Sealant hell

Kavoom wrote:

BobsYourUncle wrote:
Have you tried an air chisel?
:B
Kidding if course, but some of that stuff seems to need one to get it off....:M

Not sure what you mean by "five or too budge"

I've been in the solarium and patio cover business for over 43 yewrs, so I've learned a thing or two about sealing stuff and removing old caulking.

Going over old sealant with new is the easy way, but the challenge with that is that your new sealing job is only as good as the surface under it. If the old caulking is failing and you put more on top, it will fail too. And it will be unsightly with large amounts showing.

The only accurate and effective way to do a proper job is to remove the old stuff first and get down to a clean surface.

Been there, done that. Lots of hard work. I use soft plastic scrapers to avoid damaging surfaces. It helps if the old sealant is very warm. A hair dryer carefully used can help. Just don't get things too hot.

Paint thinners can remove residual caulk, depending on what the old stuff is made of, but it leaves a residue, as it's petroleum based.

Acetone cleans all oil based residues off but it will damage painted surfaces if you work it too much. If you use it you absolutely must be very careful not to rub too much, or you will ruin the finish. A fairly wet rag with acetone and a quick wipe cleans. It evaporates fast.

So, what your saying is there is NO easy solution, just a lot of hard work? And cussing...

Well, I guess it's like most things in life:

Anything worth having will require effort. No such thing as a free lunch.

Liken it, if you will, to a nice, weed free, neatly manicured lawn and flower garden. It didn't just happen. It took a heck of a pile of hard work and diligent effort to get it looking like something off a magazine cover.
Same thing here. If you want a nice neat looking tidy sealing job, it's going to require some effort. The end result is directly proportionate to the effort put into it.

Most people today want everything for no invested effort. Especially today's young generation.

As for the cussing, that's optional.
I take a different approach. I'll come out with something like "Golly gosh shucks that sure is a bunch of work!" People laugh and that makes the job go better. A cold one helps too!
:):):B