It's time to recaulk my windows as much of the present caulking is

Caw7691241
by Caw7691241
dried out and chipping away from the glass. What methods and materials work best for a job like this? I have 10 Windows approximately 40"x39" in size so I have my work cut out for me. What works best for you?

  6 answers
  • Cam26202429 Cam26202429 on Sep 23, 2017

    a paint trowel and clear caulk scrap off and old and dryed out caulk wipe clean then reapply the caulking

    • Caw7691241 Caw7691241 on Sep 23, 2017

      Thanks for the info. Do you use rope caulk, or caulk in a tube which is applied with a caulking gun?

  • Dfm Dfm on Sep 23, 2017

    you are going to need a five in one tool. It will help with removing the old caulk. As for caulk..you have options. Rope caulk comes in colors like white brown and grey. Remember making play dough snakes....up roll it to the thickness desired and press in place. I do mine with a 45 degree angle to the window....helps moisture roll off. Flatten it with the 5 in 1tool.


    the other method of caulking requires a tube of caulkand a caulking gun. And the 5 in one tool to spread it out....unless you want to use a vynial glove we're with water to smooth it out


    its been about 4 yrs ago that I last caulked....but I do remember putting something on the bare wood before I caulked. Don' remember what it was. Mineral oil comes to mind....but I'm not sure it's right.

    • Caw7691241 Caw7691241 on Sep 23, 2017

      Thanks so much for your information. Do you think the rope caulk is best to use? Seems like you could get a wider bead of caulk with it. Been told to paint primer before applying caulk to keep moisture out of the wood below the caulk. Could that be what you did to the bare wood?

  • Dfm Dfm on Sep 23, 2017

    sounds right. the rope caulk has little groves in it you peel back as many of the groves you need, roll it to the thickness you need. If you "mess up" you just pull it off and start over. Regular caulk is not so for giving. Btw.There was a pbs show this old house....they put instructions for many things out on the web.

  • Dfm Dfm on Sep 23, 2017

    pprimer will work...rope caulk is mor forgiving.....and not as messy as the the tubes.

  • John Bennett John Bennett on Sep 23, 2017

    If you are talking about the glazing that secures the glass to a Wood window frame then you would need a glazing compound made specific for that. Try searching on YouTube for window glazing installation methods.

  • Dfm Dfm on Sep 24, 2017

    primer sounds good. Caulking with a caulk gun gets messy quickly. It's really sticky stuff. I find the rope stuff to be just as good, and less of a mess.