All sealing packages adhesive tape kinds. How to choose among them
How to choose the perfect adhesive tape to seal your packages? Very often, when you need to effectively seal boxes, whether professionally or occasionally, you may often focus on the choice of package itself.
Thus, most of the attention is paid to the choice of box size, the type of cardboard (starting from the number of layers), the type of seal, and so on. But this is a mistake: as they say, in fact, “the strength of a chain is equal to that of its weakest link”.
And this also applies to packages: what is the point of spending all your time, energy and money on choosing the right box, when the strength of the package can be compromised by the wrong double-sided adhesive tape use? And it’s not just about its grip power.
Choosing the right kind of double-sided adhesive tape also affects other aspects, such as cost-effectiveness, sustainability, practicality, and packaging convenience. So, let’s have a look at how to choose the best tape to seal your packages!
The material of adhesives tape used to seal packages: PPL or PVC?
Most of the adhesive tape used for sealing packages is made of PPL or PVC: these are the two materials that are the most popular in this field. How to choose between them? Let’s start with PVC, or polyvinyl chloride. What is it?
It’s double-sided adhesive tape characterized by good adhesive power, even on difficult surfaces. Among the other advantages the resistance to cold, good grip when faced with water, good resistance to the passage of time, good heat tightness, and quiet unrolling should be emphasized.
But there are also disadvantages: PVC is not biodegradable, containing solvents, and is quite expensive compared to other solutions.
Then, there is PPL, or polypropylene: in our e-commerce website, dedicated to professional adhesive tape, this is the most used material in the field of adhesives meant for the sealing of boxes.
This is because the price is lower, because it offers a high-level initial adhesiveness, and because it is more environmentally friendly. It must be noted that there are perfectly silent PPL adhesive tape rolls. The disadvantages of PPL? Simple: PPL tends to fear the cold, and does not show water resistance equal to PVC, nor a similar sealing level over time.
Other materials: paper and PLA
Other materials used for packaging adhesive tape are paper and PLA. Normal paper adhesive tape isn’t particularly suitable for heavier packages, but this changes when dealing with reinforced paper tapes.
PLA tape is, instead, a special adhesive tape with polylactic acid film, which is compostable and much less polluting than the more classic models: this is an ecological alternative to PVC tape and, in part, compared to PPL tapes as well.
Quiet or loud?
As anticipated, a difference between PVC and PPL is the different noise level, with the latter being much noisier. Inside our online store, however, there are many models of adhesive tape for the sealing of boxes made of Silent polypropylene which completely removes this difference.
The choice between noisy or silent rolls becomes important when they are used regularly for a long time: in this case it is essential to do your best to reduce noise pollution, especially in environments that are already noisy and, on the other hand, in environments where noise is not welcome, for the most disparate of reasons.
The load makes a difference! How much do the packages to be sealed weigh? Of course, the load that an industrial double-sided adhesive has to bear changes in a concrete way the type of packaging tape to aim for.
For light boxes, and therefore up to 20 kg (44 lb), you can usually opt for professional tape made of propylene, with a width of about 50 mm (1.9 in): this way, you can be certain to obtain a good seal while using an economic and sustainable industrial double-sided adhesive tape.
Reinforced paper tape can also work just as well. As the weight increases, as well as the time it needs to last, it is best to turn to PVC packaging tape, or wider propylene tape.
Though for packages weighing about 30 kg (66.1 lb) it will be possible to use 50 – 55 mm (1.9-2.1 in) PVC tape, for heavier packages it is bet to opt for PVC tape measuring over 70 mm (2.7 in).
How to choose adhesives for package sealing: special needs
When choosing the adhesives best suited for the sealing of packages, it is therefore best to think about any special needs: there are in fact customizable tape rolls with logos and writing, tapes showing a “fragile” print warning on them, or presenting a warranty seal, or even tamper-proof adhesive tape.
