I finally re-caulked my 1950s bathroom windows last weekend

The old caulk was so dried out it was basically just dust. I bought a tube of silicone caulk for 8 bucks at the hardware store on Elm Street. Took me about 2 hours to scrape out the old stuff with a putty knife. The hardest part was getting a clean bead along the top edge where the window meets the frame. My neighbor Bob came over and showed me how to use painter's tape to keep it straight. I messed up the first corner but the second one looked pretty good. Has anyone else dealt with those old steel windows that seem to rust no matter what you do?

3 comments

3 Comments

emerym361mo ago

Hairdryer trick works great, just don't melt the paint like I did.

the_anthony1mo agoOG Member

Learn from your mistakes I guess... paint's a lot more stubborn than caulk. Hairdryer on high will soften things up fast but you gotta keep it moving. Lesson learned the hard way I see.

jasonallen1mo ago

I watched a video last month where a guy used a hairdryer to soften old caulk before scraping it off. He said it made the job way easier and saved him from gouging the window frame. Might be worth trying if you ever have to do it again. Those steel windows are a pain though, I read somewhere that they keep rusting because the original galvanized coating wears off over time and there's not much you can do to stop it completely.