Help! Can't remove old shower door

[Surfingbull]

Hi all,

I'm trying to remove my old shower door (and install a new one).

The problem I have so far is removing the old side rails. I removed the head rail and the door panels. But the left/right wall rails stuck tight to the tile enclosure, even though I backed out all the wall screws and cut the visible caulk along the inside and outside edges.

I tried using a small putty knife to cut the caulk (and grout?), but no luck cutting or prying. Someone suggested using a Rockwell Oscillating tool. But I have no experience with it and am worried about cracking the tiles.

Does anyone has any suggestions for me?

Thanks a lot!!!

[Roger Shoaf]

I think I would try to make a wooden wedge and tap it in from the top. You might also try a heat gun to see if you can soften the caulk a bit. Once you get the wedge in a bit from the top, you might try and use a piece of thin piano wire to slide behind the rail to cut the rest of the caulk.

[Oren]

That tool is expensive. A 1 x 12" cake spatula ($ store) behind the rail. There most likely is a bead of caulk behind the rail and you only cut part of it. Use the spatula from the top of the rail and peel it off the wall a little at a time. Both hands and strip downward.

[Red Green]

"Roger Shoaf" wrote in news: [e-mail]:

Within your improvising, consider one of these utility knives that I've found helpful at times. By extending the break-off blade all the way you end up with a very long razor blade that is thin. The blade is made to snap if bent beyond a point which may not be good in your case.

Just a thought...

[HeyBub]

Yes. Use the Harbor Freight oscillating tool. On sale this week for $34.95!

I can't see how the tool would crack the tile - it doesn't work like that. Go to the Harbor Freight website (or Rockwell or Fein or Dremel) and watch the video.

[Limp Arbor]

I agree. Surprisingly good quality tool from Harbor Freight.

It has already proved very useful.

[norminn]

I would start by trying to get something with a sharp edge under the rail at one end. Once there is enough room, work in a putty knife to pry it slowly - I would guess that there is caulk adhering the rail to the tile, but on the chance that some epoxy was used I would be very careful not to exert force too quickly. Push the putty knife in flat, so you aren't leveraging onto the tile. Once the end is free, you might be able to then pull it free. If you can't pull it, just work by tapping the putty knife down the back of the rail - might scratch tile, or crack it, esp. if there is dead space behind any tiles.

[Dymphna]

Pampered Chef has a tool that is really cheap that will help here. It is called a Nylon Pan Scraper item #2610 an is $2.75 for a set of 3. I sell Pamper Chef and this is actually my favorite item. It will also be good for when you need to caulk it again. 'Welcome To My Personal Web Site'