How to remove silicone sealant?

Silicone sealant is one of the most popular means of sealing joints against water and air currents. This is due to its ease of use and low price. But at the time of use, it can stain the surface or work clothes. In addition, over time, the product loses color, collapses, peels off, becomes covered with a fungus. Two questions arise: how to remove the old sealant and how to remove the silicone agent that accidentally stains the surface or clothing?

A silicone sealant is a mixture of rubber, enhancer, adhesion primer, plasticizer, vulcanizer, colorants, mechanical fillers, and fungicides. This composition makes the product plastic, sticky, antibacterial, capable of hardening at room temperature. The dyes help to blend in with the surface color. It is this set of properties that gave widespread use of sealant: it can be automotive, sanitary, aquarium, universal, etc.

But the point is not only in the field of application, but also in the basis that was used in the manufacture of the composition. Stains can remain from acrylic, and from polyurethane, bitumen, thiokol and, in fact, silicone sealant. That's why it is important to remember which medium was used for the work. In addition, silicone itself is acidic and neutral. This is important when removing stains, otherwise surface or clothing could be damaged.

But now you can buy a combined sealant that has absorbed the best qualities of all types. It consists of:

• silicone - 26%;
• rubber mastic - 4-6%;
• thiokol / polyurethane / acrylic mastic - 2-3%;
• epoxy resins - no more than 2%;
• cement mixtures - no more than 0.3%.

In the case of using such a composition, several products may be needed to remove stains, rather than one.

The set of tools and accessories will depend on how the sealant is removed:

• rubbing;
• softening (dissolution);
• laundering;
• cutting;
• scraping.

It is clear that the methods were divided into mechanical and chemical. For a mechanical one you may need the following accessories:

• clerical or construction knife;
• scissors;
• screwdriver;
• metal spatula;
• sandpaper;
• scraper;
• abrasives in the form of powder (including salt) and compressed material such as pumice;
• polyethylene bag.

For the chemical, a wide variety of food, pharmaceutical and industrial preparations are used:

• vinegar essence (70%);
• ethanol;
• solvent "Penta-840";
• Antisil solvent;
• White Spirit;
• petrol;
• remover to remove polyurethane foam;
• wipers;
• Dow Corning OS-2 and Dow Corning DS-2025;
• Logatto;
• CRC Gasket Remover;
• Quilosa.

In any case, you should always have cloth napkins or rags to match the sealant on hand. Do not use a colored cloth to remove white or transparent sealant - the pigment will remain on the product. When using chemical compositions be sure to wear gloves. Some drugs have a pungent odor, so it is best to use a respirator or medical mask.

If silicone is removed from a hard surface, be sure that the removers will not damage the surface and will only act on the sealant. If there is a risk of damage, it is better to glue or cover the surface with a protective material. When using chemical compounds, the surface to be treated should be dried. You shouldn't use several drugs at the same time.unless prescribed by the recipe. The combination of chemicals can be detrimental to the surface.

A transparent or colored sealant, when dry, becomes an elastic mass firmly attached to the surface. This mass reacts weakly to mechanical or chemical action. The method of removing the sealant will depend on the surface material.

Glass or plastic panels have the weakest adhesion to the surface as they are the smoothest. When removing from a table top, you must use non-toxic products, so that later it was safe to use the table. A bathtub surface covered with acrylic paint can lose it if the wrong chemical is selected. Porous tiles or tiles will require more effort than a smooth surface. When acid-containing compounds are used on steel surfaces, it can oxidize and rust.

Despite all the warnings, some still work without gloves. As a result, hands are stained with sealant. The question inevitably arises of how to wash it. You can start with the simplest mechanical tools:

1. The hand is carefully rubbed with a polyethylene bag. Then it is washed with soap under warm water. The procedure is repeated several times.
2. Salt half-dissolved in warm water is rubbed with a pumice stone on the hands. The procedure will have to be repeated several times to achieve the effect.

To remove the composition from tiles or tiles, use clerical or construction knife. If you need to clean the joint between the tub and the wall, you can use a screwdriver.But if the sealant is not too old, then you can try to pry it off anywhere: it may have retained its adhesive properties and can be easily removed from the recess with a whole strip. If there is no concern about scratching the surface, a metal straight or angled trowel can be used.

It is reasonable to use a mechanical method of removing the composition from glass, plastic or MDF countertops, since no chemical constituents will remain on the table. But there is a danger of scratching the surface. Therefore, you need to use a thin, sharp knife or blade. If this method does not help, then you can use kitchen abrasives mixed with water: salt, cleaning powder.

Sandpaper is used if minor repairs are carried out. For example, before painting the bathtub, it is easier to remove the old sealant with a strong abrasive, without fear of damaging the paint. You can use a kitchen scraper instead of sandpaper.

After removing the base layer by any mechanical method, wipe the surface with a dry cloth. Matte stains will be visible on the surface. To get rid of them, wet table salt is poured into several layers of gauze, wrapped in the form of a tampon and wiped with it.

It is not always possible to do only with a mechanical method of getting rid of the old composition. Sometimes, in order not to scratch the surface, it is easier to dissolve it. In other cases, the old sealant cannot be cut off, and then it must first be softened with the help of chemical compounds. At home, one-component solvents are used, which differ in the type of vulcanizing agent for acidic and neutral. Acetic essence belongs to acidic substances. Neutral ones are amine, amide, oxide, alcohol.

You can clean the sealant from the skin with alcohol, white spirit, acetone, gasoline. After processing the skin, wash your hands with warm water and soap. For use on inorganic surfaces, universal products are used: Antisil or "Penta-80"... If it is necessary to remove the old sealant, it is treated with a solvent and left for several hours. Only then is it cut off with a knife.

To remove the adhesive from plastic surfaces, including pipes, you can use Dow Corning OS-2... It is not capable of damaging plastic, it is also suitable for acrylic surfaces. That is why they can remove the sealant from the acrylic bathtub. To do this, Dow Corning OS-2 must be applied to the sealant and left to soften, then pry off and remove from the joint. Wipe the surface to be treated with a dry, clean cloth and degrease.

When treating the surface with gasoline, you will have to wait about an hour for softening, then wipe off the seal. To get rid of traces of gasoline, the surface is treated with a conventional dish or glass cleaner.

Foreign chemical drugs Dow Corning OS-2 and Dow Corning DS-2025, Logatto, CRC Gasket Remover, Quilosa stronger than domestic counterparts, moreover, they have a gentle composition. This is how they attract buyers.

Any previously described method suggests that it is not so easy to clean the silicone sealant. Therefore, if it gets on your clothes, you should not wait for it to dry: the sooner the removal process begins, the easier it will be to do. There are several ways to do this:

1. If the stain has not dried, the clothes need to be pulled, then the sealant, which has turned into a thin film, is picked up with a sharp knife and removed from the surface.
2. Put the contaminated item in a clean bag, which is placed in the freezer for several hours. After taking out the clothes, you need to stretch it in the place of adhesion with the sealant and remove the silicone film.
3. Apply a wash to remove polyurethane foam to the stain and wait until it dries. Use a fingernail or a sharp knife to pick up the silicone remover and remove from the fabric. Wash clothes with detergent.After applying this method, the clothes are completely cleaned of the sealant.
4. Any solvent from the above should be applied to the stain, covered with a clean cloth and ironed with a hot iron. These steps can be repeated several times.
5. Apply a little vegetable oil to the stain and leave for a few minutes. The oil will begin to dissolve the silicone. Use a tissue swab to remove any coagulated sealant. It is best to wipe off the stain using detergent and a brush. Only then wash the item completely.
6. If the sealant is stuck on the clothes, then the stain should be soaked in vinegar essence for 30 minutes, then wiped off with a regular cloth.
7. Moisten the stain with vodka, medical or technical alcohol and rub it with a stiff-bristled brush. You can use a pumice stone instead of a brush. The silicone rolls into pellets and is removed from the item.
8. Apply a dichlorvos-type repellent to the stain. After a while, the solvent in the repellent will soften the silicone and can be removed.

Removal of old sealant is usually done for replacement purposes. After that, the surface is washed, dried and degreased. For further use, you need to choose the right type of silicone composition:

• Acidic silicone is not suitable for use on metal surfaces. But it has excellent adhesion to glass, ceramic tiles and plastics, wood and wood-based materials. Neutral silicone is not an oxidizing agent and therefore has a wider range of applications. But the price is also higher.
• The sealant is produced in tubes or cans, for which you need to buy a construction gun. It is many times more economical to use a can with a gun. But if you need to process a small surface, then it is quite possible to get by with a tube.
• The applied layer should not protrude from the joint, this will reduce adhesion. If the gaps are too large, they are first sealed with other seals, and only at the final stage a sealant is applied.

When storing silicone sealant in its original packaging at a temperature of 0-20 degrees, it is suitable for use within 12 months. During operation, the ambient temperature can be from +5 to +40 degrees. But when used in hot weather, the curing time is doubled.

Before using this sealant, you need to clearly understand the finale of the work: paint does not apply to the silicone sealant, which means that it will be impossible to paint over it. If such a procedure was intended, then it is better to buy another type of sealant and first try to paint over it.

For information on how to properly remove sealant stains, see the next video.