Remove silicon caulk

acerunner

I botched a caulking job to seal the gap between a frameless shower door and the tiled wall. I was interrupted midway and the caulking partially dried before I could smooth out the bead. So I need to remove and redo. Is there any tricks to easily remove the silicon caulk? Scraping at it is taking forever.

SPS-1

Follow the link and check out the advice by Nestor:

Recaulking Bathroom Help

acerunner

thanks. that was very helpful.

one thing I don't agree with is the statement that silicone caulk doesn't stick to cured silicone caulk thus requiring a complete removal of the old caulking. I haven't had any problems caulking over existing caulk, as long as the surface is cleaned well. Is there any truth to the statement? Applicable only to certain types of silicone caulk perhaps? I use GE Silicone II, and it sticks to itself just fine.

Another related question, in the process of applying caulk, with caulking all over my hand, I accidentally placed my hand on the hardwood floor to brace myself, smearing caulking on the floor. Of course I immediately cleaned it up. But now that area on the floor is extremely slick and slippery. My guess is silicone residue was still left behind, nothing visible though. It was almond-colored silicone caulk. Any way to clean this up?

CharisB

Most pure silicone won't stick to itself. Some engineered silicones (like GE's Silicone II product) will stick, although still not as well. But we're not big fans of silicone around here...and I'll leave that at that.

There is a silicone caulk remover out there that works really well. It's called McKanica Silicone Caulk Remover. We've found it at big boxes and hardware stores. We don't make it or sell it, but always recommend it because it does a great job of removing silicone and leaving a good, clean surface for re-caulking. You might try some of that on the stuff you got on the floor.

Hope that helps some. Happy re-caulking!

Charis w/ Sashco - cbabcock@sashco.com - www.sashco.com

Bud Cline

Gather up all of the silicone caulk you have around the house and throw it in the dumpster. That stuff is crap. Go buy a latex or siliconized caulk and use it. You can tool it with a finger and a wet sponge and achieve professional results.

acerunner

just curious, what is the complaint about silicone caulk. From what I understand, silicone caulk has the best results in terms of function (elasticity and waterproofing ability) and durability. Albiet, application is not as easy and can be messy.

I've never used siliconized caulk before. How does that compare?

chrisn

Nothing sticks to it ( ie,paint)

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