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Best Bathroom Caulk for 2010?

9K views 9 replies 8 participants last post by  Piedmont 
#1 · (Edited)
I need to caulk around my bathroom sink and later do the walls around the Shower tub.
I need something I can easily find at home depot or lowes

Which is a good white colored caulk to use for this situation around the sink?
I just got done using some DAP 3.0 Advanced Kitchen and Bath adhesive caulk and after 3 days it was still tacky, so I had to pull my sink up again and scrape the old crap off.. I'm thinking this caulk is only for adhesive and not a finishing caulk around the edges?

Anyway.. What caulking should i use to stick the sink in the hole and seal around the edges?


I used this exterior caulk for the outside of my house that was called GE Infinity.. this stuff was like heaven in a tube. The texture was like Cool Whip and I couldn't have dreamed of a easier to apply caulk then this
 
#5 ·
Whatever caulk you decide on it had better say kitchen and bath on. These caulks are made with a mold inhibitor which is what you need for these moist environments especially the bathroom.

I am surprised you had the misfortune with DAP that you had. I was always under the impression they made a good product. I wonder if you got a tube from a contaminated lot.
 
#10 · (Edited)
Certainly under no circumstances use Phenoseal as a "finishing" caulk for tubs and sinks (such as sealing the tops and seams of a tub surround with it).

My Dad liked "Phenoseal" for the easy cleanup etc. and used it to seal our tub surround. Well... my wife used pink shaving cream and the phenoseal absorbed the pink so we ended up with a white tub surround with pink caulking on the lower half. It then slowly dissolved, opening small gaps in the seams where water got in and mold/mildew grew. Funny this was mentioned, the Phenoseal lasted about 2 years using it for sealing seams in a tub surround. I'm in the process now of removing it all so I can replace it with the right stuff (I'm going with white bathroom safe silicone) but that dark mold is really tough to fix now that it's all in the Phenoseal and surround seams.

The only problem with silicone, nothing sticks to it once dry even more silicone so you have to really watch your application if you want to paint (as paint will not stick to it though I have seen paintable silicone). It's very hard to cleanup after application, dries fast, stinks when applying, if you want to remove it it is a nightmare, and difficult to get a really good smooth finish when done. But I'll take it over phenoseal anyday. As for adhesion of sinks to the base I use polyurethane construction adhesive (but not behind tub surrounds you need stuff specifically for that) and seal the gap between sink & wall with you guessed it... silicone. Just be careful, again paint doesn't stick to it so you're better to apply just the amount you need, one finger one pass to spread it, and leave it. It is hard to remove excess with a towel, residue will remain on the wall and paint won't stick to it so you really need to scrub it off, and in the process usually hurt the look of a decent seam. Think of silicone as a one shot deal... apply, and you have one shot with your finger to get it right.
 
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