Showers fail slowly, then suddenly. Most of the ones we replace gave their owners years of warnings first. Here is what to look for.
One: spider cracks in a fiberglass floor or seat. Once the gelcoat cracks, water works into the fiberglass and the floor starts to flex, which cracks it more. A flexing pan is on borrowed time.
Two: soft spots in the bathroom floor outside the shower. That is water getting past the pan or the door track and into the subfloor. By the time you feel it underfoot, it has been happening for a while.
Three: caulk that will not stay sealed. If you are re-caulking the same seam every year, the parts behind it are moving, and the caulk is not the problem.
Four: a door that no longer closes square. Frames rack when the walls or floor behind them shift, and they shift when they get wet.
Five: stains on the ceiling below an upstairs bath. That one is not a sign, it is a siren.
We recently tore out a cracked unit that had been leaking into the subfloor, repaired the floor and drain, and set a cultured marble walk-in with a frameless glass slider in its place. You can see that job stage by stage on our work page.
If your shower is showing two or more of these, have someone look at it before the subfloor makes the decision for you.