Bathroom Waterproofing:Tips To Cure This Common Problem

Leaking Shower is one of the common problems that you can see in your bathroom. The common symptoms of this include musty smells, even though the bathroom has not been used recently. The tiles change their color to a darker hue and damp patches appear on the wall, which can lead to mold growth and causes diseases in your home. Most people don’t know but proper waterproofing is necessary. Many states have established certain standards for waterproofing work. The person doing this must guarantee their work.

Bathroom Waterproofing

What Causes The Leaks?

Buildings prepared to the proper standards have sufficient waterproofing to protect the walls from water damage. This feature sometimes is not completely observed and is the source of leaks. These cracks are commonly seen in the corners of the bathroom floor and develop considerably over time. The common feature seen in such a situation is the grout cracking up and deteriorating. The grout usually cracks up and falls. This allows the water to enter through these areas and cause corrosion and damage to the waterproofing layer. Faulty or improper waterproofing can allow this damage to spread from the bathroom to the other parts of the house. Hidden leaks can be detected by:

1. Presence of molds: Bathroom Waterproofing commonly show the presence of molds. 

2. Damaged walls: Unreasonably discolored, stained or warped walls often indicate the presence of leaking plumbing. 

3. Damaged flooring: Your bathroom floor faces most of the water damage. So improper flooring can result in cracks which increases the water damage. 

4. Stained Ceilings: Stained and warped ceiling can often indicate the presence of faulty plumbing in the upper levels of the house. 

5. Musty smell: Accumulated water often gathers a musty smell. The persistent stench in your bathroom often indicates the presence of accumulated water i.e. water damage.

Bathroom Waterproofing

Common sources of water damage from Bathroom Waterproofing include:

• Pores in the grout.
• Poor grouting in between the tiles.
• Leaking pipeline.
• The bottom row of tiles and internal corners is not waterproof.
• Water often comes in contact with cut edges of the tiles.

Repairing Bathroom Waterplroofing holds the most important priority in the home improvement checklist. There are certain points which must be kept in mind: 

• Replacing the grout and applying a sealant is a temporary measure and often cracks can develop from it.

• Water always accumulates at the lowest point, so there is no sense in applying these to detect the source of the leak.

• Silicone and polyurethane sealants are often a temporary solutions to the water damage due to Bathroom Waterproofing.

Bathroom Waterproofing

A proper waterproofing solution by registered and trained personnel will have these aspects to their work: 

• Check leak: Detecting a leak completes 70% of the work. They will always try to pinpoint the source of the leak before commencing any repair work.

• De-grout: This is done to see the extent of the damage by removing the damaged grout layer.

• Repair the membrane: Proper repair of this layer ensures the longevity of the work.

• Replacing the grout: The damage grout is replaced with fresh grout along with a sealant.

• The shower walls: Proper workmanship will ensure that the shower wall is coated with a penetrative sealant, ensuring no problems. 

This article can guide through the various aspects of Bathroom Waterproofing. its sources, how to detect and establish that the repair work you just received for your water damage will hold its stability in the future. Ensure that the workman contracted gives details about the job. This will be the hallmark of any genuine technician.

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Top Tips for The Perfect Bathroom Waterproofing

The bathroom and in particular the shower is perhaps the largest wet area of your property that will do well to have a good coat of waterproofing. Continuous leakage and seepage of water lead to dangerous consequences that inevitably involve costly renovations in the near future. Making use of the technologically enhanced bathroom waterproofing method is likely to be more effective than any other process as bathrooms will not suffice with any cosmetic modifications that are likely to wear out soon.

Leaking showers

The four basic tips to keep your shower waterproof and free from mildew:

The process of correct bathroom waterproofing should begin at the time of construction itself so that there is no need to break your back at a later stage.

• The first step towards making the shower area waterproof is to get the proper slope gradient that will help in the easy drainage without any stoppage.

• In the case of the concrete structures, this gradient can be prepared at the time of casting so that there is less hassle of applying the waterproof membrane at the next stage.

• For the wooden shower room structures, the work involves the critical gradient formation using the cement mortar along with the appropriate placement of the drain.

• There are also the readymade solutions that are available that can be laid on floors to get the necessary waterproof floor area.

Bathroom Waterproofing

The pre-fabricated material use

The floor is the most critical area of the shower, maximum care has to be taken to insure that it is waterproofed to ensure peace of mind.

• Apart from the concrete cast, the modern and prefabricated waterproof floor materials that are available on the market offer foolproof solutions.

• These are technologically enhanced products that are lightweight, can be easily taken out and replaced or reshaped to give the complete waterproofing solution.

• These come in slabs that can be easily cut and installed over the wooden base. Once installed their edges are sealed with the specific sealant used for covering the joints to ensure the complete bathroom waterproofing.

Bathroom Waterproofing

{Read Also: Why do you need balcony waterproofing for your new home?}

The waterproof membrane

The walls are next on the list that has to be properly treated so as to get the complete bathroom waterproofing that will last a lifetime.

• There are two options that can be used for the wall waterproofing and they are the application of the liquid or paint waterproofing material or the application of the special membranes that are available.

• The application of the paint is an easier task as every crevice and crack can be well covered with the help of the paint that also dries up fast under standard weather conditions.

• The other is a special waterproof membrane that already has an adhesive to it that can be pasted against the cement base much like that of the wallpaper glue.

• There are special membrane pieces for the lower ends and the edges that have to be put in place carefully for the complete waterproofing. 

Once the basic coat of the bathroom waterproofing is applied, there is no problem in the laying of the tiles and the stones on top of it in a regular way. But there is surely a word of caution that is to be kept in mind while making the choice of the stones for the final lining. The shower is one area that has to be lined with the non-porous material and not any fancy looking porous stone. It is always better to make the initial investment on the waterproofing material choice rather than tear down and rebuild later.

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