Which silicone should I use? My rears got water in them and I managed to screw the plastic up with the hair dryer being too hot. I bit the bullet and bought new rears from custommaxima.com. The indoor outdoor clear silicone says not for use on automobiles and plastics. Liquid nails silicone alterative says the same. I bought some GE Silicone II that says it's fully waterproof, for plastics and clear, but the fine print says that it's for indoor use only. Should I try the GE that I bought or return it for another product? What silicone should I use?

 

I used a silicone sealant for bathrooms. Honestly I think it did state not for use on plastics or outdoors, but it has served me well.

It was water tight, but still easily removable for when I switched to LEDs. I bought it at wal-mart, but I don't recall the name; however I imagine it was a SiliconeII knock-off.

 

i uses the permatex silicone rtv, it smells like **** even worst but it works great. just take ur time and make sure u put a good amount on and coat the whole thing. i missed a few small spots the first time on onw of my rears 1z and had to redo it. but no problem for like 8-9 months now. holds up great.

 

Did you use a heat gun to pry it open and real seal??

My rear looked like a fish tank.. so i removed it..

ED

 

nah i didnt need a heat gun. it was a thin layer so i just used a flat screw driver and carefully scrapped it off, came off rather easy. btw i didnt pry it open just took off what i could from the outside and resealed it from just the outside. prying it open and perfectly sealing it is overkill i just put like 1-2 thin layer and made sure each layer dried for a good 15-20min and ive had no problem since and its been a while.

 

go to an auto parts store like autozone or pep boys and get the silicone sealant there. mine is the RTV one too and it works great.

 

You are soooo not kidding. I almost hurled with the smell of that stuff. It was so bad I had to use my resperator mask to finsh the job. I will say that the RTV does work well, no leaks yet.

Due to my laziness, I was able to allow it to cure indoors for 48 hours. The tube said it takes 24 hours for it to be fully cured...longer in colder / more humid environments.

 

I have used that GE silicone II stuff everywhere. I like it because it is clear. No problems with using it indoors/outdoors. I think they warn you against using it on plastics cause it will turn some cloudy. Just be careful not to slop it and you should be fine.

Are you guys having to seal up brand new ones? I have been thinking of getting these from custommaxima too and was just wondering.

 

i got new ones from custommaxima and sealed them up before i put them in just to be safe.

oh, as a side note, you dont need a screwdriver to take them out, possibly messing up your paint. the front ones you can either:
1. go from under the car, by removing the splash guards. or
2. make sure you hands arent sweaty and slippery...push the marker towards the front of the car. when the marker is as far forward as it will go, use your finger and lift up on the rear end. no scratches that way. if you look at the new marker, you will notice a bent piece of metal that acts like a spring on the front, and a latch on the back. piece of cake to take out and put in. i keep my old oranges in the trunk incase a cop wants to write me up for that too.

 

I just got new ones from custommaxima too, but haven't had the time to install them. Thanks for the heads up!

 

Or you could stick the screwdriver blade into a rag...

 

ditto, i got mine from custom max as well, and yeah u do have to seal them new because i can almost guarentee they're gonna leak. btw-the permatex silicone is clear i use that stuff all the time at work, unless u buy the blue or black 1 just ask for clear. they all unfourtunatley smell the same though.

 

Any ideas as to what I should do if I've used the silicone sealant and trapped water inside my clear? I was thinking about a hair dryer, but everyone seems to have melted theirs trying to do that, any other suggestions?

 

I just used some GE clear Silicone II I got at Loew's Hardware. So far so good in the last 4 months.

 

There's a write up within the table of contents up top as how to get rid of the moisture. Hair dryer doesn't work. You have to put them in the oven.

 

its something called RTV at an auto store... i need to do mine this weekend

 

Or in a bucket of rice ... no kidding.

 

actually that happened to me the first time i sealed it and didnt put enough silicone on it, honestly i just too the easy way out. i hooked up the spray nozzle to an air hose and blasted all the water out after that i just let it sit out for about an hr and not a drop of condensation was left. ive never used anything to heat up the clears.

 

sounds like a plan! putting it in the oven is way too scary for me...