Industrial Masking Tape by tesa®

High-Quality Solutions for Even the Most Demanding Applications

When we think masking tape, we often picture painter’s tape from the store. The two terms seem to go hand in hand. When you search for a definition on Google, for instance, it seems to end at painter’s tape: 

“Adhesive tape used in painting to cover areas on which paint is not wanted.”

Merriam Webster’s definition at least gets us closer to the right idea:

“A tape with adhesive on one side that has a variety of uses (as to cover a surface when painting near it).”

Considering the high-quality performance of tesa® masking tapes in demanding situations, we’d like to formally submit our own even simpler definition:

“Masking tape covers a surface to protect it.”

Yes, of course, tesa® has fantastic painter’s tape options. Plus, their array of choices is also handy in all kinds of contexts. Recently, they introduced the tesa® Stay Safe Assortment, which shows different masking tapes used as wall and floor coverings, safe-distance floor markings, and even temporary shopping cart handlebar covers.

Yet, tesa’s impressive catalog of masking solutions play a vital role in a much bigger story.

The 3 Types of Masking Tape Made by tesa are

• Cloth
• Film
• Paper

Before diving too deep into the big world of possibilities with tesa® masking tapes, let’s quickly run through the different types.

Cloth: Out of the three options, this offers the best performance and functionality in extreme temperature and climate conditions.

Film: This is the choice to reach for when highly precise masking is a must. For this reason, it’s also referred to as fine-line tape.

Paper: Masking tape with a paper carrier is the most common general-purpose solution. It’s known for being easy to use and conveniently affordable.

The Importance of Masking Applications in Industrial Markets

Outside of consumer markets, tesa® masking tapes can play an intricate role in various industrial applications. While this is the bigger story mentioned above, put simply, these masking solutions are still underestimated. This means your business could use these tapes to strategically take the lead over your competitors.

The following tesa® masking solutions strongly impact production rates. Finding the right tape for your application can help solve common problems you’re currently facing on the floor. It also can ensure the best overall quality for your end product.

Wet Coating 

This is the industry term for standard paint applications involving sprays, rollers, and brushes. Like the name describes, it’s when something wet is applied to a surface. Often, high temperatures are used to cure, or dry, the wet coat.

So, the right masking tapes for this application need to be able to successfully protect areas that should not be coated. Plus, they should be able to perform through the above-mentioned exposure to high temperatures.

Here are few great options based on what type of wet coating process you may be using:

• • • • High Temperatures up to 248°F: tesa® 4338 
      • Mid-Temperatures up to 212°F: tesa® 4316
      • Large Area Masking: tesa® 4378
      • Specialty Spray Painting Curves: tesa® 4174
      • Specialty Spray Painting Straight Lines: tesa® 4334

Sandblasting

Just like it sounds, sandblasting is when surfaces are blasted with abrasives using air pressure. It’s commonly used to remove coatings, impurities, or modify the surface of a material. For example, it can improve a metal surface’s durability. 

Picking the right tape for this application depends on how aggressive the blasting material is, the level of air pressure, and time spent blasting.

A great example of masking tape for sandblasting on stone, metal, and glass is tesa® 4434.

It uses a very strong and resistant paper carrier that can take the intensity of the abrasives.

Powder Coating

While describing this process can make it sound really technical, the idea of powder coating relies on magnets and melting. Positively charged pigment powders get sprayed onto a negatively charged part. The powder holds to the part thanks to that magnetic attraction, and then the part gets put through an oven curing process to melt the powder into a thick, even coat.

Tapes that work best here need to withstand oven cycles and have good tear resistance and conformability.

One such fantastic option is tesa® 4331.

It’s comprised of a special laminate and non-woven material that gives it both high strength and conformability.

Surface Protection

This is when you need temporary protection of different surfaces to prevent damage from dust, moisture, scratches, or mechanical impact.

So, you’re going to want to find a tape that can offer exactly that level of protection. A stellar example here for smooth surfaces such as plastic parts, glass, and metal is tesa® 4848.

It offers an easy residue-free removal and a UV resistance of up to four weeks.

Galvanizing

Now onto the application of covering a surface with a protective metal coating. 

The best masking tape for this needs to withstand the various chemicals used in the coating process. For this level of resistance, consider tesa® 51408.

This masking solution has excellent resistance to acids and bases. It’s even flame retardant and resists short-term temperatures up to 599°F. It’s ideal for electrical and thermal insulation.

Temporary Hole Masking

This application is particularly useful in the production process for solar panels. The masking tape holds the solar panel’s ribbons down while also covering the slit on the back of the panel. This prevents contamination while laminating the various solar panel’s parts and helps make assembly more efficient.

To find the best masking tape for this project, you’re going to want something that sticks well to a wide range of panel backsheets. Considering the solar panel’s high temperature needs, these backsheets are often made of silicone. 

So, you want to probably go with a masking solution that uses a silicone-based adhesive that can withstand high temperatures while also removing cleanly. Those performance traits lead us to tesa® 50600.

All in all, the tried-and-true quality of these tapes is a big reason we’re proud to be a tesa® Gold Converter Partner. Ask one of our experts today which masking solution is right for your project.