Shower Leak Diagnosis & Repair
Handis finds the actual source of a shower leak and fixes the failed component — from $500 for the diagnostic visit alone, up to $2,500 for a full affected-wall repair with a Schluter KERDI membrane re-tie. A wet spot on the ceiling below the bathroom. A bead-pull at the bottom of the shower wall. A mildew bloom in the closet on the other side of the shower. Soft tile under the foot at the pan. The water bill that has been creeping up for six months with no obvious cause. The diagnostic visit is a 45-to-90-minute walk with a moisture meter, a tap test on every tile in the wet zone, a visual inspection of every bead and grout joint, and a press test on every wall and floor section we can reach. We tell you on the spot whether the leak is a $800 caulk-and-tile fix, a $1,500 substrate repair, a $2,500 full-wall rebuild, or a licensed Washington L&I plumber call FIRST. The diagnostic is honest about the stage the shower is actually in, before any demo starts.
Service
How a Shower Leak Diagnosis & Repair Works
Six sequential steps from the diagnostic visit through the repair and sign-off — moisture meter, tap test, source isolation, repair quote, repair work, verification. The actual sequence we follow on every leak call.
Diagnostic Visit — Meter, Tap, Visual, Press Test
45-to-90-minute on-site assessment. Moisture meter on the substrate at every reachable point. Tap test on every tile in the wet zone. Visual inspection of every caulk bead and grout joint. Press test on every wall and floor section. Photo documentation of every reading. Diagnostic visit is $500 and applies to the repair invoice if the homeowner moves forward with Handis.
Source Isolation — Six Categories
We isolate the leak source to one of six categories — failed caulk, failed grout, failed tile, failed substrate, failed membrane, or in-wall plumbing. Categories 1 to 5 are Handis-repair scopes. Category 6 is a licensed Washington L&I plumber call FIRST. We walk you through the finding on the spot with the photos and the meter readings.
Repair Quote — Scope, Material, Timeline
Repair quote written on the spot or sent within one business day after the diagnostic visit. Scope (caulk and tile vs substrate vs full wall), material (color matched, KERDI-Band on membrane patches, premium silicone on caulk), timeline (same-day fix on a single bead; 2 to 5 working days on a full affected-wall rebuild). Licensed-sub portion named line by line if Category 6.
Active Drying If the Substrate Is Wet
Wet substrate (moisture meter above 15 percent on the back side of the substrate) requires active drying before patch material goes on. Heat-assist dehumidifier set inside the opened wall section, runs 24 to 72 hours depending on saturation, meter re-checked every 12 hours. Active drying is $350 per day. We do not close a patch over wet substrate.
Repair Work — Caulk, Grout, Tile, Substrate, or Membrane
The actual fix. Failed bead stripped and re-bed in 100 percent silicone. Failed grout joint re-sealed with color-matched grout. Failed tile removed and replaced with matched material in fresh thinset. Failed substrate cut out and patched with cement board or KERDI-Board. Failed membrane corner opened and re-taped with KERDI-Band continuous to surrounding membrane.
Verification — Water Test, Visual, Sign-Off
Repair verified before sign-off. Caulk repairs water-tested with a slow flow over the new bead for 10 minutes, watched for any seep. Tile and substrate repairs water-tested with a normal shower run for 10 to 15 minutes, watched at the previously wet spot and inside the wall cavity if reachable. Membrane re-tie verified with a follow-up moisture meter reading on the substrate at 24 hours. Photos in the sign-off file.
Shower Leak Diagnosis & Repair Pricing
The diagnostic visit is $500 and applies to the repair invoice if the homeowner moves forward with Handis. Repair pricing depends on the source category (caulk vs grout vs tile vs substrate vs membrane) and the affected area. Active drying with a heat-assist dehumidifier is billed per day when the substrate is wet. Plumber coordination is a separate line on the invoice when Category 6 (in-wall plumbing) is the diagnosis — the licensed Washington L&I plumber's portion passes through transparently with the line item named. Request a free estimate for an accurate quote.
Send us photos of the wet spot and the symptom — we will tell you on the booking call whether the diagnostic is the right next step.
Why Seattle Homeowners Book Handis for Shower Leak Diagnosis & Repair
Shower leak diagnosis is the trade for catching a failure at the cheapest possible repair stage. The same leak source costs $800 to fix at the failed-bead stage, $1,500 at the substrate stage, $2,500 at the full-wall-rebuild stage, and $6,000 to $9,000 at the substrate-rotted-and-mildew-blooming-in-the-closet stage. The diagnostic visit is honest about the stage the shower is actually in. We tell you on the spot whether the diagnostic finding warrants a small repair (and what that repair is going to cost), a larger rebuild (and what that scope looks like), or a licensed Washington L&I plumber call FIRST. Homeowners who skip the diagnostic and start with a guess at the repair almost always pay for the wrong fix and then pay for the right one too. The diagnostic is the cheapest visit on the price list and the most valuable.
Estimate
Tell us the bathroom (master, guest, hall) and the symptom — wet spot on the ceiling below, mildew bloom in the adjacent closet, soft tile at the pan, bead-pull at the caulk seam, water bill creep with no obvious cause, or visible water at the shower base after a shower. Send phone photos of the wet area and any visible damage. We tell you on the booking call whether the diagnostic visit is the right next step (most leak calls), whether it is an emergency licensed-plumber routing (active running water), or whether the symptom is something else entirely (occasionally just a dripping showerhead splashing onto the floor). The diagnostic visit is $500 and applies to the repair invoice if you move forward.
Customer Reviews
Shower leak diagnosis and repair reviews from real Handis customers.
Water-stained drywall on the ceiling of the living room below our master shower. Three contractors guessed at the source — one wanted to demo the shower pan, one wanted to replace the valve, one wanted to start with the drain. Handis ran the diagnostic, found the bead-pull at the pan-to-wall inside corner that had been letting a teaspoon of water through every shower for two years, fixed it for $800. Water stain stopped getting worse the next week. Saved us a five-figure rebuild.
Mildew bloom in the closet behind our master shower. The tech ran the meter, found wet substrate behind the shower wall about 18 inches up from the pan. Opened the wall, original cement board had never been membraned and was wet 2 feet up. Substrate patch with KERDI-Board, full KERDI sheet on the patch, KERDI-Band tied continuous to the surrounding membrane, tile replaced. $2,200 all-in. Closet wall is bone dry six months later.
Active in-wall leak behind the guest-bath shower valve, water visibly running when the shower was off. Handis was honest on the diagnostic visit — Category 6, plumber call FIRST. They routed us to a vetted Washington L&I plumber who was on site the next morning for the supply line repair. Handis came back, rebuilt the substrate and the tile around the access cut. Two contractors, one coordinated project, both portions named on the quote.
Multiple failed grout joints across the main shower wall, water creeping behind the tile in the bottom course. Tech ran the diagnostic, mapped the failure pattern, recommended a grout-joint re-seal across the whole wall instead of a spot fix because the underlying cause was age, not a single point of failure. $1,200, took half a day, color-matched grout, sealed when done. Year later still tight.
Diagnostic visit alone — we suspected a shower leak but turned out the source was a poorly seated showerhead splashing onto the floor outside the curtain, not anything behind the tile. The tech walked through every reading, ruled out every possible behind-the-tile failure path, and the only fix was tightening the showerhead and tweaking the curtain. $500 well spent because we did not jump into an unnecessary repair.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Handis shower leak diagnosis and repair — what the diagnostic covers, source categories, plumber routing, and repair pricing.