Glad to hear silicone's working out for you. Did you prep the surface much beforehand? I remember when I sealed ours, I skipped a bit on the cleaning step (rookie mistake, I know...) and ended up redoing half of it after a year. But since then, it's held up great through some pretty nasty storms. Curious about that alcohol trick though—wish I'd known sooner myself, would've saved me some headaches.
"Curious about that alcohol trick though—wish I'd known sooner myself, would've saved me some headaches."
Yeah, the alcohol trick is a lifesaver. I learned it the hard way too—first time sealing our shelter, I thought a quick wipe-down would be enough. Nope... silicone peeled right off after a few months. Second round, I cleaned thoroughly with rubbing alcohol, and it's been rock solid ever since. Cheap fix, easy to do, and definitely worth the extra 15 minutes of prep.
Wish I'd known about the alcohol trick sooner myself. First time I sealed ours, I just used soap and water, figuring "clean is clean," right? Well, turns out silicone doesn't agree with me on that one. It started peeling up at the edges after a few months—had to scrape the whole thing off and redo it. Not fun at all.
Second round, I hit it with rubbing alcohol first like you guys mentioned, and it's been holding solid ever since. Honestly, kinda satisfying to see it still looking good after weathering some nasty storms. Definitely worth the extra step... though my knees might argue otherwise after crawling around on concrete for so long, lol.
Yeah, silicone can be picky about prep. Learned that the hard way myself sealing a shower—soap and water just doesn't cut it. Alcohol's good, but acetone works even better if you've got stubborn residue or old silicone bits left behind. Just make sure you're ventilated. Knees definitely pay the price, but seeing it hold up long-term makes it worth the hassle...mostly.
"Knees definitely pay the price, but seeing it hold up long-term makes it worth the hassle...mostly."
Haha, I feel this. Did a similar silicone job around our basement windows last fall—thought soap and water would be enough, but nope. Ended up redoing half of it after winter hit. Wish I'd known about acetone back then; would've saved me some headaches (and knee aches). But yeah, totally agree—seeing your work hold strong through storms and seasons makes the extra prep worth every penny and sore muscle.
