Recommend a good bath sealant please

ferry

Hi all 
I have tried a few over the counter stuff over the years but have always  found them to be quite thin resulting to having replace the sealant every year
I am sure I have seen there is one that dries almost like a plastic and looks like it would last a lot longer - possibly a trade one?
Any ideas which brand this might be or suggestions for a decent sealant please?

Thank you 

grumbler

What do you mean by "thin"?

Jeepers_Creepers

There are some excellent sealants these days, and you don't have to pay much for them. 

Everbuild, for example, make a few. Unibond is also well regarded. Plenty others too.

I doubt you'd go wrong with Everbuild's C3 sealant which is dead cheap but good stuff. It's also anti-mould which helps, tho' it won't fully prevent mould over time if surfaces are kept damp (but just spray regularly with anti-mould cleaner).

Remove all traces of the current sealant - use a craft knife or similar run (carefully) along each surface using the surface as a guide - slice through from both angles, and the majority will peel off. Rub or gently scrape the rest until removed (or get the proper silicone removal stuff...)

Clean, dry. 

Get a rubber finishing tool such as Unibond's, and have lots of kitchen paper ready... Decide on the bead shape you'll use on the tool - I think a 45o bevel looks best. Start running your bead, making sure there's enough for the tool to shape. Try not to go overboard so's you'll be wiping away excess, tho'. Place the tool at right angles to the surfaces, press 'gently but firmly' down so the rubber blade makes reliable contact with the two surfaces, and pull it steadily along. Try not to gasp at the beautiful and perfect beading left behind. Just before you reach a corner, angle the blade so that it lands there at 45o to the corner, then 'right' it again as you move off the other direction. If it goes 'wrong' at any point - in a corner, along a length due to, say, not enough sealant or even too much, then don't panic but remove the tool, wipe it clean on kitchen paper, and sort out the issue - eg add more sealant where it's needed. Then go back to where the beading was 'good' and gently reposition the tool, but this time touching it in place but not pressing down - it won't be touching the formed sili beading. Now start moving again and as you approach the bit where you had stopped, start pressing the tool down to the previous firmness level whilst keeping moving, and it should 'touch down' on the finished surface without a mark and then you continue to complete the bead.

You have a good 10 minutes to do this. That might not seem a lot, but it's more than enough to not panic if you need to stop to fix a part. 

The main awkward parts are if there are taps and things in the way that you need to work behind. Don't try and do this by reaching behind these things from the side, but instead get or trim down a finishing tool so it's slim enough to run behind the tap without you having to stop. 

Oh yes, do a (few) practice runs with a dry tool before adding the sili! 

I wonder if the issue you had previously was that you used a finger or round profile to finish the beading? This could have left it all a bit thin. 

ferry

grumbler said:

What do you mean by "thin"?

To be honest I find about a year after using a 'good quality' sealant they tend to 'thin out' and need replacing.
Maybe its the way I am applying it ( with a wet finger/ clean cloth) thats doing it

neilmcl

I use Dow 785, that and the Everbuild stuff are probably the best sealants you can use in the bathroom, also much cheaper than the Unibond stuff you can get down your home diy shops.

neilmcl

ferry said:

grumbler said:

What do you mean by "thin"?

To be honest I find about a year after using a 'good quality' sealant they tend to 'thin out' and need replacing.
Maybe its the way I am applying it ( with a wet finger/ clean cloth) thats doing it

Again we don't know what you mean by "thin out"?

Also, no that's not the way to apply sealant. Get yourself a silicone sealant profiling kit, such as the Fugi kit and use this to create a convex profile. Do not use your finger!

https://youtu.be/_DI4hfHM_Hg

neilmcl

https://youtu.be/EErbuodMOAM

bris

Thin out doesn't make sense for a silicon sealant.

I find they are mostly all the same however I now use a slightly more expensive stuff called forever white as it really does stay bright white. 

Top tip however if you didn't know is to always seal a bath with it full of water and at it's heaviest. 

rob7475

always use dow 785 in bathrroms. It lasts for years and I've never seen it go mouldy. Some good advice already above on how to apply so I won't repeat it

Grenage

I generally use Dow 785; it does go mouldy in our shower as there's not much of a drop on the sides and we never bother to wipe it down.

Jonesya

I think it's a lot like painting, the quality and lifespan depends on the preparation, I find a paint scraper works well to get the old silicone off.

Definitely get a silicone tool - they only cost a couple of quid, so much easier and the finish is miles better than you're likely to get using a finger.