The default advice from a lot of the trade is that a tired shower needs a full renovation. In our experience, that's true perhaps 20% of the time. The rest of the time the shower can be repaired to a genuinely serviceable finish — sometimes for years, sometimes for the life of the tile work.
The decision comes down to three things: the state of the tiles, the state of the waterproofing, and the extent of the joint failure. If all three are in decent shape, a repair holds. If any one of them is genuinely gone, the calculation changes.
Tiles first. Loose or hollow-sounding tiles are a red flag — they usually mean the bond behind them has broken down. A shower with widespread bond failure isn't a candidate for regrouting because the substrate is moving.
Waterproofing next. If there is evidence of water damage well outside the shower — deep wall cavities, sub-floor timbers, ceilings well beyond the shower footprint — waterproofing is probably compromised. A surface repair won't fix that.
Joint failure last. This is the biggest one for cost. Grout crazing, cracks, mould and silicone failure are surface conditions and are exactly what repair work fixes. On their own, they never justify a renovation.
The right test is: are the tiles sound and the waterproofing intact? If yes, repair. If no, then discuss what a rebuild actually needs. Anyone who tells you a leaking shower with cracked grout needs a $20,000 renovation without checking the tiles and membrane isn't giving you the full picture.
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