Steve Barker wrote:
On 7/30/2010 6:58 PM, Higgs Boson wrote:
I am having a very long and annoying time removing the old caulk from
my tub where it meets the tile wall. Somebody did a terrible job
recaulking, a while back. I tried repeatedly to deal with the mold
exteriorly with various mildewcides. Nothing worked, so I have now
grasped the nettle, and day by day, am chipping away at this train
wreck with various tools, mainly a razor blade in a straight holder.
Ghastly business!

QUESTION: Since I don't ever want to go through this again, I want to
clean/disinfect/whatever the area with the strongest and best
mildewcide on the market before I recaulk.

Everybody has their own favorites. Is there a concensus?

TIA

It's not really a matter of favorites or what not. BLEACH kills mold
and mildew period. But the secret is getting it dry back in there
before you re-caulk. Or it'll just keep growing back there forever.


I'll second that. After multiple 24-hour and 48-hour waiting periods
failed (not just mold, the damn caulk kept falling out), I finally
abandoned the main bath for a full week and used the tiny stall shower
and guest bath exclusively, and it finally stuck. I also scrubbed ALL
the grout lines with bleach, and after recaulking the bathtub line and
corners, painted them with that clear grout seal stuff. I then let the
new caulk and seal set for another 48 hours before using the bath. So
far, other than one tiny spot where the caulk pulled away, success. When
I hit the lotto and build my dream house, the shower will have
solid-surface walls and rounded epoxy (or whatever they make field
joints out of) corners. I hate grout and caulk.

--
aem sends...