Squeaky Maax shower pan......

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dougle

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Installing pan that has Styrofoam support underneath.....damn thing squeaks like crazy. Not much if any flex happening but I think it is the Styrofoam against the subfloor that is squeaking. Contacted Maax and they said I just have to live with it. I've only secured the pan to the framing so I can remove easily.... Concerned low expanding foam may react with the styrofoam..... suggestions?
 

Jadnashua

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If it squeaks now, it will only get worse later on. If the floor isn't perfectly level, this is common, but not all pans are perfectly flat underneath and have some rocking even with a perfect floor. Even a low-expansion foam may not solve your problem. Read the installation instructions carefully and see if they mention bedding it in mortar. Some allow it, some require it, some prohibit it. If it is allowed, resetting the pan in a mortar bed would allow you to get it both perfectly level and supported well enough to keep it from flexing. Alternatively, swap it out for something else...you may be happier in the long run. A flexing pan will lead to stress cracks which can lead to structural failure and it doesn't look good while on its way there.
 

dougle

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Thanks Jim, they definitely don't want anything adhering...it's part of a kit and swapping out isn't an option.....Floor is level and flat.....I'm going to try a layer of plastic on the floor to see if that helps......
 

dougle

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Confirmed it's not the styrofoam and the floor it's the styrofoam and the plastic/acrylic cover. Seems that they don't attach the foam to the plastic, it just acts as a support.....very poor design...can't imagine that every one of them don't squeak.
 

dougle

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Ok, talcum powder!, pried the liner away from the styrofoam a bit, then with orbital sand with no paper vibrated the talc into the spaces between the liner and the foam. NOT ONE SQUEAK! who knows how long it will last, but there is no humidity in there......fingers crossed.
 

Jadnashua

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My point about movement meaning eventual stress cracking seems to have fallen on deaf ears...most materials will only flex for so long before they break.
 

dougle

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Thanks, but beg to disagree.....the movement here is less than a 1/16" maybe less, and the covering over the styrofoam is quite thin.....I would agree with a more solid plastic/fiberglass but I think this is engineered to have all the structure from the styrofoam..the plastic/covering is just acting as a waterproof membrane. You would have to see it to really make a educated comment about it breaking.
 

Motor City

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Ok, talcum powder!, pried the liner away from the styrofoam a bit, then with orbital sand with no paper vibrated the talc into the spaces between the liner and the foam. NOT ONE SQUEAK! who knows how long it will last, but there is no humidity in there......fingers crossed.

Can you give directions to how you solved this?
Having the same problem. We must have the same Maxx shower kit.
Thank you!
 
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rob.dunndufault

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Yep. Talc worked. $3.50 save my Reno project. I just poured talc in the seam where the plastic liner met the foam and tapped on the bottom of the foam with my hand. I did this all the way around the edge dumping in a generous amount (it was a bit messy but vacuums right up). I can step in the shower now without any squeaking. Thanks Dougle!
 

kidkodac

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Ok, talcum powder!, pried the liner away from the styrofoam a bit, then with orbital sand with no paper vibrated the talc into the spaces between the liner and the foam. NOT ONE SQUEAK! who knows how long it will last, but there is no humidity in there......fingers crossed.
Wow talcum powder worked just perfect! When I installed my MAAX Cyrene shower kit it was squeaking so loud I couldn't imagine it was a MAAX product. Then I read this post about talcum powder and tried it. My walls were already assembled with screws, silicone and tape to make sure the poor design of the shower would not end up with a shower leaking. As I didn't want my entrepreneur to spend another day to dissasembled and reassemble it, I laid the shower on the side carefully and used a silicone sauce baster to push the powder as deep as possible between the liner and the foam. Did that a dozen times along the edge, then I tapped with my hand on the liner so that the powder goes down... then flipped the shower 1/4 and did the other upper half of the front side the same way. I have eliminated 99% of squeaks. Thanks so much for the trick!!!
 

Sunshine&Snow

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I used cornstarch and a straw. I poked the straw about an inch into the cornstarch, then poked it into the space between the styrofoam and the shell and gave a small blow, repeating the process over and over all around. So quiet now.
 

Reach4

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I would fear that bugs could eat cornstarch.

I wonder how portland cement would work. It would lubricate like talc if it stayed dry, and harden up if it got moist.
 

K-Smith

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Ok, talcum powder!, pried the liner away from the styrofoam a bit, then with orbital sand with no paper vibrated the talc into the spaces between the liner and the foam. NOT ONE SQUEAK! who knows how long it will last, but there is no humidity in there......fingers crossed.
Amazing advice. Thanks dougle. You saved the day!
I squeezed cornstarch between the styrofoam liner and acrylic base of my MAAX Cyrene shower kit. Before applying the cornstarch, the base squeaked uncontrollably. After applying the cornstarch, my shower base is squeak free. My bathroom is very small and this was the only visually appealing model that would fit in my bathroom. I called the MAAX help line prior to reading this article and they weren’t able to offer any suggestions with regard to eliminating the squeak.
 
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