http://www.dannylipford.com/diy-home-improvement/painting/how-to-caulk-effectively/ Expert Advice on Home Improvement Thu, 28 Aug 2008 20:22:12 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.0.4 http://www.dannylipford.com/diy-home-improvement/painting/how-to-caulk-effectively/#comment-847 Thu, 21 Jun 2007 22:51:14 +0000 http://www.dannylipford.com/diy-home-improvement/painting/how-to-caulk-effectively/#comment-847 This is an excellent article. "If you can't fix it, caulk it." I aways say. An average carpenter comes out looking like a champ if he has the ability to caulk well, especially when remodeling older homes. Finding square, level and plumb is sometimes challenging and caulking helps projects to be more forgiving. One tip on how to save a bundle on caulking is to go to the big box stores and buy it in case lots. You still get the high quality products but often pay much less than the 5 or 6 bucks that it costs to buy one tube at a time. One trick I use for extra smooth beads is to use a wet finger to smooth the surface. A wet finger collects very little caulk while a dry rag seems to pick up way too much. I knew an old time master painter that used a wet paint brush to really smooth caulk beads nicely. In my experience, the best technique is to take your time and not overdo the size of the bead. You know you got it right when you are not taking off much caulk when smoothing with a wet finger. Too much caulk will definitely result in caulk squeezing past your finger and leaving wasteful, unsightly and messy ridges. If you have a cheap caulk gun, take it in your hand and throw it as far as you can. The caulk that you save with a quality tool will more than pay for the small investment. The aggravation factor will be much smaller as well. Don't forget the clean rags, both wet and dry. Happy caulking. Ty the Handyman This is an excellent article. “If you can’t fix it, caulk it.” I aways say. An average carpenter comes out looking like a champ if he has the ability to caulk well, especially when remodeling older homes. Finding square, level and plumb is sometimes challenging and caulking helps projects to be more forgiving. One tip on how to save a bundle on caulking is to go to the big box stores and buy it in case lots. You still get the high quality products but often pay much less than the 5 or 6 bucks that it costs to buy one tube at a time. One trick I use for extra smooth beads is to use a wet finger to smooth the surface. A wet finger collects very little caulk while a dry rag seems to pick up way too much. I knew an old time master painter that used a wet paint brush to really smooth caulk beads nicely. In my experience, the best technique is to take your time and not overdo the size of the bead. You know you got it right when you are not taking off much caulk when smoothing with a wet finger. Too much caulk will definitely result in caulk squeezing past your finger and leaving wasteful, unsightly and messy ridges. If you have a cheap caulk gun, take it in your hand and throw it as far as you can. The caulk that you save with a quality tool will more than pay for the small investment. The aggravation factor will be much smaller as well. Don’t forget the clean rags, both wet and dry. Happy caulking.
Ty the Handyman

]]> http://www.dannylipford.com/diy-home-improvement/painting/how-to-caulk-effectively/#comment-846 Thu, 21 Jun 2007 22:22:44 +0000 http://www.dannylipford.com/diy-home-improvement/painting/how-to-caulk-effectively/#comment-846 [...] Fill the grooves with caulk [...] […] Fill the grooves with caulk […]

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