DIY Home Improvement Forum banner

Re-caulked the tub. It all peeled off by end of shower. Cure time? Bad caulk?

2K views 15 replies 7 participants last post by  Bud Cline 
#1 · (Edited)
I re-caulked my tub with a tube of DAP Kwik seal.
Did it on Sat afternoon.
The next morning, I showered, and it will bubbled and started to peel.
I scraped it all off with a towel, since it was so soft.

I guess I only waited about 18 hours.
When I redo it, how long should I wait before taking a shower?

I used this:
http://www.dap.com/product_details.aspx?BrandID=22&SubcatID=5
 
#2 ·
I had that happen too. The next time around I used some Red Devil kitchen and bath caulk that advertised 1 hr til it could get wet (I waited 8 hrs anyway, worked fine).

Most important thing I found for adhesion was to use some alcohol wipes to clean the surfaces where the caulk would adhere to.

Of course, time, temp, humidity all come in to play for curing time.

This is just based on my experience, I'm sure there are better products out there. I just needed it to be ready fast for the wife and kids (it's our only shower).

Good luck!
 
#4 ·
To do it right all the old caulking need to go.
It needed to be perfectly clean and dry.
You fill the tub 1/2 up and only use silicone caulking with a mildicide in it.
Wait 24 hours and drain the tub.
Kwic seal is useless.
If the wall at the bottom is molded or the tiles are loose (if there's tile) most likely your wasting your time. There's possible moisture damage behind the wall.
 
#12 ·
#16 ·
Moisture inside a shower wall isn't unusual. When this issue of trashing caulk one after another arises it usually means the walls have too much moisture inside of them. There are only two ways to remedy this problem when it gets to this point. One way is let the shower sit without being used for three or four weeks and maybe even throw a fan or dehumidifier in there to keep air circulating draw out some moisture. The second way to fix it is to tear it out and build a new shower.

There is nothing wrong with the products shown and its doubtful you just happened to get a hold of a bad tube of product. Those odds are millions to one against it happening.

The silicone wouldn't be the product to be using in this case. You should have stayed with a latex caulk or siliconized caulk but not 100% silicone.

Just keep barging ahead knowing as little as you do without first asking and you'll never get that shower fixed properly.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top