Test House

I have a new perspective that is helping me tackle some of the more daunting home improvement projects and it is this: Our house is just a "Test" house. This house is just for us to try out our skills or get better at them so we're ready for our next house.

In other words, before moving in I didn't know how to tackle painting paneling. We tested it out and discovered that you should have more ventilation when applying primer. Lost a lot of brain cells to that test.

AND

I didn't really know how to change a light-switch. Let's test it out. OK, maybe I didn't need to turn the power off to the entire house, but I didn't get electrocuted.

So when I got the idea in my head to re-caulk the tub, i didn't worry that I had NO IDEA what I was getting into. It's just a test.

So let me just fill you in on what I learned.
Removing caulk:
The people that flipped our house didn't know the meaning of craftsmanship
Mold isn't as gross and slimy when it's dry
A razor blade can't get all the caulk off but it will scrap plastic off the bath-fitter
Old caulk doesn't come off in nice big strips like on TV
This was a bigger job than I anticipated
I should have planned where to shower before I got started.

Applying Caulk
Make sure you have a working caulk gun BEFORE the store closes
This is a good one - you can cut the tip of the caulk, but nothing will come out until you break the seal
DO NOT TOUCH THE CAULK it is sticky and will stick to everything
Do not get meticulous—the clumps come from trying to add more, clean up, or smooth out the caulk
Have a wet rag handy (or a couple of them if you're new to this)
Warn the spouse that no criticism will be tolerated, since I had the guts to take on the daunting task, i mean test.

Finally, last lesson - clean up's a bitch, which is why I still haven't done it yet.