Shower Tray Silicone

[RickH]

I have a cast stone shower tray, that has a leak somewhere around its perimeter (2 sides are Respatex)

So intend to reseal ........... what is best wisdom - cut the top 10mm of old silicone off, give it a good clean and put in a good new bead. (will make it slightly wider as well)

Or use a silicon remover get a lot more of it out and then reseal.

I used Dow Corning 785 last time .......... anybody know of something better? otherwise I'll get the 785+ (improved version)

 

[rules&rulers]

Been removing old bath/shower silicone today,its a nasty slow annoying job.

To get a professional finish its best to remove all the old sillycone as new silicone does not always stick to the old silicone due to soap,shampoo and all other cleaners.

Take your time and remove all the old stuff,it will be worth the effort.

edit dow is good.

 

[RickH]

what with ... physical action (knife, scraper) or with silicone remover -- never used that stuff so no experience of it.

 

[Newboy]

Physical - the chemical removers are ok but limited in their effect.

 

[rules&rulers]

A lot of human effort.

Tools used.screwfix tool 99849. Stanley knife.buy 100 Stanley knife blades. new very sharp wood chisel 20mm wide. new kitchen knife with 100mm very sharp blade. slotted blade screwdriver. razor blades or use Stanley knife blade held in fingers.
Technique, score the full length along the shower tray and them the wall surface with Stanley knife try to pull out the poxy stuff,use screwdriver to get behind the seal and keep pulling the stuff out,use the screwfix tool,once the bulk is out tidy up the small parts with a sharp blade,the Stanley blade held in fingers works well or the wood chisel,once all the small stuff is cleaned out I use fine sand paper between the tiles and the shower tray to create a key for the new silicone. vacuum the gap before filling.

Never used the solvent. Never intending to do so as not sure how it will affect the existing fittings.

Maybe try a hair dryer on the old silicone,the heat could help the adhesive to soften.

Every job will be different and different techniques will need to be adopted,its a rubbish job but not removing 100% of the old silicone will result in a rubbish finish.

Good luck.

 

[RickH]

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