Avoiding wasting silicone/caulk cartridges?

JustAnotherSaver

How do you avoid this?

So far i've only been able to save the Wurth decorators caulk cartridge - putting a blob of the caulk on the nozzle end & then break it off when i need to use it again. Works a treat (or has done so far).

The Dow Corning bathroom sealant was terrible though. I've wasted 2 tubes so far. Ok this one is actual silicone & the Wurth one isn't. I tried putting the blob on the end of the nozzle - no good, the whole thing just dried up & went hard.
I tried one of those nozzle caps you get from B&Q, but they're Unibond & not a good fit.
Oh & then i tried a new nozzle - again it was probably a Unibond nozzle because it certainly didn't fit the Dow Corning cartridge - so that's actually 3 cartridges wasted.

So how do you avoid wasting them, or store them to one side for use again at a later date?

phill99

I drive a screw into the end of the nozzle and then unscrew it when I need to reuse it. However, the colours that I use rarely, will still go hard over a long time period. Which is what its supposed to do!

Sometimes you need to accept that you will end up wasting money as theymay not be reuseable.

Norman_Castle

I use a piece of plastic bag over the end held on with an elastic band. Sometimes its just the filler in the nozzle thats gone off. Cleaning out or changing the nozzle might work.

Anne_Marie_2

I keep tubes of glue in a plastic bag in the fridge.
Don't know if this will work with silicone cartridges, but it works with opened tubes of superglue, so maybe worth a try.

JustAnotherSaver

Thanks all.

phill99 wrote: »

Sometimes you need to accept that you will end up wasting money as theymay not be reuseable.

Bit of a PITA when you only need a bit so you buy some in, use it, come to use it again like 3-4 months later & it's gone solid

windup

stick a 2" nail in the end, the sealant should make it airtight.

wrightk

i always used to use a nail or a screw.over time this becomes less effective though especially with adhesives. best thing ive found is a long wooden kebab skewer (can buy a pack of 100 for about a quid!) and just push it right down through the nozzle as its the perfect width and nice and long

pendragon_arther

I use clingfilm.

Jonesya

I buy the packs for replacement nozzles - 6 for a £1, and just replace the whole nozzle.

It's rare for the sealant to set all the way down the nozzle, normally just the first inch or two.

Swipe

Jonesya wrote: »

I buy the packs for replacement nozzles - 6 for a £1, and just replace the whole nozzle.

It's rare for the sealant to set all the way down the nozzle, normally just the first inch or two.

Sometimes I empty the nozzle and then screw it back on if I don't have any spares

robatwork

The skewer is a great idea - I use long thin nails.

But caulk at toolstation is 99p for a whole cartridge, at least it was last time I bought a few, so if I haven't used it for a year or two then it's not worth trying to resurrect an old cartridge.