A sealant is a necessary thing not only in the household, but also in professional construction. With it, you can close installation joints and joints so that they become completely impervious to air and moisture. These products are available in plastic cylindrical tubes and in soft packaging.
- Design and principle of operation
- Varieties of pistols
- Mechanical manual
- Pneumatic
- Rechargeable
- Electric
- Features of choice
- User's manual
- Refill plastic cartridge
- How to refill a soft pack sealant
- How to use sealant without a gun
For their use have been developed special pistolsthat make working with sealant not only simple, but also enjoyable. In addition, using a metal gun, you can:
- significantly reduce the expense of the tool itself, which is very important when carrying out a large amount of work (and will help to save well);
- protect the skin of the hands from contact with the sealant (it has high adhesion, and therefore it is very difficult to remove from the skin, leaving an unpleasant oily film);
- without any difficulty apply sealant even to hard-to-reach places (for example, under the bathtub, when it is necessary to close the gaps between the pipes and the drain or walk along the perimeter of the bowl itself).
These guns are reusable. Even low-quality models made of thin metal will help completely empty 2-3 tubes.
On sale now you can find pistols for both amateurs and professionals. Their price segment is very wide, which opens up many opportunities for purchase.
to contents ↑Design and principle of operation
The design of this useful device is extremely simple and consists of the following elements:
- Frame. Designed to hold a plastic tube or bag with sealant and can be of different types: skeletal, half-closed, closed.
- Stock. It is used directly to squeeze the sealant out of the package. Having a wide round plate at the end that abuts against the bottom of the tube, the piston goes forward each time the gun is pressed, pushing the sealant through the nozzle (narrow nozzle).
- Lever mechanism. He is extremely simple. When you press the lever, the system pushes the rod to the allotted distance.
- Latch. This device blocks the stroke of the rod, and in advanced models of pistols it also relieves pressure from it, which eliminates spontaneous squeezing of the sealant from the tube. To pull the rod back, you must first press the tab with your fingers.
Varieties of pistols
Pistols are both manual (you have to make an effort and push the stem forward yourself), and automatic (they are much easier to use and ideal for professionals who need to apply sealant to a large area).
It is necessary to consider in more detail each of the available types of pistols. This useful information will help you understand what advantages and disadvantages each known type has and which one is right for you.
to contents ↑Mechanical manual
This is the simplest, cheapest and most reliable gun (provided that it is made of high-quality metal or aluminum alloy). It was his design that was taken as the basis above.
The open frame allows you to easily load the tube into the gun. At its end there is a special cutout for the packing nozzle, which ensures stable fixation. Such pistols are of standard size and are designed on average for a tube with a volume of 350-500 ml. They are great for domestic needs, because:
- have a balanced design and moderate weight;
- allow full control of the extrusion process of the sealant
- Suitable for reusable use.
Such a gun is unlikely to be useful to qualified craftsmen who always use sealant in their work. But if you are an amateur and one tube is enough for 6-12 months, then it will be an excellent choice.
to contents ↑Pneumatic
As the name implies, this gun provides the movement of the rod due to compressed air, which is supplied from the compressor through a flexible hose. The undeniable advantage of the model is the constant pressure on the bottom of the sealant and the absence of pressure on the hands. It is enough to press the lever once, after which the product will be fed through the nozzle continuously.
This gun is great for experienced builders. Adapting to it, you can make a smooth and uniform seam of great length. Some models are equipped with a special surplus discharge system, which ensures accurate sealant consumption and reduces costs.
The disadvantage of this gun is its binding to the compressor, which limits mobility. Due to this, this model is suitable for work in certain areas.
to contents ↑Rechargeable
This tool has the advantages of a pneumatic gun, but at the same time allows the master to maintain mobility. Due to its high cost cordless guns used mostly by experienced builders and repairmen.
This tool is powered by a lithium-ion battery, the capacity of which is quite enough for several hours of operation.
Electric
The model is similar to a rechargeable one, but in this case the gun does not have its own storage elements, and therefore requires connection to a household power supply. Plus - it works continuously and for a long time, without requiring recharging. Minus - when using it, you must take into account the length of the cord or use extension cords, which limits mobility.
Features of choice
If your work involves the repair of apartments, offices and houses, it is recommended to purchase an electric or battery gun. Its price is quite high, but fully justified by the technical characteristics of the device and its service life.
If you are limited to housework, an ordinary hand gun is suitable for you. The main thing is to ensure the strength of its structure (the skeleton frame should not bend under pressure). An ideal choice would be a model with a half-open cylindrical groove. Such a gun is convenient to hold in your hand and it, as a rule, lasts much longer and does not deform.
As for the professional sphere, an air gun is required here. With it, you can fill in large gaps and mounting joints on floors and spans.
When choosing a gun, make sure of the following:
- The stroke must be smooth and uniform. Otherwise, you will not be able to monitor the consumption of material.
- When pressing the lever there should not be a creak. This is not a fundamental factor, but it will certainly be unpleasant to hear this sound constantly. If you have already purchased a creaky gun, lubricate the moving parts with engine oil.
- The spring should easily return the lever to its original position, otherwise you are tormented by pressing it constantly by hand. Just press the lever a few times and check its accuracy.
- The frame should be perfectly flat.If possible, ask the seller to refill the sealant tube. This will help ensure that the packaging is flat and does not twist.
- The weight of the tool should be optimal. If the gun is too heavy, you will quickly get tired when working with it and will not be able to get to inaccessible places.
Do not buy a model with a too long lever stroke. If you experience difficulty with full pressure, then this tool will not work. A sealant gun should simplify the work, not complicate it. If the lever travels too much, your hand gets tired very quickly and your fingers begin to hurt.
to contents ↑The range of these useful devices is very large today, so do not rush to get the first model you get. Compare them with each other and make sure that the gun fully meets all the requirements above.
User's manual
Now the time has come to consider how to insert the sealant into the gun, how to use this device and where to start. We wrote above that there are two types of sealant packages, and therefore it will be right to consider both options.
to contents ↑
Refill plastic cartridge
This procedure is very simple:
- Release the lock.
- Pull the stem back all the way.
- Place the tube in the frame so that it abuts against the far edge where the nozzle is located.
- Pushing the lever, push the rod and bring it to the bottom of the package.
That's all. The gun with the sealant tucked into it is completely ready, you can get to work.
There is an important nuance here. Cut the plastic nozzle not at a straight line, but at an acute angle (45 degrees). So the likelihood of clogging the hole will be lower, and at the same time you will achieve the optimal flow rate of the sealant. You should not just pierce the nose, as this will make it more difficult to squeeze out the substance.
How to refill a soft pack sealant
Of course, this type of packaging is only suitable for pistols with a completely closed frame, while the device must be equipped with its own nozzle. The principle of refueling itself is similar to the above, but before placing the soft bag in the flask with the retracted rod, it is necessary to cut off its upper edge.
Having placed the packaging all the way, you close the lid with the spout (screw on), then push the sealant to the edge and get to work.
to contents ↑How to use sealant without a gun
There are many difficulties. Firstly, you can immediately forget about the use of soft packaging. It is unlikely that it will be possible to squeeze out a small amount of sealant, and it will be necessary to apply it with your hands or an improvised tool, which is extremely inconvenient. Secondly, it is likely that the package will crack and the product will come out.
If you don’t have a gun, you can use an ordinary medium-sized hammer. The butt end of the handle is inserted into the tube, and the firing pin rests on the shoulder. In this case, it is necessary to pull the package over, then the sealant will be extruded through the nozzle.
Among the disadvantages of this method are the following:
- hands get tired very quickly and begin to shake, which will not allow you to make an even layer;
- after a few minutes of work, the shoulder begins to ache strongly;
- if the firing pin is not tight enough, it can slip, which will lead to injury;
- using this method it is very difficult to squeeze out the sealant evenly, especially with half-empty packaging.
It was in order to avoid such difficulties that the gun was invented. Even if you use sealant extremely rarely (once every few months), it will be useful to purchase this practical device.
