Silicone & masking tape......never again!

[fourtytwo]

That was a BIG MISTAKE around a bath. I have never used masking tape before but thought it would make a neater job.....ohh no it ruined it!

As I pealed off the masking tape it peeled off the surface of the silicone leaving behind a lumpy mess.

I did my best to re-smooth it over with limited success then had to wait for it to dry, apply another fine bead and finger smooth that, overall it is nowhere near as good a job as I would have made without the wretched masking tape.

Some may say I left it too long before peeling it but I started peeling as soon as I had completed the 3 sides of the bath against the tiles.

 

[kingandy2nd]

Shame.

I always use masking tape when I use silicone for a neat finish. As you mentioned, needs to removed asap.

 

[Odds]

A steady hand in applying the silicone is always better - use a moist fingertip to smooth as you go along for a cleaner finish.

 

[freddiemercurystwin]

I always use masking tape too, I think sometimes it's easy to apply too much silicone, the silicone where it meets the tape should be so thin you can practically see through it.

 

[kp00110]

I always use green frog tape for this job. The trick I have found is to apply silicone using a lollipop stick - its perfect radius and super easy to manouvere. If you apply the tape at just the right distance from the joint on both vertical and horizontal faces, there is minimum overlap of silicone onto the tape. I then apply silicone to the joint, smooth the joint with lollipop stick dipped in white spirit helps, and then remove tape, and give a final smooth over with no tape

 

[kp00110]

the whole finger being used for silicone I personally hate and thinks it can leave a really messy and incosistent finish.

 

[mrrusty]

Not that I'm brilliant with silicon, but I do what I watched a worktop pro do - put a small bead on, then spray it with water with a drop of detergent in, then tool it off with those little rubbery-plastic tools. Other techniques might be good, but I've found this works well for me.

 

[Odds]

Not that I'm brilliant with silicon, but I do what I watched a worktop pro do - put a small bead on, then spray it with water with a drop of detergent in, then tool it off with those little rubbery-plastic tools. Other techniques might be good, but I've found this works well for me.

A small bead then smoothing sounds like a lot of work on a longer stretch - I prefer to run a thin bead along and use the moist finger method to finish off. I've had no complaints.

 

[diy_fun_uk]

There are different views on the spraying with soapy water, it's not something I've ever done. I try to complete the entire process as quickly as possible without outright rushing. To finish I just use my fingers (different ones depending on bead size) slightly wetted and don't bother with masking tape.

I'm going to try one of those silicon finishing tools next time.

 

[ray.birch]

Not that I'm brilliant with silicon, but I do what I watched a worktop pro do - put a small bead on, then spray it with water with a drop of detergent in, then tool it off with those little rubbery-plastic tools. Other techniques might be good, but I've found this works well for me.

My understanding is that the silicon won’t stick to wet soapy surfaces. So whilst it makes tooling easier, the longer term bond is compromised? As I say, purely based on what I’ve read and seen elsewhere, but I’ve since switched to just using a wet tool if need be (rather than spraying the surface to be siliconed)

 

[mrrusty]

The spray is after a small bead is applied. The water stops the squidge of the tooling sticking.

 

[JohnD1963]

The worst thing you can do is to run your fingers along the silicon to get a clean line, it will come back to bite you. I bought a kit of silicon finishing tools. It's pretty cheap and after a little practice you can get great results. Also you get a consistent finish.

 

[geraldthehamster]

Masking tape isn't the way to apply silicone. Remember that silicone is meant to go *in*, not *on*. There should only be the bare minimum on the surfaces either side of the gap

 

[Iwilldoit]

Masking tape isn't the way to apply silicone. Remember that silicone is meant to go *in*, not *on*. There should only be the bare minimum on the surfaces either side of the gap

I put the masking tape about 1-2mm away from the gap and smooth and push with my finger until the silicone on the tape is virtually gone. I then remove the tape straight away so the thickness of the silicone on the face surface is only as thick as the tape and then leave for a while before going over that again with soapy water and finger very lightly to feather off the tape thickness silicone. But my exact method depends on how big the gap is.

 

[opps]

I only use tape if the gap is freakishly large. Even then, I would use a profiling tool, remove the tape immediately and run the profiling tool over
it again. I too use washing up liquid. I probably only silicone about 5 bathrooms a year but the washing up liquid trick has not let me down thus far.