6 Alternatives to Caulking Around the Bathtub

One way to create an oasis in one’s home is a bathroom that evokes peace and tranquillity. This could simply be from the choice of paint color to keeping the space neat and tidy. An essential factor is also ensuring that everything works and is in tiptop shape.

The best caulk alternative is spray foam. Expanding spray foam will fill in gaps around your tub and provide a strong, waterproof seal. Although, you may want to practice applications as the foam can be unsightly if it’s not applied carefully. Other caulk alternatives include sealant, peel and stick trim, Epoxy resin sealer, grout, and mortar.

Why look for alternatives to caulk? For many years, caulk was the go-to material to use when dealing with a sealing issue, especially in the bathroom. But unfortunately, there are a few disadvantages to using caulk in the bathroom.

Along with duct tape and WD40, spray foam is a tool that is usually present in any fix-it kit. Aside from being a fantastic insulator, you can also use spray foam in place of caulk. Unlike old-fashioned caulk, expanding spray foam is waterproof and is ideal to use around and under bathtubs, sinks, and showers.

Expanding spray foam is quite easy to use when applied as insulation. When used in place of caulk, you need to be already familiar with how the product expands once sprayed. Try to practice beforehand to avoid dealing with unsightly foam bubbles and spillage around the bathtub.

Mostly made of silicone, sealant tape is a fantastic alternative to caulking when sealing a bathtub. There are various brands available in many hardware stores, and the application is a cinch. You don’t need a caulk gun, and the tape provides a rubber-type seal after application.

An aesthetic advantage of silicone sealant tape is that it comes in the same colors as many standard bathroom tiles. It adheres to surfaces such as wood, porcelain, stone, and cement but does not work well with most vinyl floors.

Prior to applying the sealant tape, ensure that you’ve removed all old caulking or another sealant. This will guarantee that the new sealing tape sticks in place and forms a genuinely watertight seal around your bathtub.

This sealer is an all-around home saver, and you can use it to seal and bind almost anything. Aside from its stellar adhesion qualities, epoxy resin sealer forms a watertight seal on anything it bonds with. This makes for a fantastic substitute for caulk, especially around the bathtub.

Another one of its unique qualities is the shiny and smooth finish this material provides. In fact, one of the key uses of epoxy resin is providing a high-gloss surface to countertops and floors. Contractors and visual artists are only starting to realize its practically unlimited uses.

The waterproofing abilities of epoxy resin are not lost on professionals in marine construction. For decades, it has been an essential component in the tool arsenal of a boatbuilder, amateur and professional alike.

Mortar is a special substance that will not work for most people when used as a bathtub sealant. However, if you have a stone bathtub and stone walls, you should definitely use mortar.

Mortar is not waterproof by itself, but there are a variety of materials that may be added to make it waterproof. The fundamental advantage of mortar is its long life and durability. Mortar has a long lifespan of 25 to 50 years or more

Caulk is not a one-size-fits-all when it comes to DIY home projects. Below are some of the disadvantages to using caulk around the home.

Caulk is not built to resist fluctuations in temperature and humidity. The bathroom is the one room in the house that is most prone to rapid changes in humidity and temperature. Caulk has a tendency to crack when dry and peel when wet.

In a bathtub, when water is always constant, caulking around it will peel and crack in no time. Peeling caulk looks terrible and does not provide any protection against stains and mold. This is why you need to redo a caulk job many times and as needed, which eventually becomes a hassle.

In this fast-paced world, homeowners don’t have the time to re-caulk a bathtub every few months when the need arises. One downside of caulk is it is a very temporary material. In this age of modern innovation, other materials are available that prove to offer a more permanent solution to caulk.

Caulk is made of acrylic, latex or silicone, or a combination of all three. You can still find more permanent caulk alternatives from one or two of these materials. However, their formulation is such that there is no peeling or cracking that results after application despite changes in humidity.

Using natural cleansers is always ideal when it comes to cleaning one’s home. However, there are times when nothing but a good chemical cleaning solution will do. When using these chemical cleansers in your bathtub, expect some damage to result in the caulk.

Caulk reacts to certain compounds in cleansers, and once this chemical reaction takes place, it re-emulsifies. Unfortunately, this results in the material losing its sealing and bonding capabilities rendering it practically useless.

Most construction materials are toxic to the human body. Caulk, and its components, happen to be one of them. Cases of mild poisoning have occurred when a child or pet gets some fresh caulk in their mouth or on their hands.

Nasal inflammation has occurred in adults due to its strong smell upon application. Others have also reported skin and eye irritation when coming in contact with uncured caulk. Therefore, when handling the material, thorough hand-washing is absolutely necessary in order to remove all traces of caulk.

Once exposed to heat or the commercial caulk remover, it is time to manually strip the caulk. Use a putty knife or another removal device and start chipping away. You may need to employ needle-nosed pliers if dealing with multiple layers of old caulk.

There are specialized tools just for removing old caulk, but any handy utility knife will do. The key is to not probe too deeply with the sharp tool and end up scratching your tub’s surface.

Once you’ve removed all the old caulk, thoroughly clean the area of any residue. If you encounter some mold or mildew, simply wipe with a cloth dampened with an alcohol-based cleanser. If using a commercial caulk remover, read the manufacturer’s instructions on the materials best used for cleaning.

Ensure that the bathroom remains unused and the entire area is clean and dry before applying a new sealant of your choice. Keep the bathroom vacant from the beginning of the process up until you’ve applied the new sealant and let it dry.

Related Questions

What is the difference between caulk and a sealant?

“Caulk” is generally the term used to describe any waterproof material that fills and seals joints. The biggest difference between caulk and sealant is elasticity.  Sealants work much better with surfaces prone to expansion and contraction. When dry, the rigidity of caulk makes it a less pliable and, consequently, less effective material.

What is the difference between grout and caulk?

Simply put, you use grout to fill the spaces in between tiles. Caulk acts as a sealant, and you apply it at the seams where two surfaces meet. Both materials may look alike and are widely used in bathroom construction but have two varied and differing purposes.