Need info on Alex PLUS caulk

[Mel Fulks]

Tried the stuff several times and it didn't seem to cure hard. But comments on line say it dries well.
Wondering if any here have used it on any sound proofing aplications. I'm not saying it would work as well
as GREEN GLUE made for soundproofing, but it does seem to stay squishey.

[Tom M King]

It shrinks a lot. When I glaze old windows with 30 buck a pane hand-blown cylinder glass, that are going to be painted on the inside (less than half of them around here), I bed the panes in the cheaper Painters caulk. I squeeze it down to close to nothing. It's simply there to protect the expensive glass a little more, and make it easier to do a good painting job on the inside. The cheap stuff is easier to trim, and clean off than the Plus.

When we're doing painting inside that needs caulking, I use the quick dry version of the Plus. Not so much for it to dry fast, but because since it dries faster than the Plus, it doesn't shrink anything like as much.

There was a bunch of Green Glue on CL yesterday. I almost bought it just because, but decided that it would probably go bad in the tubes before I ever found a use for it. Should have been here yesterday.

[Mel Fulks]

Tom, that's a big help. Thank you. And I did not even know they had a fast dry.

[Tom M King]

We use better stuff for outside painting, but I like the fast dry for inside.

https://www.dap.com/dap-products-ph/alex-fast-dry-acrylic-latex-caulk-plus-silicone/

[Frank Pratt]

Been down that road. Alex Plus is not even close when fully cured. Green Glue will forever remain quite soft & sticky.

When I built a soundproof room for my cyclone & compressor I did a ton of research on the subject. I was specifically looking for a less expensive alternative to GG, but there really was nothing that was comparable. Apparently, the GG is formulated with some very specific characteristics that make it act as a decoupling agent between 2 layers of gypsum board

That black, gooey acoustical sealant is the closest thing I've seen to GG, but in tests it did not perform the same.

[Aaron Rosenthal]

Firstly, Alex plus is not meant for sound work. I used it for sealing small deficiencies between mouldings to present a smooth surface after tooling for painting.
Not for exterior use, either.
For sound proofing, there are other formulations in the painters aisle that remain tacky and help deaden - but proper construction is needed for sound proofing walls.

[Mark Bolton]

Alex and plus both are interior or exterior. They are used by painters everywhere for exterior work. Not pertinent to sound but...

Not saying they are the best for exterior but they are exterior.

[John K Jordan]

Tried the stuff several times and it didn't seem to cure hard. But comments on line say it dries well.
Wondering if any here have used it on any sound proofing aplications. I'm not saying it would work as well
as GREEN GLUE made for soundproofing, but it does seem to stay squishey.

That's my go-to caulk, used it to assemble my ClearVue cyclone, around windows and doors, and over nails in siding before painting. It always cured perfectly. I like the type that is white but cures clear so no guessing when it's cured.

I probably wouldn't use it for sound proofing applications, what I've used doesn't seem to be resilient enough. Are you building a sound reduction closet for a dust collector?

[Mel Fulks]

Thanks John. I'm finishing up sound proofing on the baths. Used Roxul, cellulose,mass loaded vinyl ,and sheet rock. Mostly done and
working well. Last thing is filling voids between door studs and jambs. Might just fill it with scraps of MLV and caulk.

[Frank Pratt]

Thanks John. I'm finishing up sound proofing on the baths. Used Roxul, cellulose,mass loaded vinyl ,and sheet rock. Mostly done and
working well. Last thing is filling voids between door studs and jambs. Might just fill it with scraps of MLV and caulk.

Acoustical sealant is the stuff to use in those locations. GG literature specifically says not to use it to fill gaps. And the acoustical sealant is dirt cheap too :)