My number one least-favorite chore is cleaning the tub. Our shower-tub combo has an acrylic base and no matter how hard we scrub it, I feel like it never gets fully clean.
A big problem with that was the caulk line around the tub. That’s the thin seam between the plastic tub and the ceramic tile. It wears away over time, and water gets in there. Since its small and dark and wet, mold grows. Mine was looking black and gross and no amount of bleach could save it.
So, Sean offered to replace it. We have caulked before and had all of the supplies on hand. It took the two of us about 45 minutes to do from start to finish.
What you need:
- Paint scrapers/putty knife (one per person to speed things up)
- Painter’s tape (any width)
- Waterproof white caulk
- Caulk gun
- Plastic spoon
- Paper towels
- Bowl of water
- Plastic bag (for clean up)
What you do:
First, you want to remove all the old caulk. This is important so that the new caulk has a clean surface to latch onto. Just use the corner of a pain scraper to scrape it out. We found that it was easiest if you scored the top and bottom edges of each seam with the corner of the scraper, and then used the flat edge to scrape it out.
Next, you are ready to caulk. To make it easiest, tape off your seam using painter’s tape. This will give you a clean edge.
Next, apply caulk to the seam. We had the best luck making a “pulling” motion and not a “pushing” motion. In other words, squeeze out the caulk and move the gun away from the line as you go, don’t push the gun back over the caulk you just squirted out.
Right after you squirt a line, use the plastic spoon to smooth it down. You will want a bowl of water and paper towels to clean the spoon, because it does get messy and the spoon leaves the smoothest finish when it is clean.
Repeat until all seams are done.
Peel the tape off immediately. Allow to dry completely before taking a shower.
It was so easy and made such an impact. I love little projects like this!
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