There are two main places it never should be installed, wood or any painted surface. Silicone caulk is excellent at water sealing and flexibility so it has its place in construction. It may be easier to say where silicone DOESN’T belong than where it does so let’s go that route. Where Does Silicone Belong? Damaged window muntin from silicone caulk You will have sloppy paint lines wherever the silicone was unless you remove every trace of it which is near impossible without replacing the wood member. That little point I mentioned earlier about there always being some residue after removal of silicone once again wreaks havoc here. Color change? Not for you if you’ve got silicone caulk on your house. Since the typical house is painted every 10 years that means you’re gonna have to figure out something to do with the areas that have silicone. Paint simply beads up and falls off pure silicone caulk. I think most of you probably already know this about silicone that it is not paintable. That brings up another point about silicone. It responds to steam (see the video below) or heat to facilitate removal unlike silicone, and even if some of it remains it is compatible with the new putty or paint during reinstallation. It has a similar lifespan of 20-30 years and at the end of that time it can be removed without damaging the wood.
Caulking a plaster ring windows#
When it comes to things like old windows traditional glazing putty is a much better choice. Removing all the silicone is difficult to accomplish as there is almost always some residue and when you remove it from wood it inevitably grips onto the wood fibers and pulls them with it resulting in a mutilated work piece that requires lots of repair. If you have ever tried to dig out silicone from wood you’ll quickly discover that even on old silicone this is a monumental task that yields terrible results. So what happens at the end of that 20 years? Well, you have to dig out the silicone and replace it with either more silicone or some other sealant. According to United Silicones, silicone has a minimum life expectancy of about 20 years which is a good long time. Well, just like everything silicone caulk has a lifespan. It grabs on tenaciously, which you might think is a good thing, right? After all the you want your caulk to have great adhesion and flexibility so it will seal things up for a long time. When used on bare wood silicone can be deadly and destructive. I doubt you’ll change my mind because my opinion is based on years of experience trying to dig the stuff out of old houses in places it never should have been, but you’re welcome to try. In this post I’ll lay out my case and all you silicone advocates can argue with me in the comments below.
Don’t get me wrong I like silicone, but like everything it has its time and place and used outside of that it creates more problems than it solves. The creme de la creme of the caulk kingdom with nary a competitor to be found who can challenge its amazing performance.
Silicone seems to be the savior of the caulk aficionado.
I get a lot of comments from people wondering why I don’t use silicone caulk on things like leaky wood windows or doors.
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