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Best Caulking's


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There are a lot of areas to keep caulked on an RV. So I am asking folks to recommend the best general purpose flexible caulking they have used. Some of the areas that come to mind are; the leading edge of applied Eternabond tape and EPDM or fiberglass, Rubber D-seals and fiberglass, aluminum door frames and fiberglass, along with miscellaneous exterior trim. There are probably others areas but they escape me as I write. Appreciate hearing your experiences with your favorite caulking.

Later,

J

 

PS Over time I have noted that the areas where I have applied Dictor Lap Seal, both types, become dirt magnets and are difficult to keep clean. Of course I will continue to use on the topside of the roof unless I find something better.

2012 Landmark, San Antonio

2013 Silverado CC, 3500HD, Duramax, DRW, 4x4

Backup, side and hitch cameras, Tireminder TPMS

 

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The best advice is stay away from any silicone products. For me the best caulks are solvent, not water, based. Lexel is my current favorite, stays flexible and sticks well. 3m 5200 is probably the best although expensive. Stay with Dicor for the rubber roof.

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DAP Dynaflex 800 at Home Depot. Non-water base. Mineral spirits clean up.

I got stuck with open seams and rain coming the next day. And didn't have any Dicor on hand.

 

Two days previously, Lance RV Service and Repair in Lancaster, CA applied a water-based caulk to seal about 8-feet of seams.

When finished, they sent us on our way that late afternoon. Within 30 minutes we were encountering light rain and it rained all night.

 

Next morning, their caulk had melted away, dripped down the side of the truck and puddled on the ground.

After two days of drying (in Arizona) I stripped off the old caulk (easy) and bought a tube of Dynaflex 800 at Home Depot.

 

I picked the Dap Dynaflex 800 because it's not silicone or water-based and I've had very good experience with their 230 product on exterior wood products.

 

While this doesn't answer the original question it could be a possible help if one finds themselves in a similar situation.

Or perhaps a tube of Dicor and a caulking gun is one more thing to carry?

 

One day after the factory service caulking:

Lance1.jpg

Lance-white-sands-500.jpg

~Rich

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Thanks all for your comments and experiences.  I will continue to keep Dictor Lap Seal on hand for the roof for sure.  I got a couple tubes of the Geocel ProFlex and it seems to be laying down nice and smooth and a few days later was still white and flexible.  Now all I need is practice applying these so as not to make a mess.  

Later,

2012 Landmark, San Antonio

2013 Silverado CC, 3500HD, Duramax, DRW, 4x4

Backup, side and hitch cameras, Tireminder TPMS

 

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Surprised no one mentioned eternabond. I just ripped off approximately 4 pounds of what I assume was Dicor from my roof and replaced with eternabond. I followed the directions and cleaned with the eternacleaner, used the primer and the roller to get it properly sealed. My guess is that this tape will be on there after I have sold the rv and moved on. It seems rock solid. 

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I had problems on two different occasions with Geoflex that I bought at two different stores.  In both cases I attribute the issue to old material.  Geoflex seems to have a short shelf life.  I have not seen any problems with Dicor and have even successfully used tubes that I knew were several years old. 

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  • 2 weeks later...

I really like 3m 5200 because it will dry under water, it is expensive but it will stay in place and do a great job.  Now comes in a fast dry version and a 5 day version.  Stay flexible and water tight, it comes in white or white.

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