Refresh caulk at baseboards and trim
Cracked caulk lines make the whole room look neglected, 20 minutes of work to fix.
What you'll learn
- Why paintable acrylic caulk (not silicone) for interior trim
- How to cut the caulk tube tip at the right angle
- The wet-finger smoothing technique that makes caulk disappear
- When old caulk needs removal first vs. caulking over
Step by step
- Cut the caulk tube tip at a 45° angle, opening about 1/8".
- Load the tube in the caulk gun, puncture the inner seal.
- Apply a thin continuous bead along the gap between trim and wall.
- Wet your finger and smooth the bead in one continuous pass.
- Check the tube for its paint-ready time, then paint over the cured bead.
Safety note
If old caulk is separating from the wall, scrape it out with a utility knife before laying fresh, caulking over failed caulk just looks thicker a month later when it fails again.
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