Tenant putting shower head in the sink caused flood

General Landlording & Rental Properties
5yFollow

Tenant putting shower head in the sink caused flood

John Deyrup
Member since 2020 · 7 posts · 0 votes

The bathroom in our rental has a cartridge that you push in to change from a shower to a bath, and the shower has a hose that lets you detach it from the wall. My tenant said that she had been putting the shower head on the floor when taking a bath. There was quite a lot of water that leaked in from the bathroom into the floor below. If the water is not currently leaking that means that there is not an issue with a leaky pipe, but that water was flowing down the path of least resistance; i.e. the shower to the floor? Does the fact that the floor leaked mean that something is not caulked correctly or is it not possible for floors in bathrooms to handle a lot of water?

0Reply
30 views

Most Popular Reply

Bill B.
Investor · Las Vegas, NV · Member since 2013 · 8k+ posts · 10k+ votes
5y

Not an expert, but it looks long term to me. 

1Reply
See this reply in the discussion

8 Replies

Jump to latestLatest
  • Account Closed
    Investor · Columbus, OH · Member since 2017 · 861 posts · 1k+ votes
    5y

    My house has one of those types of detachable showerheads, and you control switching the shower and bath by pulling up a thing on the bath spout.  The showerhead has a holder that you can attach it to when not holding it. 

    I would never, ever just lay the detachable showerhead on the floor.   Due to the system not cutting off water to the shower when the bath spout is selected, a little water will always come out, and I would bet doubly so if the shower head is laid down on the ground.  I would bet that is the problem, OR she isn't tucking the shower curtain into the tub when she runs the shower. 

    Also no, bathroom floors are almost never intended to take much water.  I also would never install one of these detachable showerheads in a rental unless it was required by an elderly/handicapped tenant. 

    1Reply
  • John Deyrup
    OP
    Member since 2020 · 7 posts · 0 votes
    5y

    Lesson learned about the detachable shower heads. The wood here was also very soft from the water; can a single event make the wood that soft or is more likely that multiple events caused the wood to rot.

    0Reply
  • Bill B.
    Investor · Las Vegas, NV · Member since 2013 · 8k+ posts · 10k+ votes
    5y

    Not an expert, but it looks long term to me. 

    1Reply
  • David Lee Hall, III
    Rental Property Investor · Pittsburgh, PA · Member since 2019 · 530 posts · 511 votes
    5y

    @John Deyrup

    That looks far more extensive than a tenant dripping water from a shower head (unless they have been doing it for 10 years).

    Bathroom floors are rarely waterproof. That requires extra engineering and cost. (Generally you would need a Schluter membrane and floor drain to.)

    0Reply
  • John Deyrup
    OP
    Member since 2020 · 7 posts · 0 votes
    5y

    @David Lee Hall, III Can you be more specific on what damage you are seeing. To put the image in context, the bathrooms had drop ceilings installed for some reason in the past, previous to the drop ceiling there was plaster and lathe which was half heartedly removed. The image you are seeing is the ceiling beneath the drop ceiling on the first floor and the blackened wood is where water was dripping from the second floor. Most of the wood that is visible is lathe.

    0Reply
  • Theresa HarrisPro Member
    Member since 2019 · 15k+ posts · 11k+ votes
    5y

    Wood won't get that soft from a single event.  The showerhead should have a holder that it sits in when not being held in the hand.  The same one that allows it to be used as a shower.

    0Reply
  • David Lee Hall, III
    Rental Property Investor · Pittsburgh, PA · Member since 2019 · 530 posts · 511 votes
    5y
    Originally posted by @John Deyrup:

    @David Lee Hall, III Can you be more specific on what damage you are seeing. To put the image in context, the bathrooms had drop ceilings installed for some reason in the past, previous to the drop ceiling there was plaster and lathe which was half heartedly removed. The image you are seeing is the ceiling beneath the drop ceiling on the first floor and the blackened wood is where water was dripping from the second floor. Most of the wood that is visible is lathe.

     Okay. Pictures on my phone aren’t quite that clear. I thought that was moldy, rotting cross braising. 

    0Reply
  • Tracy StreichPro Member
    Real Estate Broker · Tulsa- OKC Oklahoma · Member since 2017 · 868 posts · 801 votes
    5y

    So call the plumber and repair damages.   Then ASAP change the shower head!

    [email protected]918-728-8080
    0Reply
Join the conversationCreate a free account to reply, vote on answers and follow this thread.
Log InJoin for Free