Hinterland Shower Repair

The Situation

Helen and her husband have lived in their beautiful Tallebudgera Valley home for decades. Her husband, a skilled handyman, had maintained much of the property himself — but when a pest inspection showed high moisture readings behind their ensuite shower, they called us in to investigate.

Visually, the shower looked fine. No cracked tiles, no peeling silicone, no obvious issues. But as we often say: just because it looks okay on the surface doesn’t mean it’s not leaking underneath. These issues are more common than you’d think — especially in older homes where previous shower repairs haven’t lasted very long.

The History

Years earlier, the couple had a sealing company treat the shower, but unfortunately, that surface-only solution didn’t last. Moisture had returned — this time worse than before.

What We Found

Our inspection revealed very high moisture readings across the shower base, with water damage travelling into the second row of wall tiles and even across the bathroom floor. The shower membrane had clearly failed, and moisture had seeped through the wall perimeter plates. The floor of the bathroom also showed signs of water spread — a bathroom renovation would have been ideal, but with plans to sell the home in the medium term, Helen and her husband opted for a more budget-conscious repair that would still solve the problem properly. We see similar cases all the time during bathroom renovations in Gold Coast, especially in older properties.

Our Solution

We delivered a shower floor + two-wall retiling package, including:

• Removal of damaged tiles

• Replacement and waterproofing of the wall structure

• Re-tiling with a close match to their original red tiles

• FlexiShield™ epoxy grout across all new tiles

• Two x RapidBond™ epoxy injections into affected floor areas

• A full FlexiShield™ perimeter seal around the rest of the bathroom floor

This approach kept costs manageable while providing a watertight result backed by a 10-year warranty.

The Surprise Underneath

Once we removed the tiles, we uncovered extensive hidden damage: rotten timber in the walls, with moisture travel all the way through to the exterior wall of the house. It’s the kind of thing you’d never know without removing the tiles — and it’s exactly why surface sealing alone won’t solve serious waterproofing failures.

(Video below] — worth a look if you’re wondering how much damage can hide behind “normal-looking” tiles.)

The Outcome

Despite the unexpected scope, we completed the job in just one week. The couple were so happy with the result, they had us also seal their other bathroom using our FlexiShield™ system.

June 24, 2024

Tallebudgera Valley, QLD

10 Years

1 Week

$8,000