Leaking Shower
 

Any suggestions for a bitumen type sealant material to ensure a watertight
shower enclosure.
After about 12 years or so the plasterwork behind the shower has given up
the ghost!
I propose to strip everything out - plasterboard it out - then use pva
adhesive - then, and this came out of a conversation with a builder, apply
this bitumen type product - didn't catch a name - as
he-was-going-to-do-the-job-but-didn't-turn-up-typical-story!
And finally re-tile.
Any ideas what he might have been referring to - sounds like a good tip.

tia
Hugh

Hugh wrote:

Any suggestions for a bitumen type sealant material to ensure a watertight
shower enclosure.
After about 12 years or so the plasterwork behind the shower has given up
the ghost!
I propose to strip everything out - plasterboard it out - then use pva

Plasterboard is not a good choice for this... it will fail very quickly
if it gets wet. Either use one of the special products designed for this
application (e.g. Aquapanel) or or use WBP ply.

If you go the WBP route and install the tray, and then render over the
ply (you will need to staple expanded metal lath over it first) and down
onto the tray (thus ensuring any water getting through the tiles will
meet another waterproof layer still end up falling onto the tray and not
down beside it). Glue tiles using a waterproof adhesive - use a full bed
of it (3mm thick) not just ribs on the surface. Grout after with
waterproof grout. As a final step treating it with something like
Lithofin stain stop will keep it looking nice and further resist passage
of water. Don't forget the copious use of a good sanitary silicone
sealant at each stage.

adhesive - then, and this came out of a conversation with a builder, apply
this bitumen type product - didn't catch a name - as
he-was-going-to-do-the-job-but-didn't-turn-up-typical-story!
And finally re-tile.
Any ideas what he might have been referring to - sounds like a good tip.

Probably nothing wrong with the product, but I would rather make sure
the water is not going to get into the wrong place in the first place ;-)


--
Cheers,

John.

/================================================== ===============\
| Internode Ltd - http://www.internode.co.uk |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
| John Rumm - john(at)internode(dot)co(dot)uk |
\================================================= ================/

Thanks John for your detailed reply - Aquapanel it is!
Have looked at it before and appears a good product.

cheers
Hugh
so it's off to Wickes I go!