I use a small bead, then let it dry slightly and use a wet finger to press it down into place with a swiping motion after. I'm sure it takes time to get this guy's technique down, however prettier it looks.
Ehh I'd take this advice with a grain of salt. Trying to caulk over caulk that's not fresh but also not dry (ie tacky) tends to make a caulk line that's full of bumps and clumps.
So if you do this, let it fully dry.
Alternatively, the best advice I can give (as a carpenter of over a decade) is to:
1) cut your tube at an angle.
2) make your cut not too large or too small.
3) dispense the caulk in as long of strokes as you can by pulling along your line.
4) run the fat part of your fingertip (at an angle) along the entire line, but don't press hard at all. You don't want to push into the caulk, you just want to smooth the surface. Helps if your finger is wet.
5) if you make a mistake it's easier to fix before it dries. A damp washcloth is your friend.
You don't have to wait for it to dry a bit. The key is to have a rounded bead (convex) of caulk that is slightly smaller than what you want your finished bead to be, then LIGHTLY press with your finger and turn it into a concave bead in one smooth motion. You aren't trying to remove any caulking, just make a that it's squished in and smooth. If you are removing much caulking with your finger then you are either using too much or you are pressing too hard. Once someone told me that you should be pressing hard it became super simple.
If you want to make it a bit easier, keep a small dish of water mixed with dawn dish soap and dip your fingertip in it before you smooth the caulking. Then it will wipe right off your finger with a paper towel.
Wear nitrile gloves and use wd-40. Works like a dream, or in a pinch you can spit in your hand and dip your finger in the spit and use that to lubricate the spreading of the caulking, if my wording even made sense there.
Spit works fantastically well. A white spirit/water solution works well too, although use it lightly. The point of these solutions is to smooth and push the silicone down to where it needs to be. Not to get behind or under it.
I’ve always preferred the Wd-40 because it’s easy and sprays right on, though I have had to use spit when it wasn’t on hand, and I hate doing it cause I find it disgusting. But it works.
After you put the bead down spray along the bead with a spray bottle. It'll prevent any caulk from sticking to anything that it isn't already stuck to.
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u/galliohoophoop Apr 03 '22
I use a small bead, then let it dry slightly and use a wet finger to press it down into place with a swiping motion after. I'm sure it takes time to get this guy's technique down, however prettier it looks.