Apply Tape Like a Pro with Application Ancillaries

Our anti-slip tape is without an equal but it needs a good application to be fully effective, let’s talk about that.

The industrial floor tape that Heskins produces is not a mechanical fix, it is a surface application so good preparation is essential. If the surface is not suitable or not stable then all of the application will be a failure. We need to create a stable and treated surface that our anti-slip tape will be able to bond long-term with.

Every surface needs to be clean; any grease or residues left on the surface can result in poor durability of the Heskins industrial floor tape, the Heskins adhesive needs to grip securely onto the substrate, any form of grease or dust will act as a barrier to this performance. Many companies will use and recommend an industrial degreaser, their logic being that these chemicals do strip away paints, visible marks etc, they do but degreasers are a bad choice that we do not recommend. Degreasers will leave behind a thin film, this film acts as a barrier that negatively affects the adhesive on the anti-slip tape, our strong recommendation is our H3508 surface cleaner, H3508 is a very pure alcohol, it effectively cleans away surface contaminants but does not leave behind any residue. The H3508 does not destroy any surface contaminants, it simply lifts them from the surface, based on this we recommend using continuous wipes that then leave the contaminants at the end of the application area.

External porous surfaces such as wood, concrete or stone can be porous if not treated with a sealing process. Porous surfaces allow moisture to travel through them which can then reside at the upper surface part, this moisture will result in the adhesive being displaced and ultimately an industrial floor tape failure. Once the anti-slip tape has lifted it cannot be reapplied and subsequent attempts at placing new material in the same location will likely result in failure. We have an incredibly well designed surface primer that has been designed by Heskins, H3506 Primer. H3506 rapidly seals the porous surface preventing water ingression, it quickly flashes off and then leaves behind a surface that feels ‘tacky’ to the touch, you can tell that it now has an increased surface energy level. H3506 can be applied using any conventional paint brush, it is simple to apply and it is sold in conveniently sized 1L and 0.5L containers, each litre will seal approximately 5m².

Heskins is fortunate to be recognised as a world leading manufacturer of anti-slip tape, we supply some of the best known industrial names, we are often asked to provide a non-slip solution for low energy surfaces. A low energy surface is anything with a low molecular attraction, for our purposes it prevents the self-adhesive base of our anti-slip tape ‘wetting out’, the adhesive strands cannot get enough substrate to grip and often results in the adhesive materials easily falling off. Low surface energy surfaces can vary but a basic list would include PUR, PP, PE and many powder coated surfaces. H3510 Keying Agent is designed to change the surface energy levels, it does not scar the surface, it does not affect it in any way other than making it more attractive for adhesive strands to bond securely to it. Only a very small amount is required, it dries within minutes then the anti-slip tape is applied on to it.

All of these discussions have been concerning ensuring a bond onto the surface, that is great, but once stuck down how do we make the industrial floor tape more durable? 99% of all floor tape failures are on the edges, the edges are not only the most exposed part but they have the least support; all other parts of the tape have other parts of the tape to provide support and protection, the edges are on their own! If we can give the edges some assistance then it would be great, it would provide further protection to all the other parts of the industrial floor tape. H3502 Edge Fix is designed to bond the edges, it is so clever yet so simple, so I will explain more! Inside every tube of H3502 (a 140ml tube seals roughly 35 linear metres) is lots of rubber resin that desperately wants to get back to its normal solid state, it cannot whilst it is being attacked by the solvents inside the solution in the tube. Once pressed through the tube via the perfectly designed thin long nozzle then it hits the substrate and the industrial floor tape as a viscous liquid, as soon as it leaves the sealed tube it is exposed to the atmosphere, the solvents immediately start dispersing thus leaving the resins to go back to their solid state. The resins contract and pull tight everything around them, this being the industrial floor tape and the floor, it creates an amazing seal! Only a tiny amount is required, less is definitely more, just a small thin bead will then allow it to bond but also flash off quickly, if too much is applied then it can struggle to bond effectively.

Enough of this talk of chemicals, lets talk about application tools!

David Bowie and Freddie Mercury sang about pressure and they were right to point out how important it is for sticking down anti-slip tape. All of our materials are pressure sensitive self-adhesive, pressure is required, without pressure then it will not be an effective bond. Pressure forces the adhesive strands onto the substrate providing a really great grip. Our application roller is small, very easy to use and is very effective, simply apply our anti-slip tape then use the pressure roller to ensure it stays down. They are a really low price but we really recommend them, they provide such a great benefit.

Our H3406 Conformable is an unusual anti-slip tape, it is foil based instead of being plastic film based. The soft foil base is required as it is used on irregular surfaces such as diamond plate, durbar tread etc. Unlike a plastic, the foil has no memory so once pressed into the valleys it will not lift up. Pressing an abrasive anti-slip material is not a nice task, our rubber mallet does this job really well. You press the H3406 Conformable anti-slip tape into place then get tap it into place with the Heskins mallet. Job done!

I hope this long blog post has helped explain all about our ancillaries, we have really good videos and application instructions that are on our sites to help, we provide all our help and information free.