearly impossible fitting with square tiles?
Tip five should be to use the shower, let it run with various temperatures and fill the pan almost to the top. If it doesn't leak after a few days of use, pay your bill promptly with a hearty "thank you." If it leaks, check your warrantee...and good luck!
