Life Caulk Removal

[DemiJohn]

Any recommendations on how to easily remove life caulk in a teak deck?

[JimConlin]

There are some specialized blades for the Fein Multimaster.
http://www.nextag.com/caulking-removal/search-html

I recollect that some have sung praises.

[pcford]

Any recommendations on how to easily remove life caulk in a teak deck?

Do you mean the Boat life which is in the seams on a deck?

[DemiJohn]

The blade looks like what I need exactly to remove the caulk between the boards on deck. On the web site it looks like it's just an individual hand told that you hold and pull. Is that correct or does it fit into a handle, etc.? Thanks for this recommendation. It will save much time.

[JimConlin]

The Fein Multimaster is a very good power tool which can be used for a variety of small jobs.
http://www.coastaltool.com/a/fein/images/multimaster_xl_kit.jpg

They are not inexpensive, are well made and do some specialized jobs very well.

[DemiJohn]

Thanks Jim. Now I understand.

[Jay Greer]

If you can use a air hammer, there is a tool used in the body and fender trade that will work. It is called a panel splitter. The tool fits into the air hammer and consists of a flat steel plate that has a tooth protruding through the bottom. When the tooth is ground to fit a deck seam, it makes short work of reefing out old seam compound.

There is also a tool that Japanese fish mongers use for pulling fish out of storage trays. This is a single steel claw that is attached to a comfortable wooden handle. The handle looks like a deer's foot and will not give blisters to the user. I grind the claw to fit the seams to be reefed and hollow grind the back with a Dremmel ball bit. The claw should be also ground to a taper to prevent it from binding on the sides of the seams.
JG

[DemiJohn]

But doesn't the protruding tooth run the risk of gouging the teak? It seems like you would need a template to keep the tooth running straigth. Any ideas where to buy the fish monger tool?

[fixmyboat]

just bend and old file handle and grind an appropriate hook on it. Use a heat gun and keep it sharp. Im sure sombody has a pic of one.
gluck

[reeljob]

Get some Boat Life Release in a spray bottle. It dissolves the caulk (you have to "work" it into the caulk) and makes cleanup of cured caulk very simple. Not sure how it will effect teak, but it works very well on fiberglass surfaces. If you get it on something you don;t want to come up, just let it evaporate.

[DemiJohn]

Grinding on a piece of steel to make a hook is sure alot less expensive than the Fein idea. I'm sure that's a great product and will do the job beautifully but at $350 +, I like the idea of the steel and grinding providing it's not to labor intensive. I assume a place like West Marine sells Boat Life Release. I'll look into that as well. Thanks.

[Jay Greer]

But doesn't the protruding tooth run the risk of gouging the teak? It seems like you would need a template to keep the tooth running straigth. Any ideas where to buy the fish monger tool?

The cutter tooth on the panel splitter is ground to fit the seam. It is easy to see through the throat in the plate. Hence it is easy to guide. The air gun is set to a slow blow setting, just enough to keep it cutting. I have done thousands of feet of deck seams using this set up.
The fish and package hook can be purchased through Hida Tool Supply in Berkley CA., The Japan Woodworker in Alameda CA or from a Japanese Hardware store such as Anzen Hardware in Los Angeles.
JG

[Mike Vogdes]

This site shows a screwdriver modified to reef deck joints, looks like it would work pretty good.

http://detcomarine.com/dcaulkappl.htm