Water seeping into wall between tub and surround

[asus389]

I have what appears to be a Sterling Vikrell Ensemble Medley tub/shower surround in my apartment. On both sides of the enclosure, where the tub meets the walls of the surround there is a small gap and it seems that water is wicking or leaking into the adjacent wall. The problem is worse on the side near the tub spout. (See pictures) It originally didn’t have caulk, I then tried to put a bead of caulk along the seam, but the the problem more or less continues. I fixed the drywall and it came back over time. Does anyone know why this is happening and how to fix it correctly?

 

[asus389]

 

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[Jadnashua]

Are you sure that those panels are designed to butt up against each other, and the top one not installed over the tub's lip?

A butt joint is likely to leak without some very careful sealing.

Another issue can be if the tub is not leveled properly.

 

[asus389]

It’s supposed to be “caulkless”. How that prevents water from migrating from that seem into the wall I don’t know... I didn’t do the install so I’m hoping other more familiar with this setup might be able to explain how it’s supposed to work.

 

[Jadnashua]

It's possible that the foam seals at the outer edges of the panels was either missing, or damaged, or compromised during/after installation. Or, the whole thing is not leveled properly.

The top horizontal edge of the tub should be level both front-to-back and side-to-side.

If the tub was not shimmed or secured properly, over time, it could bend, creating the gap you're seeing.

 

[asus389]

The tub seams to be level. According to sterling that seam of the tub should not be caulked. I'm trying to understand how that would work to prevent this problem? Could adding caulk have caused this problem?