maxwell_e
Jul 21, 2007, 02:47 PM
I have a shower unit in the basement which began leaking when I started using it last year. I tried replacing the drain but that only stopped the leaking for a few weeks. It leaks steadily when in use, under the shower base, under the studs and into the laundry room.
The entire shower unit was installed 10 years ago, by a handyman I knew a while back. I suppose I was asking for it, but please bear with me here.
The drain I purchased trying to fix the problem was plastic with rubber gasket that fits over the cast iron pipe. The cast iron pipe sticking out of the concrete bathroom floor is crooked. My guess is 10-15 degrees off from being completely vertical. This is probably the source of the problem.
The rubber gasket probably lost the snug fit over the crooked cast iron drain pipe. It was never a good fit in the first place. Imagine a 2 inch diameter gasket between a plastic drain and a cast iron drain pipe, then turning the cast iron drain about 15 degrees from vertical.
The other item I tried to fix at the same time was the wooden flooring under the plastic shower base. It was a makeshift bunch of 2x4's, leaving big gaps. I added some 2x4's, but still there are gaps under the shower base rather than a continuous board under the plastic shower base. Probably standing on the shower causes the base to shift unless secured, I figure.
I've tried various silicone and flexible seals, to no avail. Then there is plumber's epoxy, which I haven't tried on the drain. It dries almost rock hard, and is the best leak fixer on other projects I've used to date. I'm hesitant to use the plumber's epoxy since the epoxy dries hard and solid and would be difficult to remove in case the shower had to be completely erased.
So the question is, is there a way of fixing this without calling a plumber?
Thanks for any help/comments.
Maxwell
The entire shower unit was installed 10 years ago, by a handyman I knew a while back. I suppose I was asking for it, but please bear with me here.
The drain I purchased trying to fix the problem was plastic with rubber gasket that fits over the cast iron pipe. The cast iron pipe sticking out of the concrete bathroom floor is crooked. My guess is 10-15 degrees off from being completely vertical. This is probably the source of the problem.
The rubber gasket probably lost the snug fit over the crooked cast iron drain pipe. It was never a good fit in the first place. Imagine a 2 inch diameter gasket between a plastic drain and a cast iron drain pipe, then turning the cast iron drain about 15 degrees from vertical.
The other item I tried to fix at the same time was the wooden flooring under the plastic shower base. It was a makeshift bunch of 2x4's, leaving big gaps. I added some 2x4's, but still there are gaps under the shower base rather than a continuous board under the plastic shower base. Probably standing on the shower causes the base to shift unless secured, I figure.
I've tried various silicone and flexible seals, to no avail. Then there is plumber's epoxy, which I haven't tried on the drain. It dries almost rock hard, and is the best leak fixer on other projects I've used to date. I'm hesitant to use the plumber's epoxy since the epoxy dries hard and solid and would be difficult to remove in case the shower had to be completely erased.
So the question is, is there a way of fixing this without calling a plumber?
Thanks for any help/comments.
Maxwell