I was recaulking my shower/tub, and noticed that some tiles were loose. I pulled 3 tiles off the wall, and saw that the wall board (I'm not sure which type) had some water damage.
I see plenty of sites describing how to fix this, but I have some questions.
The rotten board surrounded the bathtub spout. I assume it's a best to install a single piece of new cement board, with a hole cut for the pipe. Is it easy to unscrew the spout without causing further problems? What will seal the pipe connection when I reconnect it?
Or should I just install two horizontal pieces, on the top and bottom of the pipe?
The tub spout pipe came through a tile that had been cut in half (or maybe broke at some point), and then had a hole cut in it. Can I seal the crack between the tile halves with grout, even though the crack is smaller than a standard grout joint?
Behind the wallboard is fiberglass insulation with a vapor barrier (even though it's an interior wall). The vapor barrier has some cuts and rips. Is there a way to install a barrier patch over just the exposed section, rather than the whole section of wall? What material should I use?
I see you're supposed to leave a small gap between the bottom of the cement board and the top of the tub. Why? If water gets through the tiles, where does it go once it's on the front of the cement board, or the front of the vapor barrier?
Jimmy