Flooring Tile - LEAK - ceramic tile shower

Last summer I remodeled a bathroom in my condo - I finished the walls and floor of the shower with cement mortar and 12" ceramic tiles, and grout in the 1/4" gaps between the tiles.

Over time, the grout on the floor is wearing away and water is beginning to leak through and down into the ceiling of the condo below me.

I am told that I should have installed some kind of rubber shower pan thing before laying the tile on the floor. Do I have any options at this point other than pulling up the tile and starting over? I am not even sure I can find this style of ceramic tile anymore to match the walls. Is there an alternative way to seal this shower?

Wink

It sounds like you left a few important steps out. Check out this link. It'll give you a good idea of the anatomy of a shower floor.

http://www.ontariotile.com/preslope.html

Tile and grout are not waterproof. You need a pan liner under the mud bed. What you have is a total tear out. There is no quick fix.

But wait...there's more. From viewing the old posts, seems there might be a bench involved here. When tearing everything out of the floor, keep going until the walls are gone too. Sorry, but looks like you are in for a total redo. After reviewing Johnny's link, please post back with every question you can think of. Stick to this thread for the whole thing so we are all always on the same page with advice and background info.

Wow. I had no idea, shoulda checked the history. Boy thats some good reading though.