Caulking Tips Exterior Siding

Start with a clean crack.

Caulking tips exterior siding.

Do not caulk the underside of your siding i e caulk each piece of siding to the one beneath it. You may not get cracks completely clean but the cleaner the better. How to use a caulk gun. Caulking is a year round job.

Water is meant to exit through the bottom of each board. Your house s siding naturally expands and contracts and caulking it all together prevents this movement. You can also use caulk to repair cracks in your siding. Caulking on the exterior siding joints at the corner board if done carefully does not need to be smoothed with a finger.

Also avoid caulking tongue and groove siding boards together. While paint does tend to somewhat glue these pieces together caulking them is never advised and can cause permanent damage. When james hardie siding products butt into wood based materials a 1 8 gap will allow for expansion and contraction of the wood based product. Most other areas were caulk is necessary should be lightly smoothed with your finger.

Caulking around windows doors eaves and trim edges gives added insurance that leaks will not occur. If you ride the middle or the rough surface siding the caulking will duplicate the bumps sometimes in an exaggerated way. When to use caulk on exterior siding siding caulk can be used on several different areas of your exterior siding to help prevent water damage and moisture buildup. On siding and trim dig out any loose paint caulk or other crud then sweep them with a dry paintbrush or better yet blast them with a compressor and an air nozzle.

Ride the tip on the smooth surface when one of the surfaces you re caulking is rougher than the other try to ride the tip on the smoother surface the brick mold in this case. White caulk on brick or concrete looks terrible. Caulk won t stick well to dirty surfaces. In the spring you caulk the exterior to get it ready for painting.

If the hole in the tube is too large you will find yourself removing an excessive amount of caulk. Bottom of siding boards should not be caulked. Some of the most commonly caulked areas of siding include both corners and crevices as well as some butt joints and window and door trim boards. Brick concrete and stone may seem impervious to water but caulking anywhere wood siding meets the siding is critical.