Taping Floor Protection: A Sticky Subject

Tapes and adhesives are wonderful, useful products – but sometime’s they’re a little too good at their job. Tape can be kind of like a nagging mother-in-law – it just doesn’t know when to let things go. Using the wrong kind of adhesives or poor quality tapes can lead to all sorts of problems on any project. In the world of floor protection, tapes and adhesives are a particularly sticky subject.

Adhesive Surface Protection: A Sticky Situation

Contractors tell us one of their biggest issues with adhesive-backed floor protection is that it can leave behind a sticky, gummy residue. Sometimes it was a poor quality product, sometimes it reacted badly to the flooring or environmental conditions, sometimes it was left down too long. The contractor was left with a long and tedious clean-up at best; at worst they had to replace the hardwood or carpeting it was supposed to protect. That’s why we’ve designed our three product lines of surface protection to be non-adhesive. The backing grips but never sticks, no matter how long you leave our products down or what kind of floor they’re used on.

Taping Floor Protection: An “Un-a-peeling” Choice

Ever peeled the tape off of something and some of the product comes off with the tape? Now imagine taping paperboard down on an antique heart pine floor or a refinished stair tread – will the finish peel off with the tape when it’s removed? That $3 roll of tape could leave you with an unhappy client and a costly repair bill. When you’re doing a remodeling project, you’re often working around older flooring that may be in poor condition or may have been finished improperly. Taping a slippery drop cloth or paperboard runner directly to the floor may help secure it, but it may leave marks or peel the finish off when it’s taken up at the end of the project.

Stick to the Facts

worker removing tapetaping floor protection seamsCustomers often ask us, “What kind of tape should I use to secure your product to the floor?” Our answer: you shouldn’t. We don’t want any tape touching your floor. We don’t sell tape with our products because we don’t want it to be used incorrectly, or create any issues with finish, or leave a sticky residue. Since our products are designed to grip the floor whenever pressure is applied, there’s really no need for them to be taped to the floor. We do suggest taping floor protection seams as an extra precaution to prevent dust or liquid from going between them. Simply overlap the product by two or three inches, then tape the seam with wide blue painter’s tape. At the end of the project, the painter’s tape should release easily without damaging our products so you can use them again.

Get a Grip!

Remember, nothing with a sticky, gooey surface should ever be used on the floors you’re trying to protect. Save the tape for wrapping presents. There’s no need for taping floor protection down when you use our products – keep your floors Clean&Safe® instead!