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MannyTG · Apr 27, 2008, 09:33 PM

My shower stall on the 2nd floor developed a leak partially damaging my ceiling below. The leak was caused due to standing water in the shower stall due to drain being partially clogged at the time. The house is about 10 years old. I unscrewed the plastic drain from the top. The drain screws into the bottom pipe which has threads on the inside. A rubber washer goes between on the underside of the shower stall but there is no fiber washer (not sure if I need one).

I would like to perform the repair from the top as I do not want to cut open my ceiling (never done this before). Also I am in a dilema as to the choice of sealant -silicone or plumber's putty to be used between the shower base and the drain lip. Is there going to be a compromize on the seal due to the screwing from top. Another odd thing I found is that the drain which is manufactured by "Mirloin" and has holes along its walls that screw into the pipe. I suspect that this could be another cause of a leak since accumulated water could leave from these holes along the inner wall of drain as well. I have searched for a compatible drain that did not have these holes but could not find one. The holes are for snapping the metal drain cover in place.
Can anyone help, thanks a lot
Manuel

Ya lucked out! Your drain can be accessed from the top,(see image).

I am in a dilema as to the choice of sealant -silicone or plumber's putty to be used between the shower base and the drain lip.

I would use Silicon Jel under the lip of the drain.

Is there going to be a compromize on the seal due to the screwing from top.

With putty? Perhaps. Silicon Jel won't "spin out".

Another odd thing I found is that the drain which is manufactured by "Mirloin" and has holes along its walls that screw into the pipe. I suspect that this could be another cause of a leak since accumulated water could leave from these holes along the inner wall of drain as well.

As you can see by my image the holes are for bolts to hold the drain in place. They have rubber washers to prevent any leaks.

A rubber washer goes between on the underside of the shower stall but there is no fiber washer (not sure if I need one).

The fiber washer is a anti-friction washer. It's not necessary unless the rubber washer's spun out of place. I would repair what you have in place. To change the drain you would have to tear open the ceiling and cut the old drain out. Good luck, Tom

Thanks for your response and the image is great.

Attached are a few pictures of my own of the drain (top view nut removed), drain_nut, and strainer.
No repair to bottom drain is necessary.

The pic for the drain_plug (nut) shows the through holes located along the vertical wall of the nut which I am still perplexed about. I believe these holes (6 of them, 3 on each side) caused the original leak, to the (hardened) rubber gasket and onto the outside of the drain pipe below. I inquired with the manufacturer (Mirolin) and they said the purpose of the holes were to snap the strainer(pic attached) in place which fits on top of the drain nut. I could not get them to agree that the holes were actually a leak hazard if the rubber gasket is not sitting absolutely tight against the bottom of the shower base. I looked for a nut wihout the holes but could not find any. I plan to seal off these 6 holes with silicone if I end up using the same nut and also to use pink teflon tape on the drain nut threads. Your views?

By "SILICON JEL" do you mean silicone? I have a tube og GE siliconeII, is that the Jel you refer to?

Afraid that this may turn out to be a repeat job a year from now, what precautions can I take during installation to avoid such occurrence.

Also I could not locate a tool (2.75inch dia) to fit the drain nut,any ideas where can I find one?
Tnx.

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