Can someone explain what a shower pan is, and how it works
Sweet cloud
,
Friday, 13th of August 2010 04:24:03 PM
First, pardon my lack of knowledge about the proper terminology... Sweet cloud />
l have a huge amount of water damage directly below my master Registered User bathrooms tile shower. l cut a hole in the sheetrock and thought l found Joined: Sunday, 2nd of May 2010, 11:09:25 the source of the leak at the outlet drain of the shower. There were Posts: 1521 pretty significant significant water stains, but no damage to any load Viewed 10148 times bearing beams.
A plumber came over and told me that my shower
pan was leaking - He does not do that type of work and sent a ''tile guy''
over to give me an estimate - $3400! Granted it is an elevated shower with
2 steps leading up to it, and l wanted to re-tile the entire shower since
the current tile would be impossible to match.
Here are my
questions:
1. What exactly is a shower pan: Is it a fiberglass
or plastic basin? Or is it a waterproof barrier (rubber? aluminum?) that
goes over the planking under the tile?
2. If the pan is
leaking, is it safe to assume that water is leaking through the grout
before it hits the pan and leaks out through the hole or crack in the
pan?
3. I am fairly confident that l can handle the re-tiling,
but how difficult will it be to replace the pan?
4. If the
water is leaking through a cracked tile or grout, would it be worth it to
attempt to seal the tile/cracks before demo'ing the entire shower?/>
5. Why the heck would a plumber NOT do this type of job? It sounds
like it would be perfectly within his area of expertise.
Thanks
much for your help to anyone willing to share his/her knowledge.
malibu
,
Saturday, 14th of August 2010 06:39:44 PM
below is are links to how to water proof a shower pan. Even if malibu you don't do the work, I belive it will answer all your question, and you Registered User will be a better informed consumer. ( the third on has a video) Joined: Monday, 31st of May 2010, 22:19:30 Posts: 1958 Viewed 17062 times
Boo Boo Kakes
,
Sunday, 15th of August 2010 03:35:13 AM
A ''pan'' is a waterproof membrane that is sealed to the drain Boo Boo Kakes & runs up the ''curb'' for the shower like a bowl. Once upon a time they Registered User were made of lead or copper soldered together to make them waterproof. Joined: Wednesday, 28th of April 2010, 19:59:44 Sometimes thay were also made of a bituminous material (tar). Today, they Posts: 1401 are made of a rubber membrane that is cut, fitted & glued together. That Viewed 5811 times is the right way to do it. A mortar base is poured & troweled over they
base for the tile. The pan may also have mortar under it. I heard of one
clueless worker that laid concrete board over the rubber & then put SCREWS
through the rubber. Won't leak today, but it will. Forget about trying
to patch it. You have no idea where the worker screwed this up. It
should be tested for at least 24 hours BEFORE the mortar is poured so this
doesn't happen. BTW $3400 sounds outrageous.
Terr
,
Monday, 16th of August 2010 07:34:10 PM
A shower pan is a plastic or robber mat that is put in under Terr the tile & usually up the walls in the shower about 6-12 inch's. Grout can Registered User seep through & not seal. Trying to re seal the grout would be worth a shot. Joined: Monday, 24th of May 2010, 10:09:18 I have seen it work in many situations. Alot of tile layers have had me put Posts: 1392 the pan in & the I put the hardy backer over it on the wall & a thin layer Viewed 1644 times of concrete mud over the pan to give you something to glue to. If you do
try to reseal it, make sure you clean it good. Any grime left could cause
leaks to reoccur
ponygirls husband
7 years carpentry & remodeling
Sunshine
,
Tuesday, 17th of August 2010 05:52:08 PM
A shower pan is what you stand on when you take ur shower. And Sunshine yes the floor joists would probably not be hurt by this leak. If ur Registered User re-tiling, then the pan & would be where you put the tiles. You could try Joined: Monday, 14th of June 2010, 05:11:58 to reseal the grout. Try to see where it is coming from if you've taken Posts: 956 the sheet rock off. Cut a larger hole in the sheet rock & get a larger Viewed 6323 times light, like a 500w light. Plumbers fix holes in pipes, plumbers connect
pipes, believe me I wouldn't want to see a plumber fix ur tile.
Cutie Cakes
,
Wednesday, 18th of August 2010 01:11:06 AM
shower pan is generally a site fabricated water barrier made Cutie Cakes of PVC sheeting .lead sheeting that goes over the sub floor & under the Registered User tile & cement base . Joined: Tuesday, 25th of May 2010, 21:27:56 Posts: 1737 tile & grout are NOT water proof , water always makes it through to the Viewed 8063 times ''pan '' that is why it must be waterproof .
The pan is not hard to construct
the pan has failed so it is just a matter of time before the shower is a
huge problem
plumbers will do the ''pan ''work but why would a plumber be responsible
for the pan when he will not be the guy setting tile over the pan ,it can
easily be damged after the install & testing . why not just have the tile
person install the pan .
3400 is reasonable if they are really good tile person not some jack of
all trades who does mediocre work & claims it to be ''just as good ''as
everyone else
Buttmonkey
,
Thursday, 19th of August 2010 08:32:35 AM
Ouch! If you have a tiled floor, then you need to get a Buttmonkey different plumber. The pan can be repaired from the bottom. Registered User Joined: Tuesday, 1st of June 2010, 23:07:54 Posts: 776 Viewed 3802 times
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