Signgeer - Super Tools for Sign Heroes - Edition 22 - Catalog - Page 378
Your guide to
STICKY
THINGS
tapes
Pressure
sensitive adhesive
tape is fast becoming
a performance match
for mechanical fixings and an
aesthetically pleasing alternative.
The way to get tape to perform like
fixings is knowing that you need to
consider these three things...
1 Your job
2Your materials
3 Surface environment
Only then can you match the right
adhesive with your project and
decide if you need heat-resistant,
extra wide, or speciality outdoor
double-sided tape, for example.
By thinking about and answering
these questions with regards to the
tape adhesive, you can increase the
longevity and success of your
projects.
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Step 1:
What surfaces are you bonding?
Choosing the right double-sided tape
begins by evaluating the surface
characteristics of the two substrates
you’re trying to stick together. For
example, the flatter and smoother the
surfaces are, i.e. glass, aluminum, PVC,
smooth wood, ABS, polycarbonate, the
thinner the tape can be. Conversely, the
rougher the surface is, i.e. wood,
cement, brick, fluted panels, the
rougher the surface, the thicker the
adhesive tape needs to be to provide
adequate contact.
Step 2:
What is your surface energy?
All surfaces have a property known as surface
energy - the degree of attraction or repulsion
force a material surface exerts on another material.
Substrates with a high surface energy form very
good surfaces for bonding, like glass, glazed
tiles and bare metals.
Plastics can vary from reasonably easy
to very poor. For example materials
like silicone, polypropylene and
Eliminate
polyethylene have “low surface
most tape failures by
energy” that conventional
following this one simple rule:
adhesives won’t stick to at all.
Choose the right tape for the
These materials are therefore very
job. Sounds easy enough, but as
hard to stick to and call for a
tempting as it may be to use one
higher adhesion and a very tacky
tape for a multitude of
adhesive.
applications, this will cause
endless problems with your
results. Tapes are specific to
projects and designed for
specialised uses. You wouldn’t
use the same screw for every
fitting, so why would you use
the same tape?
376
Chemical Migration
Liquids such as oils, plasticizers in PVC to
provide flexibilbity, can migrate to the tape
making the glue a gummy mess. Make
sure you use a tape specifically designed
for PVC applications.
It’s also important to take treated surfaces
into consideration. For example, if a
surface is coated with paint, the tape
might stick well to the coating, but if there
is a weak bond (low surface energy)
underneath, the tape and the paint might
peel off.
