Shower Floor Creaking

[suzhou]

The floor in our stand up shower would creak and flex a bit while moving around in the shower. Decided to take a good look at the support structure through the opening and noticed that the main center support (short vertical 2x4) was mounted to the wood and foam panel under the shower but suspended directly over the opening for the drain plumbing. Net - it supported nothing. The perimeter supports were touching the main floor. Spent the better part of the afternoon putting a horizontal support bridge across the opening then remounting a new vertical support from the bridge to the shower floor support panel. All through a small opening in the shower shroud near the floor. Solid shower floor support now but what a chore. Does anyone in the factory check the work done? I have a long list of other minor repairs and fixes on a new trailer that I've had to do simply because of sloppy workmanship. Floor cabinets with open back areas that allow items to roll into areas I cannot reach, heating duct work pinched between plumbing lines, AC vent with blockage, shower water knob panel mounted upside down, etc. Taking it back in for service is such a hassle that fixing it yourself for all but the major items is the easiest option but darn...

[hoppers4]

Originally Posted by suzhou

Have a long list of other minor repairs and fixes on a new trailer that I've had to do simply because of sloppy workmanship... Taking it back in for service is such a hassle that fixing it yourself for all but the major items is the easiest option but darn...

Have to agree. I have a whole laundry list of stuff I've improved or fixed. Way too much trouble to take the rig back to the dealer and then have to return in six weeks to pick it up. Guess that's what they're counting on when they slam these things together. Haven't gotten around to fixing my shower floor but it's definitely very flexible.

[Phatkd]

I noticed the exact same thing actually! I was wondering how to gain access to fix it but have also been thinking of doing the upgrade to the 2016 shower they use in my model.

[podunker]

I just took my first trip out and mine is set up just like yours suzhou. I would love to see some pics of what you did. I have to figure out something myself. I am a big guy, so definitely need to add some support. I know it's going to be a pain with that small access panel. I wish there was an easier way to get access.

[suzhou]

I tried to take a couple of pictures but hard to tell much from them. About as hard to take a picture as it is to work through the access opening. I used two strips of 1/2" good grade plywood about 17" long and 3 1/2" wide. Glued them together and put a couple of short screws to hold them together. Gave me a solid 1" thick plywood bridge across the floor opening. 17" long worked out to be about as long as I could maneuver and wiggle into position. Gave me a good amount of support on each end that was on the floor of the trailer under the shower. Then cut a 2x4 leg (trimmed the original one) so that I had to push slightly up on the shower floor to wedge it into position. Put a lot of glue on each end and then slid it in place. It was a chore and took several attempts to get it in place, plenty of glue and the bridge still where I wanted it. Things slide, move, shift, etc and not much room to hold onto things. I also put some thin wood shims under the two front legs. They were not as tight as I wanted them to be against the floor. Hope this helps. The 2x4 post just to the left of the drain is the one I put in. To remove the 2x4 support you can push it back and forth and then pull it loose from the long staples that come through the top into it. Came out fairly easily. You can see (sorta) that if the plywood bridge support were not there it would be hanging in mid air over the cutout for the shower drain, which it was.

[podunker]

Thank you so much for taking a pic. It helped a lot when explaining. Did you also add more styrofoam? Yes, you definitely needed the support for the leg. It actually was not even supporting anything without something under it. Thanks again.

[suzhou]

No, I didn't add any more foam to the support frame. If you do decide to tackle it the vertical supports are not fastened to the trailer floor so the wood/foam platform will also shift around under the shower.

[jaybarr]

Most of the time it could be due to the plywood flexing on a nail or a screw. I had a similar before I did my bathroom renovation by better living dispenser. If you could see the bathroom floor framing, you could see where the floor moves when someone walks on it. Well placed screws can eliminate the squeak to a large degree. By gluing the plywood to the sides of the squeaky floor joists it can lessen subfloor flex too.