Dip In New Shower Floor

[woodpassion]

Hi ~ I had a supposed professional build my new shower floor. There is a good sized dip before the drain right where you stand when you're taking a shower. I really hate standing in a puddle of water when I'm taking a shower. The shower does not leak, but it doesn't drain properly. The company is supposed to be reputable, but when I talk to the owner he says he will have the tiler call me (his son). They will not return my phone calls and I will probably have to take them to court to get any satisfaction. I really hate the idea of having to pay someone else over $1000 to rip up this floor and do it right. It is grouted with epoxy grout...is there any way I can pop up the tiles where the dip is and fix it? Is there any way to fix this without tearing up the whole flooor? Thanks for your help.

[Stubby]

You might be able to add a layer of cement and a second layer of floor tiles. This means changing the drain. Sometimes they simply screw out after removing the grout from the original installation.

[Richard J Kinch]

The chances of you or the original guy succeeding at that are less than the chances of the original guy having done it right to start with, so practically speaking, no.

You either live with this, or hire a lawyer, starting with a nastygram that you want this corrected. The nastygram may work and it won't cost you a whole lawsuit in legal fees. If the lawyer is any good, he will want documentation (photos) that prove the flaw exists. But if this is a $1000 matter then a good lawyer will not want to get involved.

Your essential problem is that somehow this guy got paid before the work passed your inspection.

[trbo20]

If the shower pan is CPE, and it almost certainly is, then it will probably never leak. This is especially true if there's no seam. You will eventually have a problem with mold and discoloration, however.

Send a certified letter spelling out your expectations and give them a reasonable deadline to hear back from them. If they still try to avoid you, go to small claims court and file.

Filing fees are generally less than $40, and just initiating the process is often enough to spur them into action. I don't imagine a Judge will side against you, but make sure your ducks are in a row.

AFTER they've fixed it, contact your local licensing authority, the BBB, and anyone else you can think of (Union?). Avoiding a disgruntled customer is a terrible way to do business.