re caulking the bathtub






ok, this grout is hideous.
when exactly did this happen to my bathroom?










or how did this sneak up on me?







this is embarrassingly awful.
so i  fixed it.






i started by getting a razor blade and carefully cutting out the old caulk.
i made 2 cuts.  one above the old caulking and one below.
this was surprisingly easy and a little addicting.
it just pulled right out.




after the old caulking was removed,
i scrubbed the area with a toothbrush and soapy water then let it dry for a few hours.  i stopped in at home depot and picked up a tube of caulking with anti-microbial properties and filled the gap and then smoothed it with my fingertip.


















so much better.  and so easy.  i think the whole thing took less than 2 hours.

have a beautiful day.

xo


40 comments

  1. I'm so impressed, I would have no idea how to remove the old stuff.

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    1. i kinda impressed myself which is pretty easy to do. haha.

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  2. Has your mag come yet?

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  3. Oh, the joys of white tile, white grout and white caulk! I'd say it was 2 hours very well spent. Happy New Year!

    www.chattafabulous.blogspot.com

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  4. Oh Janet, this is so funny! We have the same problem at the bottom of our shower doors and up the sides partway. (it's especially embarrassing when a visitor takes a shower) I purchased the same caulking some time ago to prevent the mildew but have we done it? Nope. My husband has had enough honey do's during his recent vacation and I feel bad asking him to do another. Maybe I will give it a shot. You make it look easy.

    Thanks for doing this tutorial!

    Linda
    xo

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  5. You really do cover everything in this blog! I know what you mean about addicting too. I've done this project a few times over the years at both my houses. It always takes me more than 2 hours though. I'm a mess with the caulk too -- ends up everywhere :)

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  6. Good for you! I love doing jobs like this - so satisfying!

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  7. Beautiful! Better than meditation for peace of mind!

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  8. Very inspirational !

    Thanx !

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  9. Oh to have tile and grout! Our two bathrooms have hard plastic enclosures, and I hate, hate them! All the scrubbing my arms can handle and they still look yellow and dingy. So, I clean and pull the shower curtains all the way over so I do not see what I hate. Maybe one day I can have the bathrooms of my dreams.

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  10. You are truly blessed to have both a scrubbable tub and tile. Tell me, was it difficult squeezing the grout from the tube?

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  11. Well that cleaned up nicely...
    dirty jobs are often the most rewarding.

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  12. Thank you for the instructions and pictures. The results look terrific.

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  13. I am tempted to give this a shot. Of course, if I mess up and Mr. K has to fix my errors, it won't be pleasant. But I am inspired by how clean the grout looks in your after picture.

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  14. Perfect timing. You have now given me confidence to tackle my shower. I've been putting this off for i don't know how long. Thanks for the inspiration.

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  15. This task alone: "and then smoothed it with my fingertip" was beyond our capability at the Paula-residence. In the end the width varies by 200% or so. :-/

    You seem to be gifted!

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  16. It takes a brave woman to share photos of her mildewed bathtub caulking and grout! Good for you for tackling that! Such an improvement. I'll share my secret for keeping our grout and caulking looking good. After every shower (and I mean every shower), I use a squeegee to remove excess water from the tile walls and the glass block window (in the shower). Then I follow with an old washcloth and dry everything as much as I can. It's worth the effort.
    Claudia

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  17. Good job! Sometimes the most mundane jobs are the most rewarding. Looks great.

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  18. Isn't it funny how such a little thing can make such a big difference?
    I LOVE tiling and grouting and calking...I think in another life I was an Italian stone worker, LOL

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  19. You are so multi talented, Janet. My mother did stuff like this all the time, unfortunately she didn't pass down the 'handywoman' gene to me!

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  20. It's amazing how just recaulking can make the whole bathroom feel so much cleaner and brighter! I love your tub, too :)

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  21. In my head your home is always perfect looking, so that tub in the before shot must belong to someone else! The after shot obviously belongs to you. Seriously - I did the same thing to one of my tubs earlier this year and it is amazing the difference it makes.

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  22. Wow ! You did an amazing job ! My husband attempted the same thing and you should see the disaster !! Ha Ha ! Oh well - great job !

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  23. You are so smart! When my grout gets like that, I just get a new bathroom.
    xo

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  24. Thanks for keeping it real. I wish there was some better way but I don't think there is. This is kind of a nasty job--you make it sound much more glamorous that it is--but it just has to be done. It does look brand-new.

    Question: If you had to do it over again, would you use gray grout on the subway tile?

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    1. oh yes, i would def use the same dark gray grout that is on the floors in the house. only in the shower though - not in the kitchen.

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  25. Great job. Old caulking is disgusting. I've done it myself as well, and found it very rewarding and fun.

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  26. yep...just one of those things that's gotta get done...yes, would you do gray grout? I've kinda always been an all white fan, but lately I have been seeing a lot of white subway tile with dark grout.
    xo
    annie

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    1. I have a variation of subway tile on my bathroom flooring with very dark charcoal grout which my husband insisted upon for foot traffic (easier maintenance). I wasn't so sold, but it's turned out okay. For the same flooring in the actual shower stall, the grout is a lighter gray than that dark charcoal. Of course on the walls, definitely white grout with subway tile. Big problem for us was later-added grab bars in the shower stall. Tile bled all kinds of ugly rusty stain from those bars. If you don't get at it quick, it's permanent, even with CLR stain fighter recommended to me by Mr. Hunk, Carter Oosterhouse (HGTV). My husband swears the grab bars were properly caulked by the handyman; uh, NOT!

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  27. Good job! It looks great. I've done this several times before. It's not really hard, and the improvement is very rewarding. Btw, I squeegee the shower every time I use it (finishing with a quick wipe with a dry washcloth). I never have to scrub, despite our very hard water. It only takes a minute - totally worth it.

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  28. Are you a girly girl who is a fix-it girl? I LOVE that. It's inspirational. Why wait for my husband to do something like this when it's bugging me SO much. You did a great job. Isn't that nice subway tile? It's sparkly Mr. Clean now. Small tasks with accomplishment like this can leave a person so uplifted. Sometimes we don't know how much all the little household maintenance to-do's needle at us and bring us down. Constant irritants, easily (or somewhat easily) rectified with just a little motivation and elbow grease!

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  29. From one do it yourself girl to another, Great Job!
    Isn't it scary how things around the house get mucky seemingly overnight?
    I think it might be Gnomes. LOL
    Brandi

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  30. Oh my -- another reality for me to face!! Thanks for the motivation. Hope my caulking job turns out as nicely as yours. Good Job!!
    Missy M

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  31. Please fly here and action mine! xxxx

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  32. Wow, doing this yourself saved a ton of money. I would have been lazy and hired someone! Good job Janet!

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  33. Nice work! My bathroom is long overdue for some new caulking. Thanks for sharing your DIY talents with us. I really think that you should have your own show on HGTV. Cooking, bargain hunting for fashion, home decorating and repair and of course, living simply with taste. What can't you do?

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  34. Sometimes I look at my bathroom and know it needs new caulking, but I never seem to get around to it. However, I think knowing more about can help me eventually sit down and do it. This blog post was instructive in how it is done. I liked the pictures. http://www.georgewsmithandson.com/company.html

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kindness is never out of style.

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