Over time you might discover mould starting to appear in your showers. Mould only grows in the presence of moisture so this may indicate the tile grout is starting to soak up a bit of water. There may be no obvious grout deterioration, however grout does becomes more porous overtime. Some of the reasons for this are discussed in this overview of shower maintenance. The areas at highest risk are the internal corners – especially those where the walls meet the floor, and the floor itself which is constantly wet.
Another area we need to consider when investigating water ingress, is entry points behind shower fittings such as taps. If these are not adequately sealed, water will run down the tiled wall face, behind the tap and then behind the tile. To fix this, you can simple remove the fittings and fill with silicone.
Andrew explains all this in the video below.
To prevent mould build up, we recommend regular maintenance of your shower including replacing the grout and silicone. We’ve got a great video on how to do this. Please also have a look at this little video on ventilation to reduce mould.
