Double-sided tape
I need to fix the long vehicle board to my caravan when I reach Spain later in the month. I have previously used the green stuff with foam layer but I found it fails fairly quickly in the hot sun.
I have just bought some double-sided carpet tape from B & Q and it seems very strong, but maybe too strong, I worry it may damage the finish on the van. Has anybody used this tape?
Comments
-
Chap next to us a couple of weeks ago had used similar - again for Spain and now that he's decided not to go again - he was about to attempt to remove the 'long vehicle' plates. It should be safe to remove if you're careful. My OH has used the edge of
a credit card to gently persuade the sticky stuff to come away from the vehicle surface. It requires patience though.
0 -
I would just leave it on as I cannot see what harm it will do and that way you do not have to worry about any damage taking it off.
Not sure if you have bought the board but you can get peel off polythene ones off Amazon
0 -
As a retired technical director of an adhesive tape company perhaps I can offer a bit of advice and hope that I can keep it both fairly simple but meaningful.
Adhesives on tapes fall into two basic categories, Acrylic or Rubber Resin adhesives. Acrylic adhesives will usually withstand a lot more heat than Rubber Resin adhesives, typically about double. As R.R. adhesive is applied to the tape in a hot form, as
it gets warmer in sunshine for instance so the bond will start to fail as the adhesive re-softens. Rubber Resin adhesives, as used on most carpet tapes for example, will be 'stickier' and have more initial tack but the ultimate bond will be considerably stronger
with an Acrylic adhesive although this bond needs about 24 hours to achieve this potential and needs to be pressed well onto the surfaces.Feeling sticky to the touch does not mean a stronger bond. The opposite is actually the case. Some of the stongest tapes feel almost dry to the touch.
The important thing is that both surfaces should be completely clean and completely free of wax or polish. Isopropyl alcohol is probably the best cleaner for this but you may have so get it from a chemist. Lighter fluid is 'reasonable' as a cleaner and whilst
methylated spirit will act as a good cleaner it leaves a thin film of piridine behind as it dries but is certainly better than nothing. The bond of the tape will only be as good as the surface to which it is applied.Probably the best readily available tape for your job,Aquila, would be number plate mounting tape which is a foam base with acrylic adhesive either side. This can usually be obtained from number plate suppliers. This should almost certainly withstand the
heat of Spain if applied correctly.Hope this is of help to people.
0
