A right royal PITA of a job! Can anyone help please?

[Millie Master]

This is a question which has van building and maintenance connections and in my case domestic ones as well.

In the shower room of my home, I have a right royal pain in the assiender problem with the shower, or to be more exact the sealing between the tiled walls and the acrylic shower base.

Prior to applying the silicone, I thoroughly cleaned (I believe) both the tile and acrylic areas to be siliconed, using as I usually do some kitchen roll which had been soaked in meths, changing the meths soaked wad regularly so as to ensure cleanliness.

I of course ensured that all the meths had time to totally evaporate prior to using Unibond bathroom silicone. To finish, in my usual way using a finishing tool.

But, in places the darned silicone didn't bond to the shower tray and this wasn't obvious until we used the shower and noticed some water seeping out!!

Any ideas please?

 

[Duckato]

Yep it has been the bain of my existence too, most bathroom silicon sealants I have tried simply do not stick to PVC/ABS cladding & shower trays.
I have tried low and high modulus, neutral cure and solvent based Silicon.

Neutral cure Silicon is what we are supposed to use!

I have just ditched a really cheap and nasty plastic shower tray that I bought from Jacksons Leisure which unfortunately had the thickness and qualities of a margarine tub and cracked pretty much where I had expected it to! One good thing, the sealant easily peeled off easily!

I am fitting a stainless steel tray instead that I had a local fabricator make.
I will be sticking the tray down with CT1 and sealing it to the plastic wall cladding with BT1 which is specifically CT1 for bathrooms and has mould resistance

The manglefacturer claims it sticks to everything except PE PP and PTFE.
Time will tell!

 

[Millie Master]

Neutral cure Silicon is what we are supposed to use!

I have found that Stixall and other such adhesives do stick like sh*t toboth the tiles and the shower trays, however they aren't mould resistant and of course my most beloved is fastidious about cleanliness doesn't like me using Stixall or similar for this kind of job in the house.

However, dear old Stixall (et all) are truly brilliant to be used in the shower/loo in the van as that room is rarely sweaty wet/damp and as such mould isn't a problem. Prior to this I had always used silicone which proved to be about as good as a chocolate teapot!!

 

[Squiffy]

I have found that Stixall and other such adhesives do stick like sh*t toboth the tiles and the shower trays, however they aren't mould resistant and of course my most beloved is fastidious about cleanliness doesn't like me using Stixall or similar for this kind of job in the house.

However, dear old Stixall (et all) are truly brilliant to be used in the shower/loo in the van as that room is rarely sweaty wet/damp and as such mould isn't a problem. Prior to this I had always used silicone which proved to be about as good as a chocolate teapot!!

I've always used "Sticks like shit" over the last 15years for that at home and in vans, it takes about an hour every two or three years to deseal the tray and reseal it when the mold finally can not be got rid of with bleach, but it never leaks between applied coats. But as you say mould doesn't seem to be a problem in the vans. Phil.

 

[JIXAMAN]

Ah use Pu sealant 40 from Toolstation for near everything, Pu is the stuff windscreens and side windows are bonded with as far as ahm aware...

Anyway, the shower in the van ah know didnt leak as ahm redoing the bathroom the now and all was dry... Off topic, 2nd incarnation ah clad it with wetwall, looked nice, for a self builder thats not in the trade that is but know this seems mad but the reduction in side / elbow space in what is a space limited part of the van was too much... ........ Anyway, Pu 40, Toolstation, top tip...

 

[SquirrellCook]

Almost any PU mastic will stick better than silicon.

 

[mistericeman]

Regarding mold ....minimise block soap usage ...the fats used in hard soap promote mold growth.

When sealing the tray ....put weight in the tray and keep it there till it cures ...
(otherwise the tray will be trying to pull alway from the sealant as soon as you stand in it ...)

 

[Duckato]

Ah use Pu sealant 40 from Toolstation for near everything, Pu is the stuff windscreens and side windows are bonded with as far as ahm aware...

Anyway, the shower in the van ah know didnt leak as ahm redoing the bathroom the now and all was dry... Off topic, 2nd incarnation ah clad it with wetwall, looked nice, for a self builder thats not in the trade that is but know this seems mad but the reduction in side / elbow space in what is a space limited part of the van was too much... ........ Anyway, Pu 40, Toolstation, top tip...

I have learnt to my cost that Puraflex PU40 does not stick to pvc wall cladding or plastic shower trays unless seriously well keyed, it is one of the few things it simply does not work on it can be peeled off very easily from stuff like saniclad.

I have found that straightforward vinyl flooring adhesive is far superior for pvc and it’s relatively dirt cheap from wickes etc and lasts for decades on the shelf however being a shade of cream squeeze out is very obvious.

It’s dead easy to clean up before it cures though with water.

 

[Sprinter 1 cup]

I over laped my walls straight into shower tray as I just went for lino as shower tray . I put blocks behind the shower panels at the bottom to hold them out .
No silicone
You could put plastic angle behind and have that drain in tray ? If you plyed the walls !

Heat gun and time no mould yet !, but it's only the second year.

 

[Pudsey Bear]

I had issues in my build I actually rang all the suppliers, and none had a product, so I thought this is stupid, why would Thetford sell a loo that couldn't be sealed, so I rang Thetford tech and they didn't know either, they said we just supply a rubber seal, fit that then seal that to the wall.

Sorry that's no help to the OP.