Caulk tube exploded in my face on a second floor deck

I was out in Austin sealing a deck joint last Friday, mid squeeze and the bottom of the tube blew out. Caulk shot straight up under my safety glasses and into my hair, sticky mess everywhere. Took me 20 minutes with mineral spirits and a rag to clean up, plus I had to redo the whole seam. Anyone else had a tube fail like that, or was it just a cheap brand mistake?

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the_hayden29d ago

Dodged that bullet last year with a siamese style failure on a tube of quad max. Bottom blew out and it shot sideways like a snake, got it all over my ladder and the siding before I could drop it. Heard a buddy say warm tubes do that, they get too soft and the crimp lets go. I started poking the plunger a few times before I squeeze hard now, like a test run to find the weak spots. Also learned to keep a rag and some citrus cleaner in the truck, because mineral spirits on skin is its own kind of misery. Sounds like you got the worst of it though, that shot to the face is a nightmare.

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kai_webb9129d ago

That "shoot sideways like a snake" line hit home too hard, I've had a tube do that exact thing and it's almost funny how fast it goes bad. Idk if anyone else has tried this but I started keeping the tube in a cooler with a water bottle in the summer, keeps the caulk stiff enough that the crimp holds better. @the_hayden, the plunger poke trick is solid but I also tape the bottom of the tube now, just a few wraps around the crimp so if it does let go it's not a full blowout. Might save you a shower with that citrus cleaner next time.

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