Check Caulk to Keep Maintenance Costs Low

If you are in charge of maintenance or remodeling the only bathroom in a customer’s home or commercial property, time can be of the essence. Keeping mold and mildew at bay is a major concern, along with sealing potential leakage areas, which can cause costly repairs down the road.

Proper caulking in bathrooms and kitchens is of utmost concern to keep water from penetrating behind fixtures, which can in time cause water damage or mold. Since these rooms are used daily, caulking can crack or loosen from constant water contact. Therefore, surveying caulking seams regularly during property and building maintenance checks is vital to your bottom line and the health of your tenants. Check the edge around tubs and shower stalls, shower door frames, spigots and handles inside the tubs and showers, stall base, floor joints, toilets, sinks and countertops. If any of the caulk around these areas is cracked, shrunken, missing or moldy, it’s time to recaulk.

Another reason to recaulk is to give the rooms a fresh look for new tenants or guests. Old or severely discolored caulking should be completely removed and the area properly cleaned and dried before new caulk is applied. If you caulk over soap scum, mold or mildew, discolorations can bleed through the caulk and, in time, the caulk will peel away from the surface costing more time and money in repairs.

Looking for caulks which have added mold & mildew resistors for the kitchen and bath area is helpful in controlling the growth of mold & mildew. Yet, ensure the caulk is being cleaned regularly by the cleaning staff to stop the breeding ground of mold & mildew, such as soap scum.

When time is of the essence, the new product by Henkel, POLYSEAMSEAL® SPEED SEAL™ Silicone Sealant, will significantly cut the amount of time required to wait before the bathroom or kitchen can be utilized. This product can withstand water contact in two hours, which is 12 times faster than traditional sealants. Therefore, bathrooms & kitchens can be utilized in two hours. Single bathroom customers and tenants are happier as they no longer need to wait 24 hours to use these rooms, and hotels no longer have to wait to re-book the rooms that need this type of maintenance.

This simple, quick and easy maintenance project will help keep your buildings and rooms sealed up, leak proof and looking like new. In the long run, this simple & easy maintenance project will keep damage costs down.

(POLYSEAMSEAL SPEED SEAL Silicone Sealant White Item# 279963 & Clear Item# 279962.)