PLEASE HELP! BATH SEAL DRIVING ME CRAZY!

[crazyforg339]

Please help me to seal this bath before it drives me totally mad!

5 years ago i had a new bathroom fitted by the council. The new bath didnt really fit where the old bath had come from so in typical council style the bodged it with a row of tiles laid flat at one end of the bath to bridge the gap between the bath and the wall and an 3/4 inch thick layer of sealant along the side of the bath to make it meet the bottom of the tiles!

All was well for 3 years or so and then the 3/4inch seal split. I contacted the council and after about 3 weeks they came and put some more sealant over the top! The first shower that was taken after this made it all split again so i contacted them again. 3 weeks later they came and repeated it, again it split and after the third time of asking them to fix it i decided it was time to sort it myself.

So far i have used flexible bath and shower sealant, non flexible sealant, grout under sealant, expanding foam and even a row of half tiles to cover this gap. i've done it with the bath full and also with the bath empty and the result is always the same - the first time someone gets in the shower or runs a bath it all splits again!

I've spent that much time scraping sealant off that my bath is now scratched all down one side and I'm at a loss as to what else to do!

Oh and please dont tell me to do anything that requires removing the bath panel as that was also fitted with lots of sealant and would never go back on properly if it was removed!

Any advice appreciated.............

 

[lukechrissy]

Ok, im not an expert in the bathroom side of plumbing.

Dose the bath rock or move in any way as if its unbalanced?

The reason i ask this is because if all supporting feet of the bath are not flat on the floor, when someone is stood in the bath moving around it could make the bath shift or rock slighty with stretches the seal no enough for it to be visible, but enough for it to split.

 

[Bahco]

All was well for 3 years or so and then the 3/4inch seal split.

That gap is too large to get a good seal and you should try to move the bath nearer the wall and under the tiles.

 

[bhm1712]

remove the old seal, and go and buy some polycell flexible seal. its 22mm wide and is self adhesive. it is ready prepared for this type of job.....it bridges large gaps. i had a similar problem and this worked fine, just use a little silicone sealer as well as the self adhesive ,as in places the adhesive isnt 100%

it comes in a 3 meter roll and folds into an L shape

b and q sell similar stuff for tile edges but it is only 16mm wide, not enough. you can mitre the corners aswel and it makes a neat job if you take your time

FOCUS has it in stock always.

the downside is, it only lasts about a year or so before it starts to peel off. but its cheap enough and doesnt go mouldy.
i had a leaky seal for months and this stopped it straight away.

http://www.polycell.co.uk/products/polycell_sealant_strip_for_kitchen_and_bathrooms.jsp

 

[crazyforg339]

when i say 3/4 inch gap... thats from the bottom of the tiles to the top of the bath when full of water, the bath itself is directly under the tiles and as close to the wall as it can be (sorry for any confusion there)

As for the flexible seal.... I did buy one from somewhere (not sure of the make) but it moved up and down with the bath nicely for about a month then it started leaving its adhesive behind when it lowered and within a week it had nearly all come off and would no longer stick.

The bath doesnt feel to move or rock when you stand under the shower but once full of water you actually feel it drop as you get in so its obviously moving a fair bit

 

[Johnmelad502]

Get that bath panel off and see what is going on under the bath. And if you can, post a few pictures.

It sounds as if the bath is shifting too much which could be caused by all sorts of things.

 

[Goldspoon]

You could always fill it full of water so it drops...

Then add thin strips of tile in the gap with tile adhesive.

Let is set for a coupla days.

Then seal with silicon.

Bath then cannot move upwards when water emptied.

 

[bhm1712]

if the bath is moving up and down then you need to secure it first or the seal will never work

a bath will always move when its full up but if its enough to dislodge the seal then the feet must be hovering above the floor a little!