The Guide to Caulking a Bathtub Properly

Over the years, as your bathtub gets its common wear-and-tear, you will have to re-caulk the sealing material to assure optimal quality and performance for years to come. Caulk is used by home contractors to prevent water from inevitably penetrating your home's seams and into your bathroom walls. Unless you do touch ups and follow these "how to caulk a bathtub tips", it can cause an undue amount of damage and eventually. Rest assured--caulking your bathtub won't be as hard as you imagine and it will definitely be worth it when you can soak in your corner tub at the end of the day with no worries that mold is possibly growing beneath the tiles.

The first thing you should do is to scrape out and clean out all the old sealant between the bathtub and the wall. Go out to a hardware store and purchase a tube of caulk that is approved for bathroom sufaces. Caulk can come in several colors and forms so make sure that it matches your bathroom design. Water soluble latex caulk is said to be the most effective for bath tubs and interiors. After you have your tube of caulk you should use masking tape, cut to the length of the walls, to tape both sides of where you want your new caulk to be. This ensures, just as painter's tape does for paint, that it doesn't go beyond its borders and make a mess.

Now is the fun part: squeeze the caulk tube and carefully lay in a bead of caulk along the designated line you created with the tape. An important tip is to position the tip of the tube of caulk slightly above the surface, nearly touching while you are going along the line. This curbs the amount of caulk coming out while creating a thin, even bead. Smooth the caulk between the pieces of tape as you are going along the wall, pressing it with a wet finger. Be careful to remove any excess caulk that escaped the borders of the tape because it may dry quickly. Finally, remove the masking tape before the caulk starts to skin over and leave it for the caulk to cure. There you have it, a bathtub that is in tip-top condition!