GE 100%silicone caulk anyone use this?

[bobhenry]

[quote="kennyrayandersen
Silicone is a special animal. I’ve only ever used paper towels to carefully remove any that I didn’t want – it resists most solvents (http://www.dynaloy.com/Products/silicone_products.html). As has been noted paint WILL NOT STICK. I wouldn’t use it as an adhesive (I have used it in the past), because there is a fair chance you are going to get it someplace you don’t want. Also, it doesn’t really ‘penetrate’ so if the surface is a porous wood, for instance, you might get moisture that would migrate underneath. Now if you are screwing something down it will likely force silicone into all of the wood pores, at least the ones on the top surface of the outer wood veneer and would be more robust. Still, it can be used, as some have noted, for general sealing and even light adhesive work.[/quote]

Don't tell Bob the builder he has been on my hood 9 years without fail. Just a blob of 100 % silicone.

[hunter535]

[quote="kennyrayandersen
Silicone is a special animal. I’ve only ever used paper towels to carefully remove any that I didn’t want – it resists most solvents (http://www.dynaloy.com/Products/silicone_products.html). As has been noted paint WILL NOT STICK. I wouldn’t use it as an adhesive (I have used it in the past), because there is a fair chance you are going to get it someplace you don’t want. Also, it doesn’t really ‘penetrate’ so if the surface is a porous wood, for instance, you might get moisture that would migrate underneath. Now if you are screwing something down it will likely force silicone into all of the wood pores, at least the ones on the top surface of the outer wood veneer and would be more robust. Still, it can be used, as some have noted, for general sealing and even light adhesive work.

Don't tell Bob the builder he has been on my hood 9 years without fail. Just a blob of 100 % silicone.[/quote]

You should contact the company so they can use that as an advertisement for silicone sealant.

Bob would be proud and so would Wendy! LOL

[bronco]

I like the bob the builder hood ornament!
I guess as far as the caulk i might have to reconsider the silicone though since so many people have voted against it. Thanks for all of the input!

[kennyrayandersen]

Bob ain't got much load on him! I've used it, and it does work, but... there are issues like nothing sticks to it [like paint] and if you do need to redo it, like Steve said, sometimes it's neigh impossible to get all of it off something. So, you use it, you get ALL of the 'benefits' that come with it.

[bronco]

I have officially bit the bullet and bought some polyurethane sealant.
Unfortunately now i can't find the receipt for the silicone i got from home depot so i'm stuck with several tubes of the stuff. I guess i'll have to find another use for it in some other project.

Maybe the wife will let me stick some of my old star wars action figures on her car hood! ......On second thought I want to live long enough to finish my tear! ha! ha!

[green_eyed_diablito]

...
Unfortunately now i can't find the receipt for the silicone i got from home depot so i'm stuck with several tubes of the stuff. ...

i think i read that you bought it at Home Depot. they're pretty good about letting you return stuff without a receipt. they will give yo store credit. i have a bad habit of loosing receipts too.

[LMarsh]

I believe acetone will remove silicone, especially if its a thin coating. I used acetone to clean the aluminum before I clear coated it and I noticed it took the silicone off where it squirted out and I wiped it off from my trim molding. You can buy silicone remover too and other chemicals might work (search the web) but I don't think you want to get acetone on plastics or wood finishes because it will disolve them.

Also I used the standard polyurethane sealants from the home centers and I don't like it. Without double checking, I think it cured really hard and not flexible and also it was harder to clean or wipe off since it needs mineral spirits to get off of anything
(hand included) I could go check what I used if you want to know but I'll never use it again. I plan on trying butyl rubber (even though I think it takes a long time to dry) and the butyl tape in the future. I've read good stuff on the Sikaflex too. I'm hoping that is the stuff RV dealers use and that it will stay permanently flexible, almost like moist chewing gum consistency. I bought my roof vent used and it had something stuck all over it but I could ball it up and use it to pull more off until it was clean. It was gooey and tacky and seemed like great stuff.

I return items all the time with no receipt at the Home Depot. They give you store credit and I figure I'll spend it anyway.

Lucas

[bronco]

Thanks for the advice on Home Depot, I'll give it a shot. Most places wont let you return items without the receipt anymore. Too many scammers out there have ruined it for us legitamite people.
Because the sheets i'm using have some oxidation on them I was hoping to get them all polished on a bench setup first before attatching the sheets on the trailer. The concern i had was that the polish would cause some adhesion problems when i install and caulk them. Would the acetone clean the sealing edges off good enough and remove the polish so when i do use the polyurethane caulk it would stick o.k.?

[starleen2]

Here's a fool-proof method that gives a perfect finish.
Clean and dry the area. Mask off a nice straight line (top and bottom of the joint) using either masking tape or painter tape - I prefer using it, but it's harder to stick to aluminium. Apply a bead of sealant to the joint then run along the bead with your finger in one continuous movement. I use a latex glove on one hand to do this so I don't have any sticky silicone or caulking mess on my finger. You now have the perfect amount of silicone for the seal. Remove the tape as soon as you've done this. You should now have a perfect seal.

[bronco]

The tape method is definately the way i'm going to go. Any thoughts on the cleaner to use to make sure the caulk sticks to the metal?

[green_eyed_diablito]

The tape method is definately the way i'm going to go. Any thoughts on the cleaner to use to make sure the caulk sticks to the metal?

i like using plain isopropyl alcohol and a lint-free cloth.

[Dean in Eureka, CA]

Used silicone for over thirty years, mainly to seal shower and bath enclosure installs.
If you're a little wobbly with a caulking gun and want nice uniform beads, here's a neat little trick...
Run your bead, don't sweat a few bumps, lumps and bulges.
Focus mainly on getting your bead applied to where you want it with no voids.
Now for the trick...
Take a can of spray glass cleaner and spray your bead, getting it nice and wet.
Take a wet finger and wipe (tool) your bead in one continous stroke.
The result will please you.
Any excess silicone will collect on the sides of your finger, which can easily be wiped off into a rag.
The resulting finger tooled bead will look like it was done by a pro.
One other note about 100% silicone...
If you're sealing around screws, you might want to consider using a neutral cure silicone.
The 100% stuff gives off a pretty stout acidic vapor as it cures, which can raise cane with metal screws.
If you don't believe me, take a small jar and tossin a few screws, then squirt some silicone into the jar and screw the lid on, leaving it sealed up for a day or two.

[bronco]

Never heard of the glass cleaner trick sounds good. And thanks for appealing to the kid in me about throwing screws in a jar of silicone...i'll try it!
I'm sure the wife will roll her eyes if she sees it sitting in the garage.
Hey lets even go a step further and throw a firecracker in it and see what happens then. ha! ha! Yah I know i've got a weird sense of humor. HA! HA!