How can I remove tons of caulk from a shower?
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My husband decided to use caulk instead of grout to fill in tile areas in his shower. I don't use that shower so I had no idea how bad it was. When I saw it I was very upset at the mess. I am going to regrout the shower but have to remove all of the caulk first. My Dremel isn't cutting through the caulk. What is the easiest way to remove it from basically ALL of the grout lines? I've been scraping but there has to be a better way. I have bad arthritis in my hands and they hurt! I cannot afford to have it professionally done or replace the shower with an insert (I wish I could!).
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Oh man, that sucks! I would have recommended a small tool like a dremel. I recently removed grout in our shower to regrout, and I just used a knife to get ahold of a tail and them pulled it out.
There is a hand tool that is specifically designed to remove caulk. Perhaps that will help you. My other suggestion would be an exacto.
So sorry, but a Dremel and a putty knife is all i know. May be try a different attachment.
Kathy's idea about the exacto will work. Using a straight razor blade window scraper will also work. It won't get all of it, but enough of it so your Dremel will be more effective.
Maybe you need a new wheel or a different kind of accessory for the dremel? It should work.
Thank you!! The tool to scrape caulk out worked okay for the heavy spots but the razor blade window scraper has been fantastic except I keep breaking the corners off! lol I've removed quite a bit and taking a break. I will use mineral spirits and a scrub sponge to clean up any residue tomorrow. Then the Dremel to finish up the grout removal.
Thanks for all the suggestions.
Normally caulk is somewhat pliable. I would think using a razor utility knife in the grout lines would do the trick. I wouldn't open the knife blade fully. Perhaps just halfway so as to not damage the backerboard beneath the tile