My wife and I are new homeowners as of 2 months ago and we are now experiencing problems with both of our showers.

The shower/bathtub combo in the bathroom on the first floor makes a loud grumbling/growling sound when the water is turned on and is diverted through the showerhead. When the water is turned way down (barely on) it stops making the sound. I'm guessing it's a water pressure issue, but how do I make it so it won't make this terrible sound and still get a decent amount of water while taking a shower?

The other issue we're having is in the standup shower-only fixture in the basement bathroom. There is a significant amount of water leaking from the one side where the fiberglass meets the raised concrete slab. I dumped a bucket of water into the shower to determine if the leak was from a leaky pipe or the drain. It turns out it's the drain. What do I need to do to fix the drain so it won't leak anymore?

 

Problem #1 sounds like someone did not secure the pipe from the shower/tub assembly to the wall. The pipe is vibating when you turn on the shower. Only way to cure this is cut enough out of the back of the shower and install a board across the studs and clamp the shower line to the board.The basement shower may be as simple as unscrewing the drain where it enters the floor of the shower enough to be able to push some plumbers putty under the flange of the drain and tighten it back down or use silicone. Good luck and post back.

 

Thanks for the help MajakDragon. It sounds like it's a lot of work for the shower upstairs. I'm not looking forward to having someone get behind the wall to get to the pipes.

It sounds like the basement shower should be an easy fix. That's good news! What is the flange of the drain that you're referring to? The drain grate comes off easily so I can look down it. Would I be placing plumber's putty or silicone underneath the lip of the pipe where it meets the fiberglass floor of the shower?

 

Not knowing what type of shower you have ,I am going by the standard type drain. The part that you see usually is screwed into another piece under the shower and this "pancake" effect is what seals the drain. The upper part usually can be unscrewed by placing the handles of a pair of pliers or channellocks in the cross in the drain and turning counterclockwise. You don't have to totally remove the drain, just enough to squeeze some plumbers putty under it or silicone and then retighten it.Wish I knew a simpler way to fix the other shower, but I don't. The pipe has to be secured to keep it from vibrating which is causing the noise. Good luck.

 

When I remove the drain grate, I can look straight down the drain. I don't see any cross bar for me to loosen the pipe to place the putty to seal things. How would I do this for this drain type? As far as the type of shower, it says "Peerless" on the shower knob and "Acrylite" on the shower doors/enclosure.

 

Does the inside of the drain have little "ears" on it> If so you need a spud wrench. They are cheap.If not....I am at a loss as to how it was installed unless the drain was installed into the shower and then set into the drain.Hopefully one of the other pro's will step up with an answer. Good luck.

 

Majakdragon,

I don't see "ears" or nobs or anything on the inside of the drain pipe when I look down it. It seems that the drain pipe is fixed into the concrete slab on which the shower sits. There is a divet or cutout in the concrete which works like a small cup where the water runs before going into the metal drain pipe. Does this make sense? Thanks for the continue help on this!

 

Most slab jobs I have seen have a 2x6 box built around the drainlines and the concrete is poured around this box (outside) and the box has sand in it. One reason is so any shifting of the foundation will not break the drainline. You may have to try silicon in that "divot" and see if that cures the problem. I don't see a reason for it. Good luck.