Thread: Is latex painters caulk ok to use on props?

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Hi everyone!

I was wondering if the latex painters caulk that sells for about $1 per tube can be used for outdoor static props and corpsing buckies? I don't thinkk I need a whole gallon and while going through home depot today I came across this and remembered using it around the home in past years:

painters caulk

I know alot of people use carpet glue for their corpsing but I just can't seem to get the hang of using that stuff. Maybe I got the wrong stuff cuz by the time I finished using it I had half the loose items in my garage and house stuck to me (I think the cat was stuck to my leg) and was quite tough to wash off. I was hoping latex caulk would work for filling glue cracks in tombstones and corpsing buckies.

(edit) oh yeah, one more thing...you guys rock! Love the site

I always have tubes of silicone caulk in my halloween prop kit.

The stuff you're thinking of using is acrylic latex so it's pretty much the same animal as silicone.

I don't know about corpsing, but caulk is perfect for sealing seams on stones and other transitions. It will stay slightly flexible but will be waterproof and should definitely be paintable.

I would think that you could use it slightly thinned out to do corpsing, but hopefully some of the others that have experience with that will answer.

I wouldn't think the painters caulk would penetrate or be absorbed by pantyhose (if you're going that route) but if you are going for the more bulbous look and are applying directly to bone I suppose it might give an interesting look to your corpse.

I think the caulk would work fine and FG had a good idea to thin it a bit first - maybe you could mix in a little paint and change the color at the same time? I also had heard that the carpet glue was the thing to use but people complained about the mess and the smell and then I found this liquid latex at Michael's called "Mold Builder Liquid Latex" by Castin' Craft that I have since used several times with success. It is still messy but it doesn't really smell like anything and unless you put it on really thick it drys fairly quickly.

I wanted to give this thread a bump because I just went to Lowes today to pick up a box of that caulk FirstSpartan posted. I never noticed it before, but I tried it out on a canon prop I'm working on and it's wonderful... dries pretty quick, easy to use, and cheap! No idea how durable it is or anything.

Anyway... nice and cheap.

hey, thanks for the hands on info DeadTed. I'll be using some in the next week or so on some props as well. Including corpsing on some buckies. I'm going to try the pantyhose method for part of it to see how it does and see if it gets absorbed like Walkingcorpse was asking.
keep us informed on how you think it's holding up I'm glad to know it's got a good track record with fellow haunters like FG too.

Thanks for all the info everyone!

Ok... applied this stuff yesterday... has a pretty quick drying time, but DOES NOT bond as well as I would have hoped... I tried to use it as a "glue" to hold two pieces together, and it just gives way to much - to the point of being easy to pull apart (specifically, a piece of PVC through a concrete cardboard tube... tried to caulk it so the PVC wouldn't move...)... So... before you use this stuff, I think I'd suggest using some stronger adhesive FIRST... this is good for filler.... it 'hardens' enough for me to use it for light applications and small-bonding issues, but nothing major.

Just, FYI.

can't offer much advice on using caulk on props, but i can on using caulk!!!

the acrylic caulk (or decoraters caulk) is the most common and cheapest (in relation to silicon sealant)

acrylic caulk can be easily overpainted with all paints and dries in about 60mins

silicon caulk is waterproof (unlike acrylic) but cannot be painted over and takes longer to dry - it does however work better than acrylic as an adhesive.

you can generally tell the difference by how easy it comes off your fingers!!!!

Thanks daz. Since my prop will be outside, I'm thinking a layer of silicon first, then if I need to build it up more have a thicker coat around the edges, creases, and corners, I'll use the acrylic... I think I just got really excited, because like you said, it dries in an hour and comes off your hands easily

I've got some other caulk that is taking just forever to dry. It's rained every day for 3 weeks, so humidity is not helping.

Originally Posted by dazgill

can't offer much advice on using caulk on props, but i can on using caulk!!!

silicon caulk is waterproof (unlike acrylic) but cannot be painted over and takes longer to dry - it does however work better than acrylic as an adhesive.

Gotta say that I've been painting my silicone caulk projects for years and it's never had a problem taking paint. I'm sure it's silicone too. Shhh, don't tell it that it isn't supposed to do that!

Also, "acrylic" dries to a plastic polymer - plastic is almost always waterproof I would think, or at the very least water resistant (as in, don't expect to submerge it and come out perfect, but will hold up to a little rain).

I wouldn't use caulk as an adhesive - it's a sealant and if it has sticky properties, that's great but that's not it's primary function.