Such shower leaks are usually caused by a malfunctioned plumbing structure behind the wall especially near your faucets and shower head.
Shower leaking behind tile wall.
The longer the leak has gone unnoticed the larger the repair will be.
If your tile shower is leaking the cause of the leak must be found and addressed as soon as possible and definitely before you take a shower again.
If you cannot reproduce.
Rarely water damage to a tile wall can be caused by leaking pipes within the wall.
Determine where your shower is leaking.
Open up the wall that is getting wet then water test the area.
Check that all grout between the tiles is in place not cracked and appears sealed.
Is your shower leaking through your tiles.
Starting low on the wall splash or spray water on an isolated area and keep checking for leaks as you work your way up a couple of feet at a time.
The key to finding any leak is to be able to see the leak in action.
Do the obvious fixes replacing and or patching if necessary.
In some cases the leaks may dampen the walls of your bathroom even though the actual leakages are located in other specific areas.
Those areas are exposed to the most water so damage tends to spread quickly.
The first step to repair shower tile after a leak is to assess the damage to determine how much of the wall has gotten wet.
If your shower leaks behind wall most times you can t tell from the front side of the shower.
Leaky tiles can occur anywhere where water is used whether it s a shower a wet room or a kitchen splashback.
If your shower water leak hasn t revealed itself with the above tests then it s entirely possible that water is leaking out through the tile on the shower walls.
A shower s faucet pipe connections sit behind the shower s wall posing a threat of leaking at any time.
A soggy shower wall water stains on the wall behind the shower s faucet or on the wall or ceiling directly below the faucet and musty smells in the shower all can point toward a possible leak in the wall.
In this instance the damage is usually confined to the wall where the showerhead and faucet is located and it may be found anywhere on the wall not just down near the base.
To do this focus on one wall at a time.
In extreme circumstances the leak may even cause the drywall and tiles to come off easily because they have been weakened.
One other sign of a shower leak behind the wall is the drywall tile in front of the valve becomes spongy.
This is usually cause by water spraying from the leak in back of the wall.
Failure to do so puts more moisture behind the wall or under the floor which can cause mold rot in the wood structure or crumbling drywall.