Deciding to skip the professional call
It started when I noticed a faint, damp smell near the living room window after the rainy season kicked into high gear. Every time the wind picked up, I could feel a draft. I looked at the old, cracked sealant along the window frame and thought, why pay a professional caulking company two or three hundred thousand won for something that looks like just squeezing a tube of silicone? My neighbor had done it once with a simple DIY kit, and he didn’t seem to have any issues afterward. I figured I could do the same thing on a Saturday morning, maybe spend about twenty thousand won on supplies at the local hardware store and call it a day.
The reality of hanging out of a window
I didn’t realize how terrifying it feels to lean out of a fourth-story window until I actually had the caulk gun in my hand. Even with a safety harness that felt slightly too loose, I spent most of the time shaking. It wasn’t like watching a video where everything is smooth and steady. The surface was dusty and crumbly, which meant the new silicone wouldn’t stick unless I scraped every last bit of the old stuff off. I spent nearly two hours just scraping with a small utility knife, which is much harder when your arms are stretched out and you’re trying to keep your balance. I kept worrying that a piece of the old caulk would fall on someone walking their dog below. It was a nervous, messy experience that definitely wasn’t as relaxing as I’d imagined.
Why the result doesn’t look like the photos
When I finally got to applying the actual material, it looked… messy. The line wasn’t straight at all, and I kept stopping to wipe my hands because I’d accidentally smeared it on the aluminum frame. I used a standard neutral cure silicone I found on the shelf. I read later that there are specific types for window frames versus, say, bathroom tiles, but I just grabbed what looked right. The tube was heavy and hard to control. After I smoothed it out with a plastic spatula, it looked okay from a distance, but up close, it’s clearly the work of someone who has never done this before. I can still see where I hesitated midway through the bottom track.
Waiting for the next heavy rain
It has been about two weeks since I finished, and I’m still not entirely sure if I actually fixed the leak or just covered it up. The smell seems a bit better, but I won’t really know until we get another heavy storm. There’s a lingering doubt in the back of my mind that maybe the moisture is actually coming from behind the frame, where the liquid waterproofing might be failing, not just the visible silicone. If the leak persists, I’ll probably have to call an expert to do an injection waterproofing job, which will cost significantly more than if I had just skipped my amateur attempt in the first place.
Is it worth the stress?
If you ask me if I saved money, technically, yes. I spent around 25,000 won for the gun and two tubes of sealant. But if I account for the hours I spent sweating on the window ledge and the anxiety I felt every time I heard a noise from below, I’m not sure it was worth it. I keep looking at the uneven line of silicone every time I open the curtains, and it bothers me more than the original crack did. Next time, I think I’ll just bite the bullet and pay someone who has the proper ladder equipment and doesn’t look like they’re about to faint while working. For now, I’m just keeping a damp towel on the windowsill and waiting for the next rain.