Understanding a leaking shower in Perth
A leaking shower can often be repaired without a full strip-out, but only once the source is known. Water usually escapes through worn grout, split silicone at corners and the screen, a poorly sealed floor waste, or a membrane that has failed beneath the tiles. Inspection tells these apart, and the fix follows the fault.
Signs your shower is leaking
Look beyond the recess itself. Stained or swollen skirting, tiles that sound hollow or lift, grout that stays dark long after use, mould at the base of the next wall and bubbling paint in the room behind all show water travelling where it should not.
Grout, silicone or membrane: the key decision
The big question is whether the fault sits on the surface or underneath. Cracked grout and perished silicone let water past the tiles, and regrouting or resealing can stop it while the membrane below is sound. If the membrane has broken down, surface work only delays the damage.
Why leak inspection comes before any repair
Guessing is expensive either way. Regrouting over a failed membrane wastes money, and ripping out a shower that only needed new silicone wastes more. A leak inspection checks moisture around the recess, the joints, the waste and where damage shows, then points to the right scope.
Can a leaking shower be fixed without removing tiles?
Often, yes, when water is getting through grout or seals. Raking out and regrouting, replacing silicone, and in some cases re-waterproofing over the existing surface can all work. Where tiles are drummy or the bed beneath is saturated, lifting some or all of them is usually the only lasting fix.
Strata, insurance and damage next door
In units and townhouses, a shower leak can reach a neighbour's ceiling or a shared wall, so strata may need to be told. Insurers and strata managers will often ask what caused the damage, which makes a written inspection finding worth having. Read your own policy wording before repairs begin.
Your leaking shower: next step
Share where the stain, mould or loose tile shows, roughly when it started, the age of the shower and your suburb. No diagnosis is needed. Also say whether the damage gets worse straight after showering or stays the same, because that helps narrow the source.
Leaking Shower Repair Services We Offer
✓Grout and Silicone Repair
For leaks through cracked joints or perished seals where the membrane underneath is still doing its job.
✓Re-waterproofing Without Tile Removal
A new waterproofing layer applied over the existing surface, an option for some showers where full removal is not justified.
✓Strip and Rebuild
Where the membrane has failed or the bed is saturated, tiles come up so the membrane can be replaced. A new membrane used under the NCC Housing Provisions must comply with AS/NZS 4858.
How it works
- 1
Note the symptoms
Record where the damage shows, when it started, whether it worsens after showering and which suburb the home is in.
- 2
Leak inspection
The recess, grout, silicone, waste and surrounding walls are checked to separate a surface fault from a membrane failure.
- 3
Repair scope
The scope should match the fault, from a reseal through to a partial or full rebuild, with the reason for each step explained.
- 4
Repair and dry-out check
After the work the shower goes back into normal use, and adjoining walls and skirting are watched as they dry to confirm the leak has stopped.