About 6 months ago, we hired a remodeler/carpenter to install a new bathroom vanity top. They caulked around the vanity and it looked good until a couple of months ago, when it started to gap and tear away from the wall. The wall, which we painted before the vanity was installed, is a glossy paint. I called the remodeler who said that it could be dry and hot air that affects the silicon. So, today, he came back and put some new silicone over the old. It looked ok when he left, but now is buckling again! Here are my questions:
- Why is this happening?
- Can I simply pick away the silicon and can we reinstall?
- Is silicone the best caulk for a bathroom vanity (to fill in the gaps between vanity and wall)?enter image description here
UPDATE: thanks to good suggestions, I used a "level" on both the countertop and the floor. The "bubble" in the level is the same — slightly off-center to the left — on both the countertop and floor, leading me to believe that the settling of the house is to blame. Ok, so I can't fix that settling, but how can I at least fill in the gap between the countertop and wall?
Best Answer
This looks like something is shifting and pulling the caulk off the wall. My guess would be the vanity top shifted a bit on top of the vanity cabinet due to not being secured enough to the vanity.
Silicone caulk shouldn't be applied over old silicone caulk. Your contractor should have removed all the old caulk and installed all new caulk. This is something you can and should do.