Problem finding the leak

[caultd10]

Hi guys,

Im wondering if any of you out there can solve this mystery for me. My sister has had a leak now underneath her bath for a couple of weeks but its intermmitent. I have been under the bath and there is a wet patch surrounding the cold pipe to the bath directly underneath the taps and at times the chip board under the bath in that area is sodden. It has been leaking for a while because it has started coming through the ceiling in the dining room underneath. We have narrowed down that in terms of being intermmitent, it seems to leak ONLY after someone has used the shower, (the bath taps are a mixer tap with a shower outlet attachement coming from the bottom of the tap arrangement). The puzzling thing is although after someone has had a shower it seems to drip downstairs from the ceiling, I cannot actually physically see any leak from the tap arrangement of connecting pipes underneath the bath. The only thing i cannot check is whether something is leaking below the floor beneath the bath, although why would this leak only appear to be present when somebody has used the shower from the bath taps. We stopped using the shower for a couple of weeks and hay presto! NO LEAK. Use the shower again and WE GET A LEAK but its no visable from under the bath area. After spending some time trying to work this out by myself I am now completely puzzled. I would really appreciate any suggestions guys. Many thanks, a very puzzled Darren.

 

[wezzer]

If it only happens after a shower it is more than likely leaking through the seal between bath and wall. If water was leaking from cold water pipe going to tap you would have water dripping from the ceiling all the time. Try running the shower against the tiled wall or over the side of the bath next to the wall and shine torch under bath to see if you can locate leak.

 

[mcmoby69]

acrylic baths can crack, especially cheap ones. if the chipboard attached to the base of the bath is damp then you have got a cracked bath. time to buy a new one !

 

[philpolish]

Hi there sounds to me that shower is going into same drain pipe as bath as to why it leaks near the bath when you run shower.

Just a thought.


Sorry thought you had a seperate shower.

 

[wiggikins]

Hi there sounds to me that shower is going into same drain pipe as bath as to why it leaks near the bath when you run shower.

Just a thought.

RUBBISH!!!

 

[alder]

I agree with wezzer, either the sealant between the bath and the wall has failed or your shower screen is leaking and letting water run outside the bath and underneath?

 

[pcollins]

I went to a similar job recently where there was a fair amount of water damage to kitchen ceiling, and drips reported after bathing. I checked sealant and everything and eventually traced the leak to the seal between bath and waste.

It took a while to find as the leak only began with a certain amount of water/weight in the bath so just running the tap or putting an inch of water didn't trigger it, but obviously removing the plug from a half full bath would cause a decent size drip from the area.

Could be the same if the person showering is standing at that end....

 

[WOLDEN]

check the seal between mixer taps & bath . loose tap or seal not there .

 

[pauls]

had the seal on the taps gone before i would also look at this aswell as seal round bath

 

[WHPES]

Found a similar problem once caused by the ribbed overflow pipe not being properly pushed onto the waste oulet and water was seeping out of the joint.

 

[stevetheplumber]

are the taps loose could be the wood support has rotted away

 

[heinz57]

If it is the weight of the occupant thats causing this then try a few squirts of expanding foam to give support to the tray and allow to set. Then silicone around the edge of the tray to be extra safe. You may not be able to see under there very well but if you feel with your hands for a damp swollen patch on the floor this will give you an indication of where the leak is comming from, as already mentioned the waste outlet for example.