Hi All, Just bought a house with an ensuite in a fairly recent extension. The room is tilted with posh marble tiles and has a walk in low level shower tray. The tiles are long thin rectangles, may be 3" high and 24” long. Because the tiles are thin and the height of the tray, the first row of tiles inside the shower are even thinner at about an inch. My guess is that they are bonded to the backing / streaming strip that gets fitted to the tray on install and hardly to the wall at all. So here is the problem... A crack has appeared at the top of this first row of tiles. I have had a tradesman come and rip out that row of grout and then replace it. All was fine for a week, but then the crack returned. When I put it my weight on the tray the crack opens up to less than a mm. Maybe ⅔ of a mm and then closes up when I get off it. Can't afford to take down all the shower, plumbing which is attached to the fancy tray, take up the tray and reinforce the floor! Is there a grout flexible enough for this or is the only other option to do a bodge and remove the grout and replace with silicone? Not keen on the bodge, but what else can I do? Any help appreciated. Skint Si.
It's a solid ceramic like tray. It sits on the floor, with no easy way of getting underneath. Photo attached!
Is flexible grout that flexible? I'll take your word for it, but do you think that would work having seen a photo?
I would take bottom row off again reseal tray to wall put a few bags of sand or something heavy in to weigh it Down while it sets put tiles back on with flexible grout and flexible adhesive seal round tiles let it all set then take weight off the tray and fingers crossed think biggest problem Is its a very small cut for a first tile
The tray doesn't have a lipped edge, but the instructions that the previous owner of the house left suggest that there is a T shaped rubber sealing strip attached that lips up under the first set of tiles...
I just found out that the previous owner used a flexible grout, so I think that approach might not work. What about putting a row of white tiles around the bottom, on top of the existing. If the new tile was a lot taller and hence bonded to the rows above, then a generous silicon joint to the tray at the bottom? With the right white tile it won't look too bad and might deal with the movement?!
that first thin tile will always be a problem.I'd deep rake out the joint, clean, deep fill with Sikaflex EBT as its waterproof and flexible. I'd stop it to to allow me to be able to apply grout after the EBT cures. Apply grout. You will be left looking at the gap which is 2/3mm most likely but at least you can be confident water isn't going to track behind the tile
BMC, the Sikaflex looks interesting. Can I just check I've understood? Rake out the joint to the depth of the tile, then use the Sikaflex to maybe 2/3 of the tile depth. Let it cure then grout over the top. The crack may come back, but the Sikaflex will stop any water penetration. Sounds like a plan if I've understood you!
2/3 or more depth. Just give yourself enough depth to add your grout for the aesthetic finish. I'd mask tape off the tiles above prior to gun filling for ease of cleaning etc.
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