Bathshroom

So I think the previous owner probably DIY'd the bathroom reno, or at least hired someone fantastically unqualified. There's a lot of cheap materials and poorly executed installation. For example, when installing tile, one should never apply grout in the corners, and especially not along the bottom edge where the tile meets the shower pan. Of course, both locations were grouted. I had caulked over top of it when I moved in because pieces of grout were falling out (which is one of the reasons you don't use grout in these locations) and I had some hopes that this might tide me over until I rip this bathroom out and redo it some years down the road.

Sadly, while the caulking looks fine, it was not quite sufficient.

People tend to think that tile is waterproof, but in fact the waterproof layer is behind the tiles. Water can and will get behind the tile, and from there it'll drip down onto the rim of the shower pan. It's important to manage this water properly to keep it contained, and I had at least made an attempt by omitting the caulking at the last inch next to the shower doors, as one should.

But this was clearly insufficient, given that a day or two ago I found a mushroom growing out of the destroyed MDF baseboard. Never use MDF baseboard in a bathroom.

I had hoped that the leaks had stopped and the decay of the baseboard had been halted, but clearly it was time for a bit more of an invasive intervention, and that starts with removing the caulk.

And then removing the misapplied grout.

I managed to get some pieces fully out, but the rest can just live behind the tile until I reno this bathroom properly and redo this whole mess.

So now that I've cleared out this section, we can get a better look at the gap along the bottom that should not be filled with grout.

And the portal to Narnia that leads behind the shower door and out the side of the shower pan.

We'll need to fully fill this spot with caulking to keep the water from getting out of the shower pan.

And we'll also need to do the same on the other end of the shower, though the gap between the pan and the tile was quite a bit smaller here, which necessitated breaking out the Girl's Best Friend.

Though with the grout saw blade in place of the usual conjugal attachment.

And after a little clean-up, we're ready for caulking.

The caulk I'll be using today is a sanded caulk which is colour matched to blend in perfectly with the grout. I know this is exactly the right colour to match the grout because I had to regrout half the tiles shortly after moving in, around the same time I did the first round of caulking. Did I mention these tiles were installed wrong?

Of course, we'll be leaving the very important drainage gap next to the caulk dam that's hopefully going to keep the water inside the shower pan.

And with any luck once the caulk is cured, it'll do its job.

At least it looks good.