Flooring Tile - MAJOR bathroom tile problem

We just bought this house and we have a ceramic tiled shower stall. We noticed after we moved in, it was obvious the previous owners repaired the tile in the bathroom themselves, it was crooked and some of the tiles were not flush with the other tiles. So of course the tiles have fallen off. my problem is that the wall behind the tile has water damage and has basically fallen apart. I don't have alot of money to get this fixed. How can I repair this myself. My house is 13 years old. We have lived here for 2 years. How much will it cost if I have to have this repaired professionally. Thanks, Brandi

What worries me most is that you say there is water damage. Does that mean the tile has been stuck to sheetrock (gypsum board)? If it has, then there will be water damage in the entire shower. What is under the tile? If the tile was done correctly there should be some sort of cement board or fiber-cement board. If the shower was incorrectly installed, then you are looking at a complete redo. Doing the job yourself won't be extremely expensive but it will cost a little.
Give us some more info and we will guide you through it all.
Bryan

Whether or not you could do this yourself will depend on how much time you can give to the project, an honest assessment of your diy skills, which even if they are low, and you take each step slowly and carefully as it is explained to you and ask tons of questions, you can do it yourself, and it can be reaaly inexpensive or major bucks, depending on the materials you pick out. Most of any major tools you may need can be rented pretty cheap as they are needed. Is this a tiled shower including a tiled pan or is it just the walls with a plastic base? Are you on a slab or over a wood framed structure? As much as I hate to suggest this, was it just repaired or remodeled? If it was remodeled and not just repaired in a few spots, you might want to check with your local building office to see if a permit was pulled. Not worth the fight for a couple hundred in tile and backer and thinset, but if the water damage hs gotten into the stud cavities and it becomes a very huge deal, then failure to disclose work on the sellers disclosre performed without a permit when it was required can fall upon the previous homeowner for repair, but once again, only if it involves some major repair stuff. Fixing a stud or two, and redoing the walls and tile are not that big a deal. If you have serious mold issues, rotted sheathing that has aluminum sidieng over it that needs to be replaced, etc, that's when you worry about it.

:) I went to home depot with a piece of my wall with the tile attached and he told me it was green board. They suggested I take down the wall of tile and replace with fiber -cement board and then tile it. The whole shower is tiled including the floor and when the green board came down i could see the wall to the closet. The only thing that was wet was the green board, my drywall and the wood beams are fine. My dad had to do this in one of his houses so he is going to help me, I can not thank you guys enough for making me feel a little bit better about this situation. I look forward to coming to you again. Thanks Brandi :)

Don't forget to install a vapor barrier first, over the studs, 4 or 6 mill poly, or 15 lb. roofing felt will work fine for this, start at the bottom and overlap by 2 to 3" as you go up.:)

In addition to vapor retarder over studs, you need concrete underlayment board (CUB). It's waterproof and you will have no moisture issues in the future. Green board is water resistant but not waterproof. Skip the green board and go with CUB.

CBU, as me, rd, adanac, tgb will use from time to time (never heard CUB, but no reason why the initials couldn't be inverted) is not waterproof. water will pass right through it. Actualy some even love water. Hardi drinks it right up, so don't think they are waterproof in anyway. However, they are impervious to water effects, they do not change dimensionally, they do not deteriorate, they do not support mold growth, etc, but they are not waterproof and are not meant to be waterproof and do not claim to be waterproof and the manufacturers. Thus the need for the vapor barrier behind the CBU. Make sure you seal it to the shower pan liner.

Yup, that's twice now that advice was given, and by a Moderator no less.:)