removable weatherproof caulking?
 

so I had a bar conversation with someone a while back and he was talking about this caulking you can put on your patio doors/windows/etc that give a weatherproof seal (IE for keeping out the cold) that can simply be pulled off come spring time. I've looked around in the homedepot/lowes/etc and I can't find what he may be talking about. Anyone here of this??

bensenvill -

How about the RTV silicon that dries clear? I think you can just peel that off without damaging anything (may take some paint with it, oops!).

CarloSW2

this is the stuff you want .. its ez to use and remove

BULLDOG SEAL, SIL DRAFT STOP TRANS 300ML
Draft Stop

* - A transparent, waterproof, energy saving
product for indoor and outdoor use, applied
around windows, or areas with air penetration
* - It will form a clean transparent seal that is
easily removable when required

The thing about Silly-Cone is that it doesn't really stick to much without being prepped first.

If you prep the surface by cleaning it thoroughly, then wipe it with Vinegar, it will stick just fine, and you'll be able to peel it out next year if you want.

The ability to peel the caulking out kinda defeats the purpose, though, doesn't it?

Christ -

Ha ha, it stinks of Vinegar, so prepping it with same kinda makes sense. This summer I was using it to fight ants, but they always find another way in (the hundred holes war).

I don't know the purpose, but ... in the old daze in winter, it was custom to close off parts of the house and hunker-down next to the stove/chimney. Less volume to keep warm saves on heating fuel. I could imagine a situation where you seal up inner doors in the winter and unseal them in spring. Orrrrrr, you could seal up all windows in a room except for maybe one, and unseal the rest in the spring.

Because the RTV dries clear, I was thinking one could use this to seal gaps in the car.

CarloSW2

You mean, to "basjoos the headlights"?

Yeah, you can use clear or colored silly cone. If you go to the right place, you can get white (untreated) silicone caulk, and then buy a color pack and mix up the right color for your application.

Caulking is part of a brick mason's job...

WD40 -

That stuff looks great, I wanna get me some. But I don't think it can just "be pulled off come spring time".

CarloSW2

Christ -

Yeah, like basjoos' headlights, and potentially any other seam. Drying clear can make it "stealthy". If it's removable and won't damage the paint, you have the wiggle-room to make mistakes. Wiggle-room is good.

CarloSW2

Latex caulk works well on painted surfaces, and slicks clean.

Silly-Cone works great, too.

Never use Urethane. It gets rock hard.

Silly-Cone stays flexible, but goes through wicked heating/cooling cycles, and will separate if not prepped properly.

Latex cracks if you apply it too thick.

Any "gap" more than 3/8" deep needs something as a backer to create a proper 3-sided seal, or the caulk will eventually fail (way before it's supposed to).

yes it does just peel off .. I used the same stuff many times over the years till I got double windows installed