So my wife tells me that the upstairs bathroom needs caulk around the tub. She was cleaning and some of the caulk pulled away. The caulk line is between the tub and tile wall....I started to pull away the caulk, and I see it's all mildew underneath, but the mildew is on top of a grout line, underneath the caulk. which makes sense to me....why stop grouting just because you're at the bottom of the wall/top of the tub?
I am thinking, if the grout line is in tact, just pull the caulk off, clean the mildew and I'm done, right? Why caulk over grout? I told this to my wife, but she's insisting that there should be caulk there, and now she has me questioning myself.....the space is somewhere between 1/8 and 1/4 of an inch...probably closer to 1/8th
Clean the hell out of it, let it dry and then put a mildew resistant caulk back in it's place.
Always caulk the lip around the tub and the inside corners.
When you run your finger against the bead to smooth it out, if your finger isn't wet, it'll turn to shit.
Today's FYI....
And remember, grout lines are not waterproof (though sealing them helps). Silicone is waterproof and mold-resistant/proof.
We joke...we do...mostly because of those "This Old House" shows. The way they say it with that Bahston accent....good stuff
fill tub with water, as if for a bath.
this wil expand joints to bath fill level.
insert caulk into wider gap.
trust me
fill tub with water, as if for a bath.
this wil expand joints to bath fill level.
insert caulk into wider gap.
makes sense....thanks
(not, stupid enough to have had to do honest labor once in a while)
trust me
I actually don't mind the mess if that's what you're getting at...I mask off the caulk lines, and am quite finicky about it....I put a tiny dab of soap on my finger tip, and press that (gently) into the fresh caulk...I get nice clean lines and hardly any mess