Water seeping through kitchen floor tiles at night

[thedcman]

I had a builder tile my kitchen floor about 10 years ago.

Every morning in the past week, I have noticed that water has seeped through the 2 center tiles which are very wet.

The funny thing is that the water does not seep through the tiles during the day or evening. I would have thought that the seepage would occur all during the day, evening and night but it only seeps during the night and I cannot understand why.

1. Can anyone explain this?

2. If I dig out some of the grout and replace it with silicone sealant, will it solve my problem or would this mask my problem and cause or make it worse?
3. should I just replace the grout?


I would really like to know what could be causing the water to seep through only during the night? I would have thought that it is colder at night so there would be less chance of seepage then.

Note the seepage is ONLY through the center tiles on the floor, not at the edges or near any walls or appliances or cupboards. Everywhere is dry except the center tiles on the floor.

The seepage has ony started in the last week.

 

[1john]

You need to know where the water is coming from, you may have a perished pipe or fitting beneath the tiles!

 

[Richard C]

I can’t see it has anything to do with a tiling job done 10 years ago & it’s pointless re-grouting or applying silicone in an attempt to stop it. Water doesn’t just appear from nowhere & if it’s only started in the last week, like 1john, I would say that you almost certainly have an under floor service pipe leak either the central heating system or water services. It could be a mains cold water pipe causing the problem; the pressure will be higher at night as virtually no one is using water. Try turning your water off overnight & see if it still appears.

 

[bathstyle]

If you are testing the main for leaks then it's best to shut it off outside as the leak might well be on the incoming main before your inside stopock.

If you have a water meter fitted you can easily check for leaks by not using any water and checking the water meter for movement.

Same as Heating, if you have a sealed system, check your gauge.

This topic is best placed in the Plumbing section.

I think you need to take your floor up and I hope you have spare tiles.

 

[thedcman]

Hi

thanks for replies.

checked both gas boiler pressure and water meter.

These are constant and do not indicate a loss of either boiler or water pipe system leakage.

If it was a obsolete service pipe that is leaking I would have thought that the seepage through the tiles would be constant i..e day evening and night, not at night only.


Note that I posted this under tiling as I originally thought it was just underground surface water seeping thru the a crack in the gout at night. If there was a crack in the gout it would probably get wider at night as the gout contracts.


Also note that my water meter is outside on the street pavement, and it showed no movement or signs of water flowing when I checked.

Any ideas as to the best type of expert that could help me diagnose the cause/source of the leak?

I do not really want to dig up all the tiles in the kitchen.

 

[Richard C]

If you stuck a recoding thermometer on the floor for 48 hours, I bet you’d find the temperature remained fairly constant. Bit of a mystery then; how wide/long is this crack? Has it always been there or did it appear with the problem? Is the floor bowing upwards at all? Can you be sure the leak isn’t before your meter?

Do you have a dishwasher/washing machine in the kitchen? I once had a leak on a dishwasher drain; switched on every night before bed, it would pump a little water into a tile void behind the plinth (floor wasn’t completely tiled under there) when it drained but not enough to flood through the plinth onto the floor. Water seeped under the tiles overnight showing itself as a very damp patch with salty deposits on the grout nearly a meter away. It could be a sink waste or other drain that runs under the floor leaking.

Other possibilities; is the property out in the sticks, old farm houses etc? Do you have any neighbours? Is it an old property? Does the floor have an integral damp membrane? On a hill? Any water courses nearby?

Perhaps you’ve discovered a natural water course or spring under your kitchen floor; start bottling it, you could make a fortune . Check out all the possibilities but if none of the above, you may not find out what's causing it untill you lift the tiles, possibly even the floor.

 

[thedcman]

I used a spirit level and it confirms that the kitchen floor is flat.

The water is definitely not seeping as if it is a continuous leakage from the system.

My feeling is maybe there is a seepage from next door's bathroom when they take a bath/shower at night, so I am going to have a chat with them.

A couple of questions:

1. Is grout usually porous or does it need cracks in it before water can seep through it.

2. how would anyone be able to trace the leak if is not leaking/seeping when they come to check/trace it?

3. Would this type of problem be covererd by house insurance?

 

[Richard C]

1. Is grout usually porous or does it need cracks in it before water can seep through it.

Commonly misunderstood but waterproof adhesive & grout is only waterproof in the sense it will not turn to mush when it gets wet so, apart from expensive epoxy products, it is porous; cracks will act as a siphon & make matters worse.

2. how would anyone be able to trace the leak if is not leaking/seeping when they come to check/trace it?

I’ve made some additional suggestions, if you’ve ruled those out & it’s not your neighbour then you need to get assistance & some detective work from someone with experience & a pipe locater. If there are water service or drainage pipes under the floor, I would say it’s almost certainly one of those is causing the problem.

3. Would this type of problem be covererd by house insurance?

They usually cover water leaks but it depends on your individual policy, you need to check the small print & talk to your insurer. There will almost certainly be a policy excess of at least £100 possibly more & you will have to pay this.

 

[philGT83]

did you take any flooring up, when the tiles were laid.

could be rising damp?

especially if you've removed and damp proof membrane or course?