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    davidwiegand's Avatar
    davidwiegand Posts: 5, Reputation: 3
    New Member
    		  
    #1

    Jun 1, 2008, 02:43 PM
    Basement shower drain leaks
    When the plumber installed a shower in my basement, the p-trap did not align directly with the drain of the shower. The plumber added a rubber connector with hose clamps to deal with this offset.

    This worked fine for a few years. However, recently the shower drain leaks. I am guessing that the rubber fitting has broken down. How can I fix this without removing the shower unit or without breaking up the cement floor?

    Thanks,
    Dave
    speedball1's Avatar
    speedball1 Posts: 29,301, Reputation: 1939
    Eternal Plumber
    		  
    #2

    Jun 1, 2008, 03:25 PM
    Hi Dave,
    This may not be the rubber coupling. Does the shower floor give a bit when you step in it? This may be a ruptured drain lip seal. In both cases to repair this you're going to hafta get under the shower floor. Is this doable? Back to you, Tom
    davidwiegand's Avatar
    davidwiegand Posts: 5, Reputation: 3
    New Member
    		  
    #3

    Jun 1, 2008, 04:16 PM
    Tom,
    Shower floor does not give. The connection from the shower floor to the first section of drain pipe is sealed. However, I cannot see more than about 5 inches into the pipe before it elbows towards the rubber coupling. I cannot get to the bottom of the shower floor without removing the entire unit or by chopping through the concrete floor and tunneling over to the base of the shower.
    Thanks,
    Dave
    speedball1's Avatar
    speedball1 Posts: 29,301, Reputation: 1939
    Eternal Plumber
    		  
    #4

    Jun 1, 2008, 04:35 PM
    Before you go through all that you had better make sure what's leaking. Remove the strainer and close off thye drain. A wet towel or you can blow up a balloon to stop it off. Now fill the base with about a inch of water and let it set over night. If any water leaked out you have a ruptured drain seal. If not you may just have to pull the shower base and do what the plumber should have done in the first place and that is to install the shower base correctly without using a rubber coupling that has no business under a slab, in a wall or where it can't be serviced or replaced. Let me kinow how the test comes out. Good luck, Tom PS. If this is a drain seal leak it will be a lot easier to fix. Good luck, Tom
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