The shower base takes the most water of any part of the enclosure and is often the last place people check for a leak. The base can leak in three main ways: at the perimeter seal (where the base meets the walls), at the drain waste (where the drainage fitting meets the base), or through the base itself if it has cracked or settled.
Perimeter failures are the most common. Silicone or grout at the wall-to-base joint breaks down and water tracks under the wall tiles. From there it either shows up in the ceiling below or as damp along the wall on the far side.
Drain waste leaks are less common but harder to diagnose from the surface. Water going down the drain reaches the seal between the waste and the base, and if that seal has failed, water enters the sub-floor.
Cracked or settled bases usually show as pooling and a visible fault line. These are more serious and often mean the shower needs a larger scope than a repair.
The base is worth checking systematically when diagnosing any shower leak — the tiles on the walls can be flawless while the base is failing.
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