I have recently purchased my first property, some of the sealing strip around the shower tray was lifting so it was removed to reveal two large gaps between the shower tray and tiles (the tiles go all the way to the floor). The left side is an empty gap 3/4" wide at widest point, the right is 1" at the widest point and previously held a moulding block of timber which has now been removed. It was previously sealed with silicone and a sealant strip.
How should I reseal this shower and what products do I need - I understand that the shower has not been correctly fitted but I need a solution to get the shower sealed so it can be functional. Thanks in advance!
Are you a tradesperson and able to answer this question?
Unfortunately there is no good option for a permanent seal. The tiles need stripping of and re-tiling or shower panels fitting to reduce the gap to a sealable gap with good bathroom sealant. Any silicon and trims applied now at best will only be temporary. The grouting isn't waterproof so more than likely water will be getting past and causing damp issues, applying a temporary seal might cause more problems later on.
Best option here would be to remove the bottom row of tiles and install a feature tile or larger tile to close the gap- you could also put some waterproofing behind the tile. As a temporary fix you could install some upvc quadrant to the smaller gaps or upvc panelling around the entire bottom of the tray with sealant behind the upvc and sealed top and bottom.
Unfortunately the whole instal is poorly fitted.To resolve it properly the enclosure and tray really need to be removed.The bottom run of tiles around the shower tray can then be removed,if the walls are dry after removing those tiles,then the shower tray can be refitted as tight to the walls as possible with plenty of sealant between tray and walls.A tile to tray sealing strip can then be fitted and the tiles cut to then meet the tray leaving no gap between tray and tiles.The enclosure can then be refitted and sealed again.Theres a fair bit of work involved to clean the surfaces from old sealent,but necessary to ensure a good deal.
As the previous guy said it looks like it's been a bodge job by someone.
Ideally it does need stripping out and refitting,I would take the shower tray out as well because who knows what's going on under there if it as been leaking the floor coul be starting to rot.
It is a bigish job but it wants doing correctly to avoid further problems.
There's no point just trying to seal it up when there's big gaps down the sides.
It's been a total novice that's done it in the first place.
