Replacing a wall - Moisture/mould in wall - who to call?

Hi Everyone,

I have a tenanted property where the wall outside the bathroom in the hall way has been leaking water. i suspect its due to poor waterproofing/sealing on the shower tiles which has allowed water/moisture to go into the wall and skirting.

I assume the work would involve

1)resealing the shower
2) ripping and replacing the wall
3) replacing skirting
and (4) painting which i am not worried much about.


My question is can 1-3 be done by any tradesman or is there a specific tradespeople i should be in contact with? I'm just worried as i want to get it fixed by someone straight away for my tenants but not sure if it needs specialized structural people who know what they are doing...(its self managed and this is probably the largest job ive had to do for this property so i have no clue!)

Much appreciate your input and expertise. Thanks in advance.

 

It is imperative that the source of the leakage is located. A combination of trades may be required to ascertain the source e.g. Builder, plumber.
If hallway wall is damaged a gyprocker may be required also.

 

More to the point, has the timber framing been affected?

Mould treatment?

Waterproofing?

Relining walls/Retiling?

 

Plumber first, to determine the source of the leak. Probably rip the gyprock off the wall to take a look. If it's just a leak behind that wall, then it's an easy fix. If it's a leak from the shower, then to fix properly you'd have to remove the tiles, waterproof & retile. A bit more expensive.

 

These are things i have not considered except for waterproofing. Thank you for your input!

 

Thanks so much!!! I might as well get the whole bathroom rennovated while we are at it?. which doesnt seem like such a bad idea right now...=(

 

Thank you very much. i really appreciate everyones input. now i have more to consider. i hope the framing hsant been affected but it most likely has.. i will need to get a builder. do you think i should rennovate the barthroom all together if the cost is $$$?.

 

Given the typical solution is to remove all flooring and wall materials incl water affected timber frames and flooring (and subflooring ?) waterproof and retile.... its often a basic reno. Think of a bathroom job on The Block.

There are plenty of bathroom renovation firms that focus on this. My mate started with a vanity and when he ripped it out found he had a hole through to the downstair ceiling - No water proofing. So he ripped up the floor tiles and found rotten timbers and water stains. So it become a full reno within a day. His tradie said it was a blessing and didnt really change the cost much ($8K become $11k) but now he has 5 of the 6 walls are brand new, cement sheet (not basic gyprock) and waterproofed and tiled etc. Only the ceiling stayed. He moved the door to better plan the layout too.

 

Yep! Might as well pull the bandaid off & renovate it.

 

Don't make a decision yet- get it diagnosed first. There's a variety of issues it could be:

1. Leaking Combination. Cut out the gyprock behind it, replace for $400, plaster back in.
2. Poorly sealed taps. Reseal. $200?
3. Waterproofing failed, or no waterproofing and sealing failed. Few fixes here.....

a. Reseal with silicon, see if it works. $200. If not, consider something like Megasealed who seal over the existing tiles. $700.
b. Replace the bottom row or two of tiles and base, freshly waterproofed below. $2000.
c. Screw it, bathroom is old, do the whole lot. $10000.