shower caulk leak?

[Tyleroh17]

i bought a house over a month ago now and just recently noticed this ugly brown puddle coming from a weird spot on the tub. i chased the pipes in the basement and i dont think theres anything in that wall for pipes the sink is the closest thing and its off that wall. my questions are what are your opinions and if i want to take that off the wall do i just cut the caulking and pry it off?

my first though is that its from the humidity because i do from time to time forget to use the vent fan since its new to me . should i take it off anyway to check for mold? been here a month and a half just noticed it the pictures below are a little while after i wiped it. i took a shower and noticed it kind of increased a little. thanks in advance

 

[Geofd]

Looks almost like rust??????color??????? Maybe there is some thing above that causing dampness causing a screw to start rusting

 

[Geofd]

Looks almost like rust??????color??????? Maybe there is some thing above that causing dampness causing a screw to start rusting

When its dry push on th wall see if anything leaks out i dont see any caulking on that area but im looking at a fairly small screen

 

[Tyleroh17]

When its dry push on th wall see if anything leaks out i dont see any caulking on that area but im looking at a fairly small screen

whats happening thx for the response. if it let it dry and push on it once i start moving the air around back there it bubbles out of the bottom fairly well theres absolutely nothing above it that could be rusting. there was old caulking there before but its got all cracks in it

 

[Geofd]

The green board sheet rock or something is wet the water is wcking up from that lip and wrtting behind your wall,i eas thinking of a wet vac to remove the dampness,you would have to use a skinny wand being careful not to damage the wall any further you may have to tape a shower curtain up if thus is your only bath if you have more let this one dry out

 

[Geofd]

The green board sheet rock or something is wet the water is wcking up from that lip and wrtting behind your wall,i eas thinking of a wet vac to remove the dampness,you would have to use a skinny wand being careful not to damage the wall any further you may have to tape a shower curtain up if thus is your only bath if you have more let this one dry out

Sorry after to dry it output a bead of caulking on all tub/wal/corners

 

[Jeff Handy]

It just looks like someone slapped up a tub surround over an old caulking job, and did not caulk the new panels at the tub deck.

So humidity is getting in there, or direct moisture, then it runs back out after the shower is over.

The entire bottom edge of that panel shows no caulk, it looks like it is just resting on an old caulk bead that looks like it runs under it, probably to an older wall surround or tiles.

 

[Jeff Handy]

If this is the case, don’t use the tub at all for at least several days, and put a strong fan blowing into there for the whole time.
That might dry it out enough to be able to caulk it.
If you try to re-caulk while moisture is trapped behind, it will get moldy from behind.

Better yet, contact the seller, to fix it.

He failed to disclose a known defect.

 

[Jeff Handy]

If you do try to save the tub surround, and not tear everything off, you will have to caulk all the edges, even along the top and at the walls.

Otherwise humidity will collect behind there, and then pool as water when it cools down.

Whatever you do, always run the fan.

You can get one with a motion sensor, humidity sensor, or both.
And if you just use the wall switch, run the fan for at least five mins after your shower.

I think you will end up tearing that surround off.

 

[fixitron]

Not even close to enough information. Does it only appear when taking a shower, and does it appear consistently when taking a shower?
I would question why it only shows in one small spot. That doesn't seem consistent with condensation, unless it is from warm air in the house condensing on an outside wall in one area of a stud bay. I doubt that it is due to lack of caulking. It appears to be happening at the opposite end of the tub from the shower head. In my experience, not much water gets onto that wall when taking a shower. The tub itself would have a lip on it, with the wall panel coming down and over that lip.
If it is from condensation in that stud bay or from some sort of plumbing leak, caulking may just keep that water from getting out and could accelerate potential damage from water in the wall.
My Rule #2 and its first corollary: "The more you look, the more you see" and "If you don't look, you don't see"

 

[havasu]

I'd fill it half full of water before caulking, that way, the caulking will be less apt to stretching when you have weight in there.

 

[Aloha Mark]

I'd fill it half full of water before caulking, that way, the caulking will be less apt to stretching when you have weight in there.

I like this idea. But, before caulking see if you can slide a thin piece of paper under or close to the edge of the surround. It will wick the water behind the surround. You want to know how much water is present, because if there is a leak of any kind, caulk will just be a bandaid. Has the OP mapped the locations of the studs that are behind the surround, or are we confident that the surround is glued to backer board, green board, or whatever? Also, never assume the impossible can't happen. Water can find its way along many pathways, starting as high as the roof. Without determining what is behind the surround, we can only theorize about how the stain is produced. Check with a blacklight to see if any other telltales are present. Only tear out the surround if you feel comfortable with prepping a new one in its place. We do not know what kind of adhesive they used to bind it to the wall.