I have a big job coming up. Re-caulking 100 wooden window sills on an old brick factory building. The work will be in the next month or so in Massachusetts, so colder weather will be a factor. I’ll be using a dynaflex 230 or sidewinder type caulking. The only source of power will be a generator.
I’ve had no experience using either type og gun, only used manual guns. The amount of caulking to be done and the conditions warrant a power or air gun, I think. I just don’t know which is better. The 12v milwaukee looks nice, however you can pick up an air gun for $40.
Please steer me in the right direction. Thanks in adavance for all advice.
Brian O’Shaughnessy
Replies
don't know about the gun... but saw a guy with one of those 12v coolers that heats or cools... it's where he kept his caulk in cold weather... warm caulk hmmm i'd keep the warmed tubes in my jeans til it was time to use em.... that in itself might make me popular :)
p
12v cooler?
from a tool company or plug in the truck type?
from wal-mart... or a truck stop... i know they heat or cool and plug into a cig lighter but all i've seen come with a power supply where you can use em 120v also
p
That's a good idea. I'll look into that. I was going to put a heat lamp inside a cooler, but you're idea is alot safer. Thanks again.
Keeping my caulk warm is one of the biggest problems I have in the winter. Sometimes my fingers and toes get cold too. But cold caulk.... man that's a killer.View Image
warm it then keep it in your jeans... all the ladies will smile and all the guys will wonder
p
That's where I always keep my caulk. View Image
I like to keep my caulk in cider.
Speaking of caulking..hope everyone has seen this hilarious Home and Garden TV skit from Saturday Night Live
http://www.metacafe.com/watch/5_0115/home_garden_tv/
I have an pnuematic caulk gun and like it a lot. I have not used a cordless drill model, but suspect that you will go through a lot of batteries with stiff, cold caulk. You are going to be running the generator to just charge batteries, so why not just run the compressor and only stop to reload caulk tubes, instead of batteries and tubes?
I managed to use up some old butyl caulk that I couldn't come close to pumping through a hand gun. Just cranked the pressure up a few more pounds. The pnuematic gun has a sealed tube, like a grease gun, and no plunger, so the caulk tube don't rupture as readily as an open barrel caulk gun.
Dave
Thanks for the info. What make and/or model do you use?
Jet model# JSG 9907
Dave
you can pick up a ryobi at HD for around 100 bucks with 2 batteries...
The choice of gun seems secondary to the choice of caulk, especially in MA in cold weather. Dynaflex and Sidewinder are very different from each other, at least according to DAP's tech bulletins. Dynaflex should be applied when air temps are 40 degrees "and rising". Sidewinder is more agreeable to cold weather application, but costs a little bit more.
I always thought the cordless or air guns would be nice for squirting the big tubes of adhesives in cold weather, but regular size tubes of caulk go pretty quick, even if it's a bit cool outside. Seems like the extra weight of a cordless gun, keeping batteries charged, etc. or the hassle of dragging around compressor and hose, especially if working on ladders, would actually add time to the job.
I have been using the 18v Ridgid caulking gun for over a year now and absolutely love the thing. I do take a lot of crap for using it but I have had tendons in my hand that slip and a grinding wrist since I was a child, making using a manual caulking gun unbearable. Two huge benefits to the gun are the speed at which it can lay material on the high speed and the simple precision at low. A 30oz tube can be dispensed in around a minute and you can be extremely precise by not releasing the handle.
As for the battery life, I have never met a tool that will go as long as this thing without quiting (I think that is a quintuple entrandre). I rarely charge the thing and it will hold for a good two months. I am sure the milwaukee is a decent tool, but the "lifetime" warranty got me.
I have a 12v Ryobi.... Love it.... did 4 windows yesterday on a total replacement job... it only took about 5 minute for all 4.... no tooling or smoothing with the old finger..... My only compaint is there is no box or case for the tool...
that would be a nice add on.
Here's another vote for the battery-powered Ridgid. I've got last year's model that only runs on their 18 volt batteries (the new ones use either the 18 or the 24). It will take either the small size tubes or the large. I can slow it way down or speed it up, and the batteries recharge in 20 minutes.
My only problem with it occured when I was trying to use a full-sized tube of old leftover PL. The adhesive wasn't coming out the nozzle, so like a dummy I turned up the speed/pressure, forcing the PL out the bottom of the tube and into the gun. What a mess. I spent the next hour cleaning out as much adhesive out of the caulking gun as I could. I then sprayed Wd40 or something into everything, and fortunately it still works as good as ever.
Dusty & Lefty