General aaaaarrrrrghhhhh...

[Pilgrim]

Just kicking myself around the place...

Last weekend I spent a half-day installing backer rod and caulking around two dormers and a 30-foot stretch on the back side of the house where new roofing left a gap between the siding edge and new shingles. I carefully selected clear caulk for this---or was sure I had.

Today i went out to check AGAIN to see when it would turn clear.  Still white.

So i checked the empty tubes, and one of the four was clear. The others are all white.  Someone must have dropped a clear tube into the other box, and i read its label and grabbed four.

MY FAULT for not checking each tube individually.  MY FAULT for not seeing it while I was climbing up and down the ladder.

Now I have white goop visible in the gap and on the dark shingles nearly all the way around the damn house.  And it's just after noon as I post this, so even getting a picture was tough....one frustration leads to another.

I'm checking options including removing it and re-caulking.  If I don't do that, the best idea I have is painting it black.

[gearHed289]

Ugh, that sucks. A couple of years ago I bought a tube marked clear. It was the whitest "clear" I'd ever seen. 

[dadagoboi]

Like a newborn child it happens every day...

Paint it, black.  Or maybe to match the roof above would be better.

[Basvarken]

Who is going to climb onto the roof to check the color of the caulking?

Leave it. There are more important things in life to worry about.

[Pilgrim]

Who is going to climb onto the roof to check the color of the caulking?

Leave it. There are more important things in life to worry about.

You're right! but...

Unfortunately it kind of makes a thin white racing stripe down the side of the house.  I am now the proud owner of a can of flat black paint and a 1" brush with which to make it less obtrusive. Doing it right would be stripping off the caulk, but it's not worth the grief.  I'll go for camo.

[Lightyear]

Depending on the brand of caulk why don't you just pick up a couple of tubes of the gray, black or bronze color and just "schmear" a coat of the color stuff over the white?  I've never cared for the clear, non 100% silicone caulks, as they all tend to yellow or get cloudy pretty fast.

[Pilgrim]

Hadn't thought of a concealing layer of colored caulk!  I would need a medium to dark brown, but I'll take a look around. That would be more durable than paint.

Thanks for the idea!

[Highlander]

... as they all tend to yellow or get cloudy pretty fast...

+1 ... would need to be high-end and have UV proof properties... I'd have prob gone for roofers mastic... black gunk... you have my commiserations, but if you try the "paint-it-black" route the paint will have to be of a highly flexible nature or it will just flake off...

www.youtube.com/watch?v=InRDF_0lfHk

[dadagoboi]

Silicone caulk isn't generally meant to be painted unless it says, "paintable" IIRC.  Or is it acrylic of some kind? 

[Lightyear]

There's roofers sealant that is a butyl based product.  I use siliconized acrylic - the brand I like is Alex - both HD and Lowes carry it.  Pilgrim I think the bronze color is what you're after.  This stuff is paintable but I think it will last long enough unpainted to serve it's purpose.

[Pilgrim]

I made sure not to use a silicone caulk in case of a problem like this, so that's OK.

I checked the bronze stuff today - it's nice and dark, and looks perfect.  Picked up 3 tubes and will use them.

Right now I'm on a short two-day vacation in Breckenridge, Colorado so no action on the caulk until this weekend.  I REALLY appreciate the idea to use the bronze caulk - I think that will work fine.

[lowend1]

What does any of this have to do with WWII aircraft?

[Pilgrim]

Nothing, although I suspect Mark could do something clever with a tube of caulk if challenged... 

[patman]

Have used the bronze "Alex"...it is my favorite brand also...

[Highlander]

We used to use Dow Corning sealant on the nav lights on Concorde... not quite WWII but I'm sure someone can make a connection...