Why Shower Pans Fail | Avoid These Mistakes! (Most Pros Do it Wrong!)

In this video I will explain why so many

shower

trays

fail

and why so many professionals do it

wrong

. You've probably seen my video on how to make a

shower

pan and you've probably also seen other videos that might give you some conflicting ideas. information, so this video is intended to help clear up the confusion of all the information and some of the false information out there and I will do so by sticking to the facts such as building codes and product instructions. I also spoke to one of the largest shower tray liner manufacturers in preparation for this video comment below if you have any questions don't forget to subscribe to my channel hit the like button if this video helps you now let's start now, The shower tray liner basically has two functions, the first.

It is simply collecting the water that comes out of the shower head and keeping it in the shower so that it does not leak into the house and this is the job of the shower tray liner; For the

most

part, people tend to do this well. The second is to take that water and direct it down the drain so it can flow out and this is where people tend to make

mistakes

. The number one cause of shower tray

fail

ure is not water escaping from the shower, but whether it is trapped and when. If this happens, a snowball effect of damage occurs that can continue for years before it is detected.

It is important to understand that shower trays that use mortar and coatings are designed to function in a very specific way, in a unique way and the same. applies to other methods such as bonded sheet membranes or hot mopping or copper or lead

pans

. Each of these methods, you know, has advantages and disadvantages. It is common for contractors to be biased towards the method they use or probably overly critical of others, but reality. is that they all work and can also fail if done

wrong

, but the key is that they work differently when you start combining these methods, that's when you run the risk of having problems.

Here is an example of membrane systems like Kerdi that apply. a waterproofing sheet on the top of the tray so I see a lot of people who are installing mortar and liner trays and they are adding this paintable waterproofing as a red protector to the tray itself and while it may seem like a good idea you have to keep it . To get water out of the pan you have to remember that they work the way they do by design and if you modify that design it can cause problems. In this case, if you cover all or

most

of the tray, you may see potential tile adhesion issues.

Humidity. get trapped between the grout and the thinset for too long and that can cause material failure or even water could get into the tray where the waterproofing failed or was not applied correctly and now it will stay much longer than it should because the evaporation which is part of the process has been compromised by cutting off air flow with your waterproofing, so let's talk about how the mortar and coating containers are designed to work, now most of the water will reach the top of the drain and go to where it should and then a small amount will soak in.

Now this small amount of water now depends on two things, whether there is any chance of it getting out before it causes damage. Now if you have a pre-slope under the siding you find your way to the weep holes where hopefully someone used gravel when they made the mortar and they are not clogged, if they are the water is trapped, it is a small amount, but it's not going anywhere and if you shower every day, you add up. You may have seen videos where installers attempt to refute the need or effectiveness of pre-sloping or the function of weep holes.

Well, they are wrong and I will talk more about that in a moment. I have been working in residential construction. for about 20 years and it almost seems like there are more people who do it wrong than those who do it right, but I can see how this happens in construction, almost everything you learn is from someone else, someone who has been doing it longer installing a previous slope, it is not like that. It's difficult, but it adds a whole day to the shower construction process just because of the drying time and skipping that step may be too easy because most building inspectors don't even check it.

Some people might be surprised at how vague the construction is. codes may be in my area, there really isn't any inspection for a shower pan, the only time the plumbing inspector is in the shower is maybe to look at recessed pipes in areas where there is some level of inspection that you know during the process. of the construction of the shower pan, the focus is on the liner, they will require a flood test, you know, just to make sure it doesn't leak or they will let the contractor fill out a form saying that they did. You can see how easy it is for contractors to get their way.

I don't think most people are doing this intentionally. I've seen a few videos of some relatively popular DIY youtubers doing these experiments in the garage trying to disprove it. the need to follow the instructions now the theory behind this no pre-slope move is that pre-slopes are not necessary because the mortar is porous and there is something called capillary action which makes pre-sloping useless because water cannot flow to drainage because capillary action is not affected by gravity, well this is incorrect, capillary action is affected by gravity and at a certain level of saturation gravity becomes stronger and this happens long before the total saturation seen when containers fail, capillary action is already known.

It's actually part of what makes mortar containers work, it prevents water from rising and spreading so it evaporates more easily because it has more contact with air, it's almost always safer to trust the instructions in the scientific evidence behind them, testing and development. of a product from a billion dollar company cannot be refuted by a shop experiment when you buy a strange brand siding this is what it comes with, it clearly shows you the pre-slope and the gravel and then there is this one of the most controversial parts of The installation of the backer board is in the dish and not on it.

You may or may not have heard of this, but it seems like the reaction and agreed-upon solution for all of these shower pan failures is to take the backer board out of the mortar and to leave a gap, you know, although it's true that a Once the shower pan fails and becomes saturated, moisture will be absorbed again because it has nowhere to go, causing moisture damage not only to the backer board but also to the wood structure. So when contractors demo failed showers and find this, the solution that seems to be gaining the most traction is not putting the backer board in the pan at all and it's true if you keep the backer board out of the mortar and pan. shower.

If it fails, you will most likely keep all the gunk in the pan so you only have to tear the pan off and replace it. You know it's hard to oppose that. I just wish the focus would be on correcting the cause of the failure. and not just a partial reduction of damage. A pan that works because it was installed correctly will never get wet enough to saturate the backing board. It was designed to work this way, but I don't blame anyone for being nervous about putting the backrest on. board in the mortar and I don't think there is anything wrong with leaving a little space.

The only negative I can think of is that it will be harder now if you choose to leave a gap, just make sure you have the liner. supported so you can properly pack the mortar into the edges and if you are using a metal trowel be very careful not to puncture the siding when you are working the mortar, in addition to installing it correctly there is one more thing you need to do. To ensure that your shower tray lasts, it needs regular maintenance. The shower pan is designed to withstand small amounts of moisture entering, so cracked or unsealed grout can allow too much and give you the opportunity for mold and mildew to grow.

All interior corners need grout putty not grout this is another thing I see people skip a lot regular grout will crack in these areas allowing moisture to enter the grout and a shower should be sealed at least once a year If the grout looks wet as soon as water hits it, you probably need sealer. You can use an impregnating sealer for most tiles and grouts, just follow the instructions and apply more than one coat.