Caulking--how to use a caulk gun to get good results

Using a caulking gun to get an even bead of caulk definitely takes some practice but hopefully these tips will help.

We recently had to caulk around newly installed windows in our kitchen and along the back of the counter where it meets the backsplash.  For both jobs we used a caulk gun (see photo).

To use a caulk gun, cut off the tip of the caulk tube at an angle using an utility knife. Don't cut too much, you can always remove more and if the hole is too large it can be hard to get an even bead of caulk.  Then put the tube into the gun and get ready to go. Make sure to have some rags and a small dish of water on hand. 

Squeeze the trigger and practice laying down an even bead of caulk.  When you're caulking the real thing, put the tip of the tube into the crack and drag it along so the pointy tip on the end of the tube is following the hole (hopefully you can see that in the photo, you want to have the tip angled into the crack you are filling). Apply even pressure and move slowly but steadily along.

When you reach the end of the seam, click the release mechanism on the back of the gun (it's silver in the photo on our red caulk gun). This will release the pressure and stop the gun from oozing caulk when you set it aside.

Once you've got the bead of caulk in place, dip your finger in the water and run it along the bead to smooth it out and press it into the crack. This is also the time you will remove any lumps or excess caulk so have your rag ready. Be sure to keep your finger wet or you will have a mess!  Now just wait for the caulk to dry.

A few tips about choosing caulk, for applications where there will be a lot of water contact (showers, counters etc) choose a caulk with silicone. 100% silicone is great but you can't paint it so in our case we needed a paintable caulk with some silicone for the countertop. For around the windows we used a paintable latex caulk with no silicone for maximum paintability in the area we don't expect to get wet.