My uncle swore by canned foam for sealing windows, I should have listened sooner

So back in October I was sealing up my old single pane windows for winter here in Buffalo. My uncle Frank kept telling me to use that Great Stuff window and door foam, but I thought I knew better and just used caulk and those foam strips from the hardware store. Well let me tell you, after our first real snowstorm I could feel a draft coming through like crazy. The foam strips had already shrunk up and left gaps everywhere. I finally gave in last weekend and spent $28 on three cans of the foam stuff. Put it around my living room window frame and it was way easier than I expected. No more draft at all now. Has anyone else had a stubborn relative give you advice that turned out to be the smart move?

2 comments

2 Comments

gibson.sean18d ago

Yeah, my old man was the same way about that foam. I fought him on it for a whole winter with cheap caulk just like you did, then finally caved and never looked back. That stuff really does the trick, especially on old windows where nothing else seems to hold.

thomas_roberts18d ago

I hear you on the foam stuff working well, but @gibson.sean, I still think caulk has its place if you use the right kind. The trick is getting that silicone based caulk instead of the cheap acrylic stuff, it doesn't shrink up like those foam strips do. Sometimes the old way works fine, you just have to pick the right product for the job.