Dreaded call...water pouring through ceiling under newly fitted shower

[Phil]

I can never have a normal evening, after working at least 10 hours a day for 3 weeks I had a 4pm finish today which I never ever have and just when I was sat having my early tea the phone went, recognized the number..let the stress commence..

Two and a half weeks ago I re did a leaking old shower enclosure with a cracked tray, re plumbed everything in copper and fixed a 760 x 760 stone tray right down on the floor and tiled 3 walls round with the existing shower door (don't ask), existing electric shower went back in, everything tested fully.

Get the call tonight shes just got home after a week away to find water pouring out of the ceiling into the lounge from right under the shower, I said right turn the water off and I'm on my way, drove 2 miles there through all the rush our traffic thinking oh god this is the big insurance claim I've been dreading for 10 years. Got there and saw the mess downstairs and wanted to cry, went into bathroom and took the cover off the Mira Zest, bone dry so I cut a hole in the floor (old cork tiles over floorboards), got my torch and camera under the tray and saw wetness but couldn't pinpoint so I went round to the foot of the toilet and cut another section of floor out and it was worse there but the copper pipe going up to the shower was dry, I turned the water on again to see if I could see or hear anything but nothing so I cut further towards the toilet into the next joist space and that was where most of the water was..I thought to myself is this even the shower leaking and the over flow from the cistern went straight down under the floorboards and into an elbow, I lifted the cistern lid and the Torbeck was passing and water was brimming the overflow, the elbow was leaking under the floor after all that! I was about to start ripping my new tiles off!

Major panic to total relief 😱

 

[Stigster]

We've all felt the panic!!
Then that relief where you smile inside because it was nowt to do wi you!!
Glad it's all over for you. Never happens on a Monday morning though does it?

It is such a relief. Unfortunately as so many people a clueless when it comes to plumbing (that's generally a good thing for us of course) You must have had the situation where you do some work for someone, like servicing their oil fired heat only boiler, then a week later their shower tray springs a leak and they blame you because "you were working on our plumbing last week and it must have been something you did."

Then you've got the task of explaining to somebody how it all works and what you did is not in any way connected to the new problem. Sometimes they still don't believe you. These are the type of people who think everything is linked and they want to blame you.

Then there's the boiler breaks down a week after you serviced it and once again "it must have been something you did". Some people are hard to convince.

 

[Welder]

Over the years I developed a 'Tw4t' nose. Eventually, I got to understand and I'd not work for those who made it twitch. Fact is they are never happy and not worth whatever you try and charge. My advice is listen to your instincts and walk away. There's a 'nice' customer waiting round the corner ...

 

[Last Plumber]

It is such a relief. Unfortunately as so many people a clueless when it comes to plumbing (that's generally a good thing for us of course) You must have had the situation where you do some work for someone, like servicing their oil fired heat only boiler, then a week later their shower tray springs a leak and they blame you because "you were working on our plumbing last week and it must have been something you did."

Then you've got the task of explaining to somebody how it all works and what you did is not in any way connected to the new problem. Sometimes they still don't believe you. These are the type of people who think everything is linked and they want to blame you.

Then there's the boiler breaks down a week after you serviced it and once again "it must have been something you did". Some people are hard to convince.

We've all had that yes. The worst one I ever had was a Woman who came from the house next door to where I was working (detached from) and blamed me because 'since my van appeared outside, her overflow in the loft had started running'.
That one still blows my mind 30 years later.