Leaking shower trap

[DiyNutJob]

I have a shower trap that had a small leak at the seam at the bottom. So, I tried tighten it clockwise and now the leak is far worst. I have no idea how the trap is structured and don't know if a repair to it is possible, or if a new trap is needed. Anyone knows? Why is there a seam anyway, and is the piece below the seam a removable cover?

 

[terryplumb]

You could remove it and examine it. If the bottom "seam", as you call it, Does screw off there will be a seal that needs replacing.
Are you sure the leak isn't higher up ,and forming lower down and misleading you ?

 

[DiyNutJob]

I am sure the leak is at the seam. There is water scale there. The trap was dry and not used for many years. That may have killed the seal. I don't know if the bottom "cap" can be unscrewed. I can see some traps can be unscrewed at the bottom. What purpose does that serve, for cleaning?

 

[terryplumb]

I can't recall ever fitting a shower trap that has a removable base for cleaning,given their position it would hardly be a convenient way to clean the trap.
As said ,remove the trap for examination or replacement.

 

[foxhole]

Have you tightened from above ?, black seal will be leaking and trying to tighten just made it looser .
Limescale does not indicate point of leak , just indicates lowest point the water drips from .

 

[DiyNutJob]

This looks to be an unscrewable bottom cap:

FloPlast Shower Trap Chrome 40mm - Screwfix

Order online at Screwfix.com. Chrome, high temperature polypropylene. Fits 40mm plastic waste pipes to BS 5255, copper waste pipe to BS 659 and BS 2871, 32mm / ¼" and 40mm 1½". Manufactured to BS 3943. FREE next day delivery available, free collection in 1 minute.

www.screwfix.com

Mine is unlikely to be unscrewable and looks like the kind that clicks together. The leak is from the seam. The piece of junk might have always leaked, but only now I have noticed. I am hoping to be able to fix it then I won't have to risk a new trap that hasn't the right dimensions. The space is a tight fit.

This site uses lossy compression for images. The water scale in the original image is not showing up properly here.

 

[DiyNutJob]

I took the trap off, filled it with water and confirmed leaking at the seam. The bottom cover could be rotated by a tiny bit and cannot be taken off. I think the covered opening is needed to give access during manufacturing. It should be possible to seal the leak externally using aquarium sealant. But, I don't have any and will make do with hybrid polymer sealant. I have no experience of using that for submerged applications but think it will work. A large bead will give extra assurance.