Acrylic shower tray cracked

Hi.
T is on vacations. We were authorised to come in and found acrylic shower tray with two deep cracks in it. T didn’t report it. It was intact and 5 y. old. Is it normal to have such short life span? Not sure how to upload the pic

  1. Is it safe to get company to repair/fill the deep crack or replacement is a more viable option?
  2. How do we get T to cover the costs? My partner says that we have to pay ourselves and when she moves out, deduct it from deposit. But she moved in just recently. We can ask T to cover the cost but what do we do if she refuses?

Thanks for your help.

Acrylic shower trays don’t have a long life span
They are prone to cracking
How long was your guarantee
Was it on risers
The plumbers merchants always advise resin trays
They are more expensive but have a longer shelf life
Best to replace rather than repair

1 Like

true .Always used resin trays . lasted more than 25 years

1 Like

Thank you to both. Dread to think how much everything will cost, but hey ho.

I see Screwfix has “acrylic resin” tray. So, is it acrylic? Or resin? Which one should I look for?

I have always bought mine from Band Q as I get the landlords 10% off and never had trouble with theirs V heavy . bed on sloppy sand and cement Years since I got one Cannot remember the composition of it . Use a trap you can clean from inside the shower

2 Likes

i repaired mine, with a under size plastic cut to size and used white acrylic water proofing, used lots of it ,and left weights on to hold in place for 48 hours, still in good condition after 10months of use. 4mm thick plastic non slip which you can get online.

Resin tray
I get mine from a plumbers merchants
JT shower trays
Come with a guarantee
They are more expensive but it’s cheaper than ripping it out every time it breaks

acrylic capped stone resin Depending on size £100 to £200

1 Like

Or custom built tile finished tray laid on concrete bed. 100% belt and braces. Its what I’ve got and takes all weights.

1 Like

just get a decent plumber to refit a new one, its not just the size its also the POSITION of the waste thats important
my advice is to buy a deep sided one, not the nearly flush ones as they can overflow quickly.
I typically use Coram as they are a known make and steer clear of the sheds own brands.
make sure next tray is properly supported and maybe give it a spray with Cuprinol 5 star once out and remove / repair any blackened wood. check for any rot
I put altro flooring in all my shower rooms but its harder to retrofit.
use proper sanitary silicone

1 Like

I always buy the square trays with the waste in the corner This gives you 4 choices of missing the floor joists . As above use the deep sided , not the shallow

1 Like

Our saga has ended. After all, it wasn’t acrylic but high quality resin basin not properly installed. The builder just put it on the floor. Surprised it took 7 years to crack. We went through one artful dodger who installed the new basin without using spirit level and bodged the tiling and refused to refund afterwards.

Finally, it’s done properly, sitting on the wooden foundation and retiled properly. And we think we found a new great tradesman )))

1 Like

What’s wrong with putting them on the floor?

All of mine are cemented onto the floor with the waterproof tile board underneath
What is a wooden foundation ?

1 Like

As Colin3 said. Acrylic capped stone resin for ready made trays. They require no support other than the floor. Almost indestructible.

I have seen jobs where the builder has put a shower tray on a wooden frame so as to get the trap and pipework i under it . This is not as good a job as getting the trap sunk into the floor. . But if a concrete ground floor ,then?

You can get these with sufficient wall height to lift the tray off the floor enough to get a shallow trap in. However, most people prefer a low profile wall for aesthetic reasons.

Wouldn’t go to the trouble of cutting concrete as might well encounter obstacles such as pre-tensioned rebars. In that case I’d reluctantly build a platform. However if a platform is needed, I’d 100% go with my previously stated solution of custom built tile finished tray on concrete bed.

I agree
I was advised to always sit it on the floor
If it’s on risers its more likely to break

I have in the past ,on a concrete floor cut out for the trap and pipe into the brickwork and outside. You need to have a grid very close as you need a fall on the pipe ,so not suitable everywhere and tighten up the trap, scoop the whole thing thru, What a task tho.

1 Like