Caulking Tips: Which Type of Caulk Do I Use?

The term “Caulking” has been around for many years. Boat makers from the last two centuries have been caulking the hulls of ships with pine tar and cotton. Driving a wooden mallet and wedge to push the cotton fiber and pine resin between the seams of the planks to prevent water from leaking in. Today’s modern day caulking comes in a tube that you shoot from a caulk gun. It comes in a variety of uses including fire prevention, expansion joints, adhesives, and waterproofing. While there are a number of uses for caulk, they are grouped primarily into two categories: Water based and non-water based.

Water based caulks are usually the painters caulk or carpenters caulk you find in the paint section of a home improvement center. Latex is its primary base and it cleans up quickly with a sponge and water. This caulk has great flexibility for all indoor and some mild outdoor applications. Its main use is primarily indoors around trim and baseboard.

Water based silicone is a great caulk to use around showers or sinks and in most generally wet areas. Clean up is easy as a wet sponge and a bucket of water. Traditional non-water based caulks can create a mess by sticking well to the surrounding surface and making a mistake not as forgiving as its water-based counterpart.

Non-water based caulks are primarily produced with silicone. Silicone is a super flexible and watertight caulk used in showers and bath enclosure. It is extremely resilient to moisture and fungus growth. It also adheres well to any non-porous surface. There is however, a down side. It is very hard to work with. It can dry very quickly and leave an awful mess. Once silicon is in place, it is there forever. Use this caulk for around any wet area. Remember, silicone caulk can’t be painted!

Many of the other numerous caulks that exist today do specialized jobs and may be harder to find at your local home improvement center. They are typically in a category by themselves. For instance, fireproof caulk is for use around holes drilled in 2×4’s for the wires to go through. It prevents up draft in case of a fire. “Bull” Is a common name for roofing asphalt that comes in caulk form. It is primarily used to seal around any penetration through a roof such as plumbing stakes or a sky light. It is a heavy-duty waterproof tar like material. Urethane caulks are primarily used in commercial applications, but can sometimes be used in home projects. Urethane caulk has a huge elastomeric stretch capabilities of up to 50%! It is used primarily to separate two large moving slabs of concrete, such as in tilt wall construction. (Shopping malls, parking garages)

Always read the labels of caulk before you buy them. Find out exactly which caulk you buy is right for the job. It is a lot easier to read the label in the store then after you have squirted half a tube out all over your project!