best shower sealant at base/wall intersection

[mooseburger2nite]

Lets play beat this pony to death...

I'm one who thinks plane changes should not be grouted...I hate cracked grout lines...think they look bad. I've used 50 year GE silicone to date, but not totally satisfied with it...too soft...can get mold befind the feathered edges.

What is the best thing available @ HD/Lowes?

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[KCT]

All I see on the shelves is the GE 100% silicone and then the DAP water based ones.. Not much choice. The silicone's all right with me.. I just used some DAP acrylic between a molded backsplash and tile edge and it cleaned up 100,000 times faster and easier than silicone.. I forgot how easy that was, having not used it in a long time. I'm sorry to say I've gotten frighteningly anal about caulk lines lately. I think I've used about $50 of blue tape and ten trees worth of paper towels on the last few jobs. I can't see that blurry feathered edge anymore on tile or tub edges. I agree about the weakness and permeability of the silicone feathered edges. I'm going for solid, sharp cut lines. With carefully placed tape, minimal caulking onto tape, two inch putty knife, occasional finger work, towels, minimal water dipping and immediate tape stripping after striking... Good things are happening. I'm gonna go get a life now.

[mooseburger2nite]

Thanks for the answer...a few questions:

1) do you run the blue tape along the very edge of the tile, exposing only the void?
2) 2" putty knife...for what?
3) "immediate tape stripping after striking"...what is "striking"?
4) if regrouting the base tiles, would you silicone before or after the new grout?
5) how much of the old grout needs to be removed before adding more grout?
6) any chemical prep before adding new grout over existing (that was over-spounged and 1/8" lower than it should be) ?

wanting good things to happen,
Mike

[doitright]

Hi Mike and Andy :)

I'm also anal about my caulk joints. I will only use silicone in wet areas, and actually favor it for most applications. If Laticrete Latasil silicones don't work in regards to color, I'll special order from www.colorriteinc.com . However, these aren't available from the local big box stores.

I will only use blue tape with black silicone applications.

A couple of tips. Obviously the first cut on the nozzle is important. I always cut mine at an angle, with a relatively small diameter. This will control the bead diameter. I also work in small sections. You don't want the silicone to skim over before tooling. Next is to spritz over the bead with a solution of water and a few drops of dish soap. This will help stop the tooled silicone from sticking to the tile. As for tooling, I'll either use a wet finger, or a caulking finger (bent plastic rod with rounded tip at one end, and a handle at the other end).

I hope this helps the caulking fanatics! ;)

[KCT]

Hi Mike and John,

1) That's right! If you don't get much excess on the tape, you can caulk, smooth the joint, pull the tape off and end up with a clean line.

2) Works great for gently touching up or straightening excess caulk on the edges. Also is good if you want to tool the caulk in a bigger joint that might be a mess with a finger.

3) By striking I just meant smoothing the caulk out. Maybe I didn't use the right word there!

4) I always grout, let grout cure for 72 hours, seal, (wait) seal again, and then caulk, making sure the sealer is all wiped up first.

5) At least half the depth of the tool, but more is better.

6) None necessary... Just at least half the depth of tile, clean, dry (some manufacturers say you can lightly, and I mean lightly, dampen a grout joint prior to grouting.

Real good points about small nozzle size and working a small area John! It's stunning how fast fresh caulking can set up in a small, hot bathroom.