Your own hand turns out to be the best silicone remover. Why? You have much more control over what might happen. In addition, you save extra money. A penny saved is a penny gained. Some UK top silicone removers may cause irreversible effects. You have to remember that using any chemicals can cause irreversible effects such as discoloration of wall tiles or dissolving acrylic paint in the bathtub. Considering the pros and cons, it can be concluded that the simplest tools like chisel or stanley knife are the best for removing old silicone. Mind you, the old school isn’t that bad. With a diagonal joint or even convex joint you are creating a bead of silicone that is 8 times stronger than this very thin joint applied with masking tape.

Before you add any silicone you need to make sure that area is clean and dry. Start with a stiff hand brush to get rid of any debris and dust, and then use a vacuum to clean the area to be sealed. Wipe down a damp cloth, followed by a wipe down with a dry cloth and leave to dry for 5-10 minutes. To get a smooth even finish on silicone use a finishing tool (Image credit: Getty Images) How long after adding silicone can I use the shower? You can but it’s not recommended. It’s pointless adding a new layer of silicone to old silicone, especially if the old silicone is in poor condition. It won’t adhere to the old silicone meaning it won’t create a waterproof barrier and it won’t look pretty. Insert at an angle the tube of silicone into the gun. Adjust the trigger so that it is calibrated with the size of your tube. To do this, squeeze the trigger slowly and gently until the mechanism touches the silicone tube. Depending on the size of the gap between shower edges and walls and floors you should only need to add one run of silicone. But if you have deep edges, fill these with a small bead of silicone and run a wet finger along to make sure the silicone is pushed in.Adhesion of the sealant to the bath or shower, and tiles, is what counts. Make sure you buy the right silicone for your joints. Silicone is generally categorised as a medium stretch high modulus. These silicones are basically quite rigid and inflexible. These are good for joints that you don’t think can have a lot of movement. Low modulus silicone is much more flexible which would be really appropriate for example around a bath. Cut a vertical seam on one side of the nozzle with a utility knife. Clean the nozzle off with a rag to remove any drips. Then, take the tube out of the gun and lay it sideways on a stable surface. Brace it against the table with your non-dominant hand. Grab a utility knife and puncture the base of the nozzle with the tip of your blade. Drag the blade up to cut a straight line through one side of the nozzle, all the way through the tip. [1] X Research source The best and easiest way to do silicone corners is to do the vertical section first, leave that to bond and next day start doing horizontal sections. Here is the difference - when we do the horizontal lines you are not interfering with or messing with the vertical line. Someone may ask – how long should I let that silicone bond for? Answer is - leave a silicone overnight till it is totally hard and very tough. New silicone will bond to existing silicone. You will end up with a corner which is not perfect, but isn't far off. Make sure your joints are well prepared by which we mean excess silicone has been removed and the joint has been properly degreased. Any bits of dust or dirt can potentially cause a weaker seal. Cutting the nozzle as the same diameter as the profiling tool means that the bead that comes off of the silicone is compatible with the profiling tool so there is not going to be too much wastage. By cutting the nozzle at 90 degrees you give yourself the best possible chance of forcing comprehensively as much silicone as possible into that joint without leaving any gaps. It means that we are encouraging ourselves to force the silicone into the joint rather than pulling or dragging which is what you are more inclined to do if the nozzles cut at 45 degrees.

To make sure that your shower room ideas look as good as you imagined you need to use masking tape to get crisp even edges on your silicone. Blue painter's tape is a good choice. Place a length of the tape either side of where the silicone is to go. Leave a gap of around 3mm on both sides. You’re going to re-tape the nozzle when you use it in the future. This cut won’t cause any future leaks or damage the silicone or anything like that.Here is the list of things that you shouldn't do in practice when applying silicone sealant. These little tips may surprise a lot of you out there.