Caulk Remover?

[prncssgeek]

Anyone got any ideas on removing old dried up caulk? I have a mixture, some silicone caulk, some is regular household caulk. Rubbing off the silicone caulk works but boy is it time consuming. The household caulk is dried and hard and I can't even cut it with a razor blade!

So any suggestions would be highly appreciated. Gotta get the caulk off the roof so I can put it all back together.  

[ddh2]

Anyone got any ideas on removing old dried up caulk? I have a mixture, some silicone caulk, some is regular household caulk. Rubbing off the silicone caulk works but boy is it time consuming. The household caulk is dried and hard and I can't even cut it with a razor blade!

So any suggestions would be highly appreciated. Gotta get the caulk off the roof so I can put it all back together.  

I am a Glazier<-- GlassMan and i clean caulking all the time, MEK<-methyl ethyl Keytone is what i normally use, but I would NOT recomend this on your Camper, it is very very very potent stuff. your best bet is elbow grease. if you wish to use a razor, get a utility knife you can use leverage to help you and you can set the depth on, cut a V cut #1 flush (flat) with the roof, cut #2 cut straight down from trim meeting the 2 in the center of the V. Most caulking are anerobic sealants and will harden up only where it comes in contact with air, so under surface may still be soft.
Best of Luck to you

[austinado16]

Gasoline should soften up the silcone that you are "rubbing" off.  Wear gloves that are solvent proof.  Put some gasoline on a rag and lay it over an area of the silicone for a minute or so.  It will attack the silicone and soften it, and make it sort of crumbly.

When you're done, rinse the rag with soapy water and hang to air dry. Don't just throw it away full of fuel vapors.

On the hardened caulking, you can use a "Gasket Scraper" sold in auto parts stores.  You're looking for the version that has a screwdriver type handle, and then a somewhat wide blade, almost like a chisel......but it's dull(er).  This tool will allow you some leverage, and a sort of chipping action that should break the hardened material out in chunks without tearing the metal camper roof.

[flyfisherman]

For removing silicone use isopropyl alcohol. It will not damage the painted finish on the camper.

You can buy a pint of the stuff at Wal-Marts for less than a dollar ... get the 70% stuff.



Fly

[prncssgeek]

Cool, great ideas.
I'll give those a try. Well, maybe not the gas. Something about the smell of gas makes me puke!

[austinado16]

For removing silicone use isopropyl alcohol. It will not damage the painted finish on the camper.

You can buy a pint of the stuff at Wal-Marts for less than a dollar ... get the 70% stuff.



Fly

Nice Fly......I didn't know that!

[PattieAM]

After using my steam cleaner in the house shower, the caulking turned black, so we bought a tube of caulk remover - which, did a great job of removing the caulk.....but it also removed the paint/finish.

So while this stuff is great - be very careful in using it.  Think we either got it at Home Depot (Painting section) or at Wal-mart.

[James]

Try a dewaxer/degreaser from an auto parts store.  Apply it and keep it moist for about 5 - 10 minutes and simply rub the caulk off.  You can also use it to clean the camper before repainting.  It does smell a little like gasoline though.