Do this now
- Stop using the shower.
- If water is near a light fitting or switch, turn that circuit off at the fuse box and don’t touch the fitting.
- Put a bucket under the drip and move anything valuable out of the way.
- If the ceiling is bulging or sagging, keep everyone out from under it.
- Take photos of the ceiling and the shower for your insurer.
Why showers leak through ceilings
Water that gets past the shower’s waterproofing runs along joists and pipes until it finds a way down, so the stain isn’t always directly under the leak. The usual culprits:
- Silicone round the tray or bath: it shrinks, lifts or goes mouldy, and water runs straight under it
- The tray waste: a loose or perished seal between the tray and the trap
- Grout between tiles: cracked grout lets water behind tiles that were never properly waterproofed
- Pipe joints in the wall: a weeping joint behind the valve leaks whether the shower’s on or off
- A cracked tray: thin trays flex on an uneven base and crack over time
Narrowing it down
A methodical test, one part at a time, often points to the cause without opening anything up. Watch the ceiling below after each step:
- Leaks with the shower off? Then it’s on the supply side: a pipe joint or the valve.
- Run water just into the drain, using the hand shower held low. A leak points to the waste.
- Spray the silicone round the tray or bath. A leak points to the seal.
- Spray the tiled walls only. A leak points to the grout and what’s behind it.
Leave a good while between tests: water can take time to travel. If you’re not comfortable doing this, we’ll do it for you.
Will insurance pay to find it?
Many buildings insurance policies include trace and access cover. It pays to find a hidden leak and to repair what had to be opened up to reach it, such as a ceiling or tiles. What it often doesn’t cover is the worn-out part itself, or damage from a leak that has been going on slowly for a long time. Check your policy and tell your insurer early: most want to hear before work starts.
Fixing it properly
- Silicone: cut out completely, clean, dry and reseal. Done properly, not over the old silicone.
- Waste: reseal or replace, which may mean access from the side panel or the ceiling below.
- Grout and tiles: if the board behind is still sound, regrout and seal. If it’s soft, the shower area needs stripping and rebuilding with tanking.
- Pipe joints: opened up and remade, ideally with an access panel left for the future.
- Cracked tray: replaced on a solid, level base so it can’t flex again.
Then the ceiling
Once the leak is fixed, the ceiling below needs time to dry before it’s repaired and painted, and a stain-blocking paint so the mark doesn’t come back through. Plaster that’s sagging or crumbling needs replacing rather than painting.
Leaking now? Use the quote form and choose “A new shower or a shower repair”. A photo of the shower and the ceiling below helps us work out the likely cause before we arrive.