What Caulk (Not Grout) in Your Shower Corners Tells You About the Build
Every time I post a reel about where to use silicone when tiling. Without fail, there’s a storm in the comments. Many architects and builders say, yes they always do it. One builder texted me questioning if I’d ever work with someone who isn’t doing that. As in, that’s a bad thing.
That’s all good but what’s worrying is there is a more vocal majority, the ones who say it’s antiquated or ugly or unnecessary. These are the same people who’s entire sales pitch is “I’ve done this a thousand times”. That’s persuasive to many homeowners. But is it in your best interest?
I tend to keep an open mind when these polarizing conversations break out. I don’t assume I’m always right. And if you run a project like that you’re asking for trouble. There has to be room for discussion. But for this case, it is the most cited detail in the Tile Council of North America’s entire handbook. I’m not just making stuff up to be difficult.
But that’s not really the point. There’s infinite decisions like this in a house that go under a clients radar. And who’s making the call? Someone who knows or someone who’s doing what They always did whether it was right or not,
I spent an inordinate amount of time on a small project trying to get both the WA energy code to pass yet also making sure the design of the dew point in the roof assembly would not result in a wet sheathing. Kinda important in WA 8 months of the year.
Did I lose you with the “dew point” thing? I’ll summarize it briefly: if we can control where condensation happens, we can do it in a part of the wall or roof where it has a chance to dry, as opposed to being trapped and rotting from the inside.
Having a reliable library of details is good, but with today’s energy code, I find we are doing more customized building enclosures to find a happy medium between comfort, cost, and longevity.
Nobody’s going to know if I didn't do that work and just stopped at passing code.
Nobody’s going to know if I don’t call out for silicone at changes of plane to keep your tile from cracking.
Nobody’s going to know a hundred and 99 other things that I could call out for, or that a builder leaves out because it’s just a silly architect making things more complicated.