tub shower leak
#1
02-12-20, 11:57 AM
tub shower leak
Howdy folks,
I have a one piece fiberglass tub in an upstairs bath and it has recently started leaking through the ceiling. I punched a small hole through the ceiling so the water could drain and later put a small flexible snake cam in the hole and there is water dripping down from what appears to be the overflow drain of the tub but I am not sure because I cannot get the snake cam into that area without ripping a huge hole in the ceiling. I recently put a plastic bag filled with CLR over the shower head to clear some mineral deposits and then turned the water on gently and added a cup or so of shower water to it and after I shut off the water flow all of the liquid in the bag was sucked back into the shower head. Did this damage something and lead to this leak that I now have and if so what could the problem be? I don't know if I ruined a seal or something and caused this problem but I am hoping someone might have an idea as to what it could be. Thanks in advance my homies!
I have a one piece fiberglass tub in an upstairs bath and it has recently started leaking through the ceiling. I punched a small hole through the ceiling so the water could drain and later put a small flexible snake cam in the hole and there is water dripping down from what appears to be the overflow drain of the tub but I am not sure because I cannot get the snake cam into that area without ripping a huge hole in the ceiling. I recently put a plastic bag filled with CLR over the shower head to clear some mineral deposits and then turned the water on gently and added a cup or so of shower water to it and after I shut off the water flow all of the liquid in the bag was sucked back into the shower head. Did this damage something and lead to this leak that I now have and if so what could the problem be? I don't know if I ruined a seal or something and caused this problem but I am hoping someone might have an idea as to what it could be. Thanks in advance my homies!
#2
02-12-20, 12:58 PM
Group Moderator
In the future...... unscrew the shower head and put it into a pan for cleaning.
I doubt what you did with the shower head is causing a problem.
You need to find out if you have a plumbing/drain leak or a problem with the wall leaking.
I doubt what you did with the shower head is causing a problem.
You need to find out if you have a plumbing/drain leak or a problem with the wall leaking.
jigsaw71
voted this post useful.
#3
02-12-20, 01:42 PM
Hey PJ,
I doubt it is the wall because I have a one piece shower tub fiberglass insert. So I would think it would be the plumbing leaking. Not sure though from where. Should I remove the handle cover and the faucet itself to see if there is any signs of leakage or am I stuck going through the wall in our master bedroom? (That would suck!)
I doubt it is the wall because I have a one piece shower tub fiberglass insert. So I would think it would be the plumbing leaking. Not sure though from where. Should I remove the handle cover and the faucet itself to see if there is any signs of leakage or am I stuck going through the wall in our master bedroom? (That would suck!)
#4
02-12-20, 05:23 PM
Group Moderator
If you have children who like bath's filled high then it is very likely the tub overflow. They rarely seal well.
One thing you can do is systematically put water in different places and see when the leak appears below. Somewhere else in the house fill several buckets with water. Slowly pour the water into the tub and see if the leak appears. This is checking where the drain pipe attaches to the tub. Next turn on the tub faucet and let the water run. This will check for a leak in the pipe to the tub spout or faucet body. If still no leak turn on the shower aimed somewhere you are absolutely certain water cannot leak. This will test the piping leading up to the shower head. If still no leak fill the tub high and let it sit. If no leak start sloshing water up against the overflow which will test it's seal to the tub.
One thing you can do is systematically put water in different places and see when the leak appears below. Somewhere else in the house fill several buckets with water. Slowly pour the water into the tub and see if the leak appears. This is checking where the drain pipe attaches to the tub. Next turn on the tub faucet and let the water run. This will check for a leak in the pipe to the tub spout or faucet body. If still no leak turn on the shower aimed somewhere you are absolutely certain water cannot leak. This will test the piping leading up to the shower head. If still no leak fill the tub high and let it sit. If no leak start sloshing water up against the overflow which will test it's seal to the tub.
jigsaw71
voted this post useful.
#5
02-12-20, 07:16 PM
Can you back off a few turns and then retighten the screws that hold the overflow cap, as seen from the inside of the tub?
Then retry filling the tub with water.
For most tubs, the sequence of overflow assembly parts starting from the inside is: cap (something like 3 inches in diameter, tub itself, gasket, flange with elbow to vertical drain pipe. With a good gasket (no, it is not wax) tightening the two screws holds the parts together to seal the flange behind the tub so it should not leak behind..
If that does not fix the leak then the next thing to ty would be to replace the gasket. This could be tricky working from the inside through the hol behind the cap er.
Then retry filling the tub with water.
For most tubs, the sequence of overflow assembly parts starting from the inside is: cap (something like 3 inches in diameter, tub itself, gasket, flange with elbow to vertical drain pipe. With a good gasket (no, it is not wax) tightening the two screws holds the parts together to seal the flange behind the tub so it should not leak behind..
If that does not fix the leak then the next thing to ty would be to replace the gasket. This could be tricky working from the inside through the hol behind the cap er.
jigsaw71
voted this post useful.
#6
02-13-20, 02:13 PM
Pilot Dane,
I did as you suggested and came up with some surprising results. I turned the water on and covered myself with the shower curtain and as the shower was on I put my snake camera into the hole where the handle is and looked down and it appears that the water is coming from the pipe where the water spout goes into the tub, but only when the stem is lifted and the shower is on. It stops when I turn off the shower and leave the tub filling by the spout. I took off the spout and it was definitely wet on the outside of the pipe and I could see that there was evidence of water making its way into the wall cavity. ??????What the what? Is the diverter bad? Should this even be possible? I didn't think water could do anything once the diverter was pulled up except for sitting there and waiting until the shower was turned off. The part that the spout screws into was a weird piece of copper looking like it was about two inches long with threads toward the rear and an O ring at the front and the rear. I would post a pic but I am not sure how to do that. What do you think?
I did as you suggested and came up with some surprising results. I turned the water on and covered myself with the shower curtain and as the shower was on I put my snake camera into the hole where the handle is and looked down and it appears that the water is coming from the pipe where the water spout goes into the tub, but only when the stem is lifted and the shower is on. It stops when I turn off the shower and leave the tub filling by the spout. I took off the spout and it was definitely wet on the outside of the pipe and I could see that there was evidence of water making its way into the wall cavity. ??????What the what? Is the diverter bad? Should this even be possible? I didn't think water could do anything once the diverter was pulled up except for sitting there and waiting until the shower was turned off. The part that the spout screws into was a weird piece of copper looking like it was about two inches long with threads toward the rear and an O ring at the front and the rear. I would post a pic but I am not sure how to do that. What do you think?
#7
02-13-20, 03:23 PM
Group Moderator
jigsaw71
voted this post useful.
#8
02-14-20, 05:28 AM
Group Moderator
You will have to find the source of the leak. It could be coming from somewhere higher up like the riser pipe to the shower head and is just dripping down and getting into the tub spout. It also is possible that the tub spout or it's pipe nipple are leaking. When just filling the tub there is almost no pressure in the pipe but when you activate the shower there is pressure so it can start leaking.
jigsaw71
voted this post useful.
#9
02-14-20, 07:42 AM
Dry every thing off as best you can.
Turn the shower head so it sprays against the wall.
Put your thumb over the spout pipe and slowly turn the water on.
Then look for the leak.
Without the spout you may be able to see it.
Turn the shower head so it sprays against the wall.
Put your thumb over the spout pipe and slowly turn the water on.
Then look for the leak.
Without the spout you may be able to see it.
jigsaw71
voted this post useful.
#10
02-16-20, 07:16 AM
Hopefully this pic came through okay. This is what the adapter looks like after I took off my Delta shower spout. I am not sure how long it has been getting water inside the spout because I do not think it is supposed to be this color. So can someone tell me how to get this off and if I can just put another one on to replace it or do I have to remove the copper pipe that feeds the spout and put a new one in? Any thoughts? I am cool with replacing the adapter if I need to but I don't want to melt the fiberglass tub near it.
#11
02-16-20, 03:46 PM
Group Moderator
If you are up to it I would get a different style spout as I don't like the slip on ones. I prefer the type that are threaded on though it would require you to do some soldering.
jigsaw71
voted this post useful.
#12
02-17-20, 06:45 PM
I am game for soldering on a threaded adapter, is there a specific brand of spout that you recommend?
#13
02-25-20, 03:53 PM
jigsaw, did you ever get your situation figured out? I have the exact same spout adapter on my tub.
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