Saving a Soggy Shower Wall

By: Merle Henkenius (Page 1 of 4)

Photos by: Merle Henkenius

USE A FLAT PRY bar to remove tiles that are firmly stuck to the wall. Don't pry under the corner of a tile or you'll crack it.

trimming the edge of the gypsum wallboard

TRIM THE BROKEN edge of the existing gypsum wallboard with a drywall saw to create a neat, straight horizontal seam.

scraping caulk and soap residue from the shower base

USE A SHARP RAZOR knife to scrape off any old, dried caulk and soap residue from the top edge of the bath or shower base.

Scratching out existing grout from between ceramic tiles with a grout saw.

SCRATCH OUT SOME of the existing grout from between the ceramic tiles of the adjacent course with a grout saw.

SCRAPE EACH TILE with a wide putty knife to remove old mastic and drywall paper after soaking the tiles in boiling water.

slicing the fiberglass mesh of the cement backerboard

SLICE THROUGH THE fiberglass mesh of the cement backerboard after scoring and snapping it on the marked cut line.

FASTEN THE backerboard to the wall studs with roofing nails; keep it slightly above the edge of the tub or shower base.

Spreading latex mastic on cement backerboard

SPREAD LATEX MASTIC evenly across the entire surface of the cement backerboard with a 1/8-in. notched trowel.

PRESS THE TILES into the mastic. Be sure that the grout joints line up with the seams in the tile course above.

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For all its good looks and glazed durability, ceramic tile is far from invincible around water. Tub or shower surrounds require routine care to keep grout joints waterproof and seams between tile and shower base or tub sealed with caulk. If the tiles are mounted on drywall, the moisture will eventually turn the drywall to a messy mush. But that doesn't mean you'll have to tear all the tiles off the wall and replace them.

DAMAGE CONTROL
The first step in the repair is to assess the damage to determine how much of the wall has gotten wet. Leaks typically start along the bottom of the wall where the tile meets the top of the tub or shower pan. Those areas are exposed to the most water, so damage tends to spread quickly. The longer the leak has gone unnoticed, the larger the repair will be.

The tiled wall shown on these pages is only a few years old, but water had seeped in through grout joints and ruined the drywall. The damage had spread about 9 in. up the wall, so we had to remove three courses of 4-in.-sq. tile to reach sound drywall. Although the rot was limited to an area approximately 3 ft. wide, we removed a 5-ft.-wide section all the way across the back wall of the tub so we could install a continuous piece of substrate with no vertical seams.

To prevent any future leak from causing so much damage, we used cement backerboard instead of water-resistant drywall. Backerboard essentially is 1/2-in.-thick cement covered on both sides by a fiberglass mesh. Because it's completely impervious to moisture, backerboard is the ideal substrate for tile; it is now required by code in many areas for new work if you don't opt for a full mortar (mud) job. A 32x60-in. sheet costs about $15.