It’s often the case that you just want to use some sealant for a small project, which means of course that most of what you’ve paid for can get left in the cartridge, which then gets left in a locker on board or on a shelf in the shed and can cure before you’ve had a chance to use it.

It was in frustration one day at this happening that I came up with the method shown of getting at the locked in sealant in the tube.

A surprising amount of viable sealant can be salvaged this way and it saves another time consuming trip to the chandlers.

Locate where the base plug has been left by the cartridge plunger and drill a hole just below it

The pilot hole acts as a start guide for the hacksaw to stop it sliding on the shiny plastic tube as you saw the end off

Punch a hole in the base plug with a screwdriver and rip it out. Mind the sharp edges of the tube as you scoop out sealant

Originally published in PBO Feb19