Caulking a tub?

[Anonymous]

Caulking a tub for the first time. Other than cleaning first and taping off, anything else I need to know? Tips or tricks? The verdict is out on whether or not to fill the tub first, so what do you all think? Also, is one of these enough?

[Anonymous]

Make sure you get all of the previous caulk up and make sure it's very dry before starting. You don't need to tape off. If you care about a perfect edge, buy one of the plastic tools from home depot, otherwise a finger is fine. A wet sponge can wipe off any that gets where you don't want it. I think the most important thing is to look around at the current job and other caulking jobs in your house and to realize that they aren't perfect and neither will yours and that's ok because no one who isn't looking carefully will ever notice.

[Anonymous]

What is the best way to remove all the old caulk? (No jokes about this question, please and thank you)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What is the best way to remove all the old caulk? (No jokes about this question, please and thank you)

There are cheap scraping tools tools, but a paring knife to get started and then just pulling it out should work fine.

[Anonymous]

Why would you fill the tub first?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why would you fill the tub first?

I don't think you want to get the caulk wet for until it dries. This seems risky.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why would you fill the tub first?

So it’s expanded to its lowest point, so the caulk fills in that gap.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What is the best way to remove all the old caulk? (No jokes about this question, please and thank you)

Heat!! A hair dryer is plenty. Heat and a scraper are much better than any product they might try to sell you. They just can’t sell heat in that aisle so it’s invisible. But heat is the answer.

[Anonymous]

I wouldn’t recommend silicone. It is very difficult to work with and much harder to remove the next time it needs to be redone. It also yellows and in my experience is much more prone to mildew. You can’t smooth it with a wet finger because it isn’t water soluble, and you don’t want to get it on your skin (it’s solvent is acetone). You may want to consider latex caulks instead—Dap Kwik Seal is a brand I’ve used with much success. I also strongly recommend taping. I’m an artist and have done a ton of home renovation, (and admittedly picky) but the only way I’ve been satisfied with my tub caulking is when I tape. You also need to cut off the tip of the tube carefully at the correct angle.

[Anonymous]

Get 2–3 tubes. You can always return what you don’t use.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I wouldn’t recommend silicone. It is very difficult to work with and much harder to remove the next time it needs to be redone. It also yellows and in my experience is much more prone to mildew. You can’t smooth it with a wet finger because it isn’t water soluble, and you don’t want to get it on your skin (it’s solvent is acetone). You may want to consider latex caulks instead—Dap Kwik Seal is a brand I’ve used with much success. I also strongly recommend taping. I’m an artist and have done a ton of home renovation, (and admittedly picky) but the only way I’ve been satisfied with my tub caulking is when I tape. You also need to cut off the tip of the tube carefully at the correct angle.

You can smooth silicone with a finger and soapy water. No problem.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why would you fill the tub first?

So it’s expanded to its lowest point, so the caulk fills in that gap.

This. If you want it to last, it’s better to fill the tub.

[Anonymous]

That’s window and door caulk. You need bathroom caulk.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wouldn’t recommend silicone. It is very difficult to work with and much harder to remove the next time it needs to be redone. It also yellows and in my experience is much more prone to mildew. You can’t smooth it with a wet finger because it isn’t water soluble, and you don’t want to get it on your skin (it’s solvent is acetone). You may want to consider latex caulks instead—Dap Kwik Seal is a brand I’ve used with much success. I also strongly recommend taping. I’m an artist and have done a ton of home renovation, (and admittedly picky) but the only way I’ve been satisfied with my tub caulking is when I tape. You also need to cut off the tip of the tube carefully at the correct angle.

You can smooth silicone with a finger and soapy water. No problem.

+1
Make it really soapy, like 25% dish soap. Silicone caulk tends to set up kind of fast. I would probably set up something that you can practice on. You can also experiment with different tools or even a popsicle stick ha

[Anonymous]

Wet areas need to be caulked with silicone. Not acrylic.