@H2OSKIMOMMA. Quite possibly thru the shower pan. Back up a few feet and give us some pictures. But I am afraid this will be a mess and you will end up gutting the bathroom.

@millworkman I was afraid that we would possibly need to guy the bathroom. I’ll attach so more photos.

Can black mold grow that fast? We’ve only used this shower for 2 weeks.

Ask the builder what type of shower pan they used. It looks like it may be a prefabricated pan, but its hard to tell from the picture. If they made a mortar pan and then sloped and waterproofed it, there are a lot of possibilities for leaking areas. However, most pre-fab pans and surrounds are less likely to leak, unless they don't follow the installation directions.

The other possibility is that the shower valve or pipe in the wall is leaking, since it appears that water is in that wall.

Bruce

Bruce, thank you for your insight and advice. I appreciate you taking the time to comment. We did not build this house. When I get back home I can a better photo and attach it.

That's been leaking somewhere for quite a while. Like Bruce said if you cannot determine where the water is leaking it may be behind the wall. Selective demo is going to need to be done. Possibly access from the other side may be easier and may save you from destroying the shower.

Thank you @millworkman for your insight as well. The other side is a closet so that’s a great idea to start there and possibly save from a complete demo.

Drywall in a closet is definitely a less expensive repair if possible. May not work out that way but still the best way to start. Obviously at some point the MDF trim will need to be removed and the drywall behind it but by that time hopefully you will have determined where you are going as far as repair.

Ok....so I took the handle from the shower off and was able to stick a flashlight down inside the wall and cram my phone the best I can into the hole to take a photo. Here’s what I found. It doesn’t appear to have any water inside the wall that I can tell. Thoughts? I also took a video. I’m waiting on my husband to bring a wire hanger and a smaller old cell phone home for me to attach it and put it back down lower into the wall. If there isn’t water there I’m wondering if it’s coming from below the shower floor.

The pan to sidewall area may be leaking. Or the drain. Can you access from below?

The only way, from what I think, is to cut into the drywall where I’ve take the baseboard off. Although, this is definitely a first for me and therefore I’m open to advice for a different route.

Take a picture of the inside corner of the shower near that leak. When we have bought solid surface pans before there is a dip in the molding of the pan for a weep hole. It is always caulked over. The idea is that if the caulk fails at the seam of the solid surface the water will run down into the lip of the pan and then out near the weep depression. If it is caulked over it fills up and the water runs out the front of the shower pan, behind the molding, just as you have shown. Also look carefully at all the internal caulking in the shower. There may be a seam lifted and the caulk all needs to be pulled and redone.

We have had two showers develop problems behind the corner molding just as you have shown. Both had the water coming out from the front corner of the shower pan, behind the wall/trim. In both the weep hole area was caulked over.

Hi,

Just looking at your picture my first guess would be water on the floor. You only have damage on the latch side of the door. That molding would suck up water like a sponge.

Before you open any wall I would remove the molding and put newspaper on the floor when you use the shower water will show up better on the paper than the floor. If you find the leak and replace the molding hold the molding up about 1/4 inch and caulk under it.

If you have kids you may need more paper they probably think it's a swimming pool.

Good Luck Woodbutcher

Ok... It's been a few weeks so I thought I would update. We turn the shower on and went down into the crawlspace (luckily it's 8 ft tall underneath the bathroom) and saw water dripping down from the bathroom and mold growing. 🤦🏻‍♀️

So we are in the process of getting quotes to renovate the bathroom. We are planning on removing the bathtub and shower to create a "wet room."

We're going to have one of the windows bricked in (to hide plumbing for a 2nd showerhead), and then just have a glasswall/doors across the width of the area where the shower and tub are currently.

I'm also going to have the 2 large wall mirrors removed, drywall repaired, and then I'll hang 2 separate mirrors above the sinks. Along with placing light sconces on the sides of the mirrors.

I'm debating removing the countertop as well. I haven't made my mind up yet.

Any suggestions greatly appreciated.

Have you read about wet rooms on this forum? Learn as much as you can before you decide. If you’re renovating, post a drawing on graph paper with measurements. People on here may have suggestions for the best layout.

Your need structural alterations to do a wet room. A larger drain, or sn additional drain. And a big budget. A large wetroom costs as much as a tub and shower project combined. To way north of that.

Please ensure that your contractor is licensed and insured, and can explain the waterproofing system to you. It should not be anything to do with a vinyl liner. The whole floor will need replacing in order to waterproof the whole floor for you for the wetroom.