Under Our Roof: A Leaky Revelation

Floor and ceiling drama has been brewing for the last year or so in our house. Awhile back, the upstairs bathroom experienced a leak that appeared in our bedroom ceiling downstairs. We discovered the water was getting diverted outside the tub. This was resolved with caulk to fill the hole and reminders to Naomi and Danielle to keep the shower curtain closed all the way. 

Fast-forward to about 6 months ago, when the water started appearing on our ceiling again, but this time it only showed up intermittently. We checked the previous hole in the floor, but that was not the source this time. We checked every other nook and cranny and tile and grout, but we could not figure it out. Jeff even installed edging on the side of the tub to prevent water from running out unintentionally.

We tried our best, but it was time to bring in a professional.

After various tests and inspections, the plumber was convinced the issue must be behind the faucet. We shelled out $755 for his services and to get a new faucet installed.

Unfortunately, the leak came back. 😠 Soooo, the plumber came back (without any extra charge thankfully). He cut out the sheetrock of our ceiling to expose the underside of the upstairs bathroom. Lucky for us, the pipes were completely fine -- yay, no expensive plumbing leak!

However, that meant there was still an undiagnosed problem, as there was obvious signs of water leaking from near the edge of the tub onto our ceiling.

After pouring water on every possible area inside and outside the tub, the mystery was solved. There was a seemingly invisible gap between the wall and the tile. (Note: We had checked the floor but we failed to check just a few inches up from the floor. 🤦)

We still couldn't figure out how the water was running down the wall, because there was a diverter on the edge of the tub and an extra shower curtain hook at the top. Well, eh hum, it seems to be a case of the clientele. You see, Naomi and Danielle listen to music on their phones, which are balanced on the towel bar just outside the shower. If there is a song they don't want to listen to, they stick their dripping wet arm out the curtain to change songs on their phone, drenching water down the wall into that crevice, into our ceiling below.  

So while the problem is identified and solved with more caulk and proper shower etiquette going forward, we now have more house projects on the list! Time to fix the gap, paint the bathroom, fix the rotted wood and replace the sheetrock. 

Just part of owning a house for 25 years...