Filling a drafty crack

see317

I moved into this house early spring and hadn't noticed it due to the mostly nice weather.
But the window in the office I keep my computer in has a gap around the outside, on the lower corners.

Not a broken pane or something, just a tiny gap between the actual window frame and the wall. It's narrow, I'd guess 1/16" of an inch at the greatest and a total of 4 inches long. Not really enough to be noticable except when the wind is blowing just right and it sends a gust of outside temperature air in. Which means of course that at all other times my precious inside temperature air is blowing out.

I was planning on picking up a caulking gun and some caulk to patch the crack by running a bead around the edge of the entire window. Thing is, I don't know much about caulk except that there is a large variety. There are more types of caulk in that aisle then I know what to do with really.

So, H/A, any tips on buying or applying caulk?

Failing that, I would also libidinous puns about blocking my drafty crack with caulk. Which, while neither particularly helpful or useful as advice could at least be entertaining.

In the meantime, the heater duct to the room has been closed and covered and the door is being kept shut which should help minimize heat loss a little.

powerss

There's this stuff called Great Stuff™ or something.

it's a foam that fills cracks for insulation. You can sand it down once it dries.

redimpulse

Honestly I'd normally say get silicone caulk, but it seems that urethane is getting to be the way to go. It's not as easy to apply as latex caulk, but its adhesion and protectant qualities are right up there with silicone and it's a little bit easier to apply. So if you can find it, I'd recommend that. Home Depot supposedly carries a 3M urethane caulk that runs about $8 per tube. Generally the worst caulks are latex. They may be easy to apply, but they weather easily and can strip right off with very little work. Urethane requires solvents to remove, so be sure you get it right or you're in for some irritating cleanup.

Also lol caulk up your crack.

EggyToast

Do you own the house or just rent? If you rent, just buy a squeeze tube of "Door & Window" caulk, glob a bunch in the crack and smooth it with your finger.

If you own, heck I'd suggest getting some expanding insulating foam, blowing it into the crack (assuming there's a cavity there, and not just a thin crack), smoothing the wall-edge, mudding, sanding, and painting.

I'm a big fan of plain ol' silicone-based caulk, simply because it's cheap and easy to work with. If you get a gun, make sure it's a "No Drip" gun, since you've probably never really used one before. MUCH cleaner. And make sure you get something for doors/windows. They're supposed to be caulked all around the edge anyway, so either they missed a spot or it's worn off.

Ruckus

Also note that if wind can get through there, water and possibly insects may be able to get in too. Sealing it on the inside won't prevent water or insects from getting into the wall. If you're renting you may want to notify the landlord/owner because if they need to fix it now it can save them a lot of money in the long run.