Kerdi Shower Leak or Shower Door Leak?

[cnap]

So I went downstairs today to find a few drips of water coming from the sealing. Panic set in of course. Shower has been functional for six months without a leak. 48 hour water test done in January pre tile.

After measuring the spot of the leak, it is actually about a foot past the curb opposite the shower pan. The only thing that is logical to me is that the spray getting past the frameless shower door resulted in enough water to find a seam in the subfloor along the wall (past the curb). We have not installed trim yet so it is possible water is getting on the subfloor, although I never thought there was enough splashing through to cause a drip.

See attached photo of pre tile Kerdi setup... my arrow indicates the spot of the drip. Yes there is moisture on that subfloor section, but the question is whether or not it could be something other than the shower door allowing water to get through.

[cx]

Chase, I'm afraid I'm not seeing your shower door in your photo.

Water leaks from showers, or roofs, or whatever, can travel along walls or floors or framing or plumbing and manifest wherever they find it convenient. Finding water in a particular place in your ceiling (I'm assuming that's what you meant by "sealing") is not an indication that that's where the leak might be.

Did you do a flood test of your shower receptor before tiling?

[cnap]

Additional photo attached. I did do the leak test before tiling and no water penetrated. The reason I might give more credibility to the placement of the leak is because it happens to be on the opposite side of the shower pan over the curb... for example, it seems several leak sources might go somewhere underneath the pan, near the water line, or near the drain. This happens to be the only leak to appear and it’s outside the curb where water does splash (just not a ton).

I know this is optimistic thinking on my part, but I’m hoping to eliminate

The shower has been fully operational without any issues for six months.

So what other leaks might I look out for? I can test by focusing water in particular spots?

[cx]

My first recommendation would be to wait 'till the evidence on your ceiling is dry, plug the drain within the riser pipe, then fill the shower receptor with water you have brought from another source. Bucket it in and fill as full as you can get it. Then watch the ceiling for leaks and the shower for dropping water level. If that doesn't produce a leak after a day, drain the water and again watch for leaks.

Still no leak? Remove the shower head and replace it with a half-inch pipe cap. Turn on the shower and leave it on, again watching the ceiling for leaks.

If you still can't duplicate the problem, you might wanna open the ceiling and see if you can locate the problem visually.

My opinion; worth price charged.

[makethatkerdistick]

Two more things (interconnected) come to mind. I apologize if you've already said that in your posts somewhere.

1.) Is this a wood curb dressed with backerboard and Kerdi?

2.) How was the bottom bracket attached on the glass panel from which the door is hinged? Was the waterproofing penetrated in the process?

If the answer to both is yes, then there might be another potential culprit for your leak.

[cnap]

Thanks, process for testing makes sense.

1) foam kerdi curb trimmed to size, thinset and membrane applied per instructions.
2) after reading approaches and potential options (not many options with a frameless door), I did decide to screw into the curb but added silicone to seal around and on top of the screw and then silicones around the bracket itself. I understand your point and this could be the source of the leak but my gut tells me it has to be coming from somewhere else.

I am 95% sure it has to be water getting past the curb from the spray, but wanted to get opinions based on the photos so you can see the setup. I’ll go test the base/pan.

Thanks all!