Browse Forums Bathrooms and Laundry 1 Jul 23, 2016 9:56 pm We are in the middle of a second storey addition and when the toilets were installed the ensuite toilet started to leak. We only discovered this when the floor in the bedroom was wet. The builders organized for the plumbers to fix the toilet. But we have had a number of independent plumbers and builders tell us that the water shouldn't have run out the bathroom door into the bedroom and up the doorframe. They have all told us that there is not enough fall in the screed and that the tiles and screed need to come up and the waterproofing redone. Our builder is disputing this saying the screed is porous and that you can't waterproof a doorway and that now the toilet is fixed there isn't a problem. We are obviously not happy with the builders response, when it's so different to the 5 other recommendations we have had. We just don't know what to do now. Re: New bathroom, toilet leak 2Jul 25, 2016 11:20 am Was there any damage to the bedroom e.g. discoloured carpet? Reason why I mention is that unless you can pin them to a problem (as a result of error on their behalf) Eg damage to the carpet caused by incorrect fall.... you will be fighting them for an incorrect install to a standard. Eg, the slab was laid incorrectly, hence why my house is falling apart. It's harder to fight a builder on the premise, the slab was laid incorrectly hence my house "might" fall apart. I know it's not the answer you want but that is how they play. As an example, we fought with our builder over some structural issue as there was some cracking around the house. On the advise of a lawyer we moved in and (contrary to our independent engineer that the house was going to fall apart in 6 mths) 6 years later, called the builder to say that the door jambs had all moved up. I think they are up to $6k (still going) fixing cracked water pipes etc. Re: New bathroom, toilet leak 3Jul 25, 2016 1:43 pm Just get a decently long level and see what the fall is in the bathroom. From the door to the floor waste you should have at least a 20mm slope for the average sized bathroom. Stewie Re: New bathroom, toilet leak 4Jul 25, 2016 5:04 pm We are still in the build process so carpet etc hasn't been installed yet. There are obvious water marks on the floor and up the architraves. He builders are saying that the toilet leaked straight into the screed and not onto the tiles and that because the screed is porous the water had to run out somewhere. I understand what they are saying it's just that we've had a number of builders/plumbers/waterproofers tell us that it all needs to come up and redone and so now we don't know what to believe We had a meeting with the business owner today and he said the fall in the bathroom floor really only is relevant to the shower (which is fine) and that there doesn't need to be much of a fall from the doorway to the bathroom waste. Re: New bathroom, toilet leak 5Jul 25, 2016 8:22 pm Wet areas is a tricky one. Lots of factors involved with it, down to the tradesmen constructing the floor, walls, sheetings and floor system to applying waterproof membranes to the people regulating/approving it. AS3740 states for general bathroom floor areas a min 1:100 fall is required to a waste outside the shower. Your issue seems to be with the waterproofing membrane along with the water stop angle at the door, bond breaker silicon to floor and wall junction, perimeter flashing, and reinforced fabric etc. Even with the silicon to the floor and wall junction the reinforced fabric, membrane over the top and a water stop or even the aluminium tile trim at the door with a coating of the membrane on top, you shouldn't have got that much water through to the bedroom. These waterproofing/wet area issues are concerning and things are improving with tradesmen becoming more competent and consumers having access to information helps improve these things but there are still lots of problems. Having said all of that, it could be that the builder/tiler has performed all that is required and the leak was excessive and caused your problem, the tough thing is trying to prove it either way. Re: New bathroom, toilet leak 6Jul 26, 2016 8:26 am Quote: AS3740 states for general bathroom floor areas a min 1:100 fall is required to a waste outside the shower. Yeah, that's the min fall HYG, the common sense fall should be closer to 20mm. Ever seen a couple of kids in a bath ? The floors are usually awash and the only way to stop water escaping from the bathroom is a decent fall to the waste. I agree with everything else you say though. Stewie Re: New bathroom, toilet leak 7Jul 26, 2016 9:22 am Yeah I agree, I was just trying to quote the requirements set by the AS rather than my own opinion on it just so the Op knows the min, set out by that book. Going above the min requirement in these wet area applications is something I encourage. Better more than not enough. Re: New bathroom, toilet leak 8Aug 03, 2016 10:59 am I was told that was the minimum fall for the shower but there isn't a standard for the main bathroom fall??? We have a building inspector coming out tomorrow so will hopefully have an answer then. Re: New bathroom, toilet leak 9Aug 04, 2016 9:04 am Is there a floor waste in the bathroom apart from the one in the shower ? If there is ( and there should be ) , then there needs to be fall to it. BCA rules for wet areas. Stewie Re: New bathroom, toilet leak 10Aug 09, 2016 2:33 pm We had the building inspection done and the building inspector measured the fall of all the bathroom floors and they're fine. He said the same as the builder-that there is water coming from somewhere it shouldn't and it is still seeping out. Both the builder and the inspector are stumped. So we are returning the toilet that was leaking and hoping that will fix the problem. Hi all, I am hoping someone has some ideas as to what is causing my bathroom leak. The leaking appears to mainly happen when we turn the sink basins on. It takes a while… 0 5080 If you make sure all taps inside and out are turned off, what does the water meter show if you leave it for a while. 2 20235 DIY, Home Maintenance & Repair Are you doing this with a building permit? Conversion of a non habitable room into a habitable room requires building permit. 3 17318 |