Thread: Caulking pre-fab shower stall pan

I'm having a hard time finding out if this is an accepted practice for these types of shower pans. Does anyone have 'common' literature without a known manufacturer regarding this? One would think any passed-through moisture (not leaks) should have the ability to return to the pan.

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IMO, absent a visually observable leak or mis-direction of water, the only meaningful observation as regards caulking would be compliance with the manufacturer's installation instructions - so if this is a significant concern the best course would be to note is that as limitation to the inspection that as the manufacturers installation instructions were not available, it was not possible to verify correct installation.

Originally Posted by Ross Neag

I'm having a hard time finding out if this is an accepted practice for these types of shower pans. Does anyone have 'common' literature without a known manufacturer regarding this? One would think any passed-through moisture (not leaks) should have the ability to return to the pan.

All manufacturer instructions I have read say not to caulk at that area. There may be some that allow it, but I haven't heard of them. The recess is typically intended to allow water to drain back into the pan rather than behind the enclosure.

That is a weep hole, which empties into the pan (accumulates drainage from the weep valleys when they aren't improperly filled) with its lowest point at the shower door, shower side of the threshold (common).

Weep holes and weep valleys should not be filled.

Most also require minimum 1/4" un-filled weep in the inside corners of a single threshold shower base.

A.D. Miller has linked you to an older thread on this board which may have more recently been revived. You will find links on that thread which may prove helpful to you.

The shower pictured on your post has had the weep valley and weep hole improperly filled with caulk.

The manufacturer got it right and designed it to function, and the installer wiped out all that engineering with a caulking gun. The question should be how much damage has already taken place behind the shower walls.

That is a Sterling Vikrel Shower base. Sterling is now owned by Kohler. The drain channel is there to drain water back into the base. If a Vikeral wall kit were used, none of the joints need to be caulked as they are designed to be self draining. Some people just do not know how to read the instructions. But I digress, as the great do it your selfer Tim the Tool Man Taylor once said " real men don't need no instructions"

Sterling recommends caulking the first 4" where the shower door is

that wall set looks more like the swanstone solid surface


Swanstone Products: SK-326072 Solid Surface Shower Wall Kits 32" x 60" x 72" - Solid Color