Help! Plumber installed a questionable shower pan?

Question

A plumber came in to change our bathtub to a shower and was supposed to remove the tub, move the drain and fixtures, and place a "shower pan". The "pan" he placed was simply a rubber sheet - it says shower pan liner - through the drain assembly and up about a foot on the walls. There is NO sloped mortar placed under it, and the liner droops where the old drain was located. He said this is "the shower pan" and that I had to place sloped mortar over it and then tile. In all of the websites I can find, the sloped mortar was placed first, the pan liner was put down to slope the water toward the drain, and then another mortar slope was placed and tiled over.

Did the plumber do it wrong??!!! Is a liner over a flat concrete surface a "shower pan"? I don't want to complain if they are correct, but I don't want to pay for it if it's wrong either - they charged $475 for this!!!

I'm scared the water is just going to pool and eventually leak. It's a new house if that somehow matters.

Thanks so much for any advice.

Answer 1

Call the plumber inspector for your county/ township. They should come and look at it with no charge and then you will know for sure if it is correct.

Do not tile any until it is inspected. It does not sound right to me and I think the person is trying to scam you!

Answer 2

Increase Said it pretty good. i think that there was a lack of communication on the work that was to be done. Plumbers do not typically do pan work. It is a plumbers job to install the liner but alot of them will not do any structural work. Usually a sub does the flooring underneath the liner or a Tile contractor. in our County it is required that the liner be installed and inspected by regional before anything is set over the top of the liner to guarantee that there is no leaks. I just finished a granite shower with a liner. However we are not a plumbing contractor and did the work from top to bottom. All the plumber did was hook up the Supply lines and the drain beaneath the floor.  $475.00 is actually a cheap price for a plumber to install a liner.

Answer 3

I used to work as an engineer and did many plumbing jobs in the past.

It sound to me from what you have explained that the job is not finished. When you say pan it could mean a shower tray as it is in other countries. If it is of the other kind it should be mortared slopping towards the drain then the shower pan liner should be placed evenly over the slope and to the requirement of the height on the wall and little mortared againevenly on the slight slope. Then it should be tested for leaks and then tiled.

Just be careful of what you told the plumber to carry out. Sometimes the customer does'nt understand and might say i want a shower pan fitted, which might mean shower pan liner only. I am not saying you are wrong its just a thought. Saying that, the plumber might be trying to get his money quickly and not finish the job. It sound like a typical situation where the plumber is doing exacly what he is being told by words, Meaning fitting a Shower pan really means removing your bath tub, drainage, aranging any pipes or moving them to another place, motar, shower pan liner and slight motar again. The tiling which is after this list is whether you arranged with him or not.

My advice to you would be to ask at a plumbers merchants and ask them what you wanted and what has been carried is correct or not. Also to communicate with the plumber and understand whether he has completed the work you hired him for? Hold your money until you are sure.

hope this has been of any help, i dont mean to confuse you.

Answer 4

first I would call the city and ask for the office that inspects plumbing. if it is wrong they will know. it shouldn't cost that much for them to come out especially if you ask them if it done correctly. they can also tell you over the phone and maynot have to come out. However I can understand why they didnt finish the job completely?? I would not have had someone come out and rip up my house and not make it look done. with mortar or tiles or whatever. I would pay him a cent, until you have had an inspecter come out and then call the main office and explain that they ripped up your house it is NOT finished.  

Answer 5

http://www.askmehelpdesk.com/

Go here and sign up. It's free and they have helped me out with my bathroom remodel.

Ballengerb1,massplumber ans speedball all know what they are talking about. Tell them Patty said HI!