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Foam Tape Comparison
Types of Foam Tape and Use Cases:
Selecting the appropriate foam tape for your project is crucial, not only for the long term performance but there are cost considerations, as well as aesthetics. We will start with the best of the best and work our way to the cost conscious and budget friendly options.
Premium Grade: High Temp Silicone, Viton®, and High Bond Acrylic Foams:
High Temperature Silicone foam tapes are some of the highest grade foam tapes you will find on the market today. Presbond's silicone foam tape offering comes with a high tack acrylic based pressure sensitive adhesive (PSA), and remains flexible and resiliant in almost all applications. Silicone foam tape's are unmatched in their UV resistance qualities, and with a smooth skin surface, these open cell structure foam tapes become closed cell when compressed.
These silicone foam tapes have our 2nd best temperature rating, with a rating on the foam as high as 392 degrees! The adhesive is rated to 300 degrees. Presbond recommends these foam tapes for enclosures, aerospace and medical applications as well as in battery, chemical and other use cases where it is imperative to maintain thermal conductivity, flammability and other specifications.
Viton® foam tape is one of our most expensive materials that we stock in our catalog, it is also carries our best temperature rating at 400 degrees and the acyrlic PSA is rated to 350 degrees. Viton® is a registered trademark of The Chemours Company. These Fluoroelastomer foams are chemically resiliant and recommended for gasketing and sealing applications where low seal pressures are required.
Viton is soft to the touch, and its compression set resistance is truly unmatched. Compression set in foam tape is when the material is compressed down from the original thickness, i.e. .25" height down to .125" by applying pressure on the tape via door seal, machine weight, etc. The compression set in Viton takes 22 hours of constant pressure at room temperature to lose 13-27% of its thickness and to lose 100% of its ability to bounce back, it would take 22 hours of constant pressure at 158 degrees! Viton is specification grade material, to ASTM D1056 2B2, and is compliant with REACH (EC 1907/2006) (06/25/2020, 209 SVHC).
High Bond Acrylic Foams are Presbond's answer to 3M™ VHB™ tapes. Our high bond acrylic foam tape line is comparable on nearly every specification, and in many instances we out perform. Presbond's PHB tape is on the premium side of the pricing scale, but still pales in comparison to retail pricing from our competition.
Presbond's acrylic foam tape is a double sided foam tape that is available in multiple colors, black, grey, and optically clear. These foam tapes are industrial grade and many meet the low surface energy adhesion requirements of the automotive industry. Acrylic foam tapes come in various thicknesses, between .010" and .060" thick and we can convert them into any width that you need or cut them into gasket shapes using our steel rule dies and rotary tools. Presbond recommends these highly technical tapes for applications that require aggressive, permanent, and secure bonds that customers need to last the test of time. These foam tapes offer excellent enviromental resistance and remain flexible and highly conformable in the most extreme environments.Industrial Grade Foam Tape: Pure Neoprene, EPDM, Neoprene Blends
Neoprene blended foam tape is the most versitile and reliable foam tape in Presbond's catalog, we cannot recommend this product enough and are constantly finding new use cases. With the temperature resistance, flame retardancy, and water absorption properties that neoprene foam offers it makes a great choice for enclosures, drywall applications, HVAC installations, sheet metal fabrication, roof curbs, and so much more.
Pres-On neoprene blended foam tape is comprised of a mixture of Neoprene, SBR, EPDM materials and additives that are blended in a mixing vat then poured into sheets. Those neoprene sheets are then looped together using a skiving machine and cemented together to make what we call our Master or Jumbo units. We take those giant units and then feed them through our machinery here to apply different types of pressure sensitive adhesives, mylar films, liners, that our customers request.
The most popular neoprene foam tape is the SC 42-UL 2C2, what we identify as our P8100UL, this foam tape is a closed cell material that is resistant to acids, alkali, ozone, and oxidation. Pres-On's neoprene is all specification grade, passing flammability UL test (UL 94 HF1) and FMVSS302, all while providing excellent shock absorption, and sound/vibration dampening. The P8100UL, P8200, P8100, and P8300 are not rated for insulation, but are frequently utilized for this. The lack of rating is because there is no associated R-Value on this material. We do have a P8600 vinyl neoprene that has this rating though!
EPDM foam tapes are very similar to neoprenes but have the added benefit of higher UV resistance and are generally better for outdoor use. The acrylic PSA is the main differentiator as all of our EPDM foam with adhesive use acrylic, and only custom blended neoprene has acrylic (the pure neoprene foam has acrylic). EPDM foams have a slightly lower service temp compared to the neoprene, at a rating of 220 degrees compared to the blended neoprene at a rating of 250 degrees.
Pure Neoprene foam tape is an excellent option for most industrial use cases. With the added tensile strength, density, compression deflection and elongation specifications, the pure neoprene foams meet the demands of just about any industrial application.
Neoprene foam tape comes in multiple densities, from soft to firm and multiple specifications. Presbond offers neoprene foam in ASTM D1056-14 2C1, 2C3, 2C4. These are all at 10-15 PCF, and are the best of the best when it comes to neoprene foam tapes. Pres-On offers these products with a high tack permanent acrylic adhesive that is pressure sensitive and easy to apply.
Economy Grade Foam Tape: Vinyl, Polyethylene, and Polyester Urethane
Vinyl Foam Tapes have a single, or double sided acrylic based pressure sensitive adhesive (PSA). These foams are typically cast onto claycoated liner paper with one side having a silicone release agent to prevent the adhesive from sticking to the release liner. A cast on liner PVC foam tape is acheived by mixing the plastics materials in a large vat and then evenly pouring the material into a type of tray, this process allows for excellent calendaring and uniformatity in the material and the added skin layer leaves the exposed side smooth the to touch.
The vinyl foam is still closed cell in structure, meaning it is able to seal out light, air, dust and moisture all the while being resistant to most solvents, chemicals and UV degradation. PVC foam tapes are not as durable as rubber based, and can be prone to surface defects with repeated use in specific applications. Presbond recommends PVC foam tapes in general assemblies, HVAC, construction applications and more.
Polyethylene foam tape is one of the most popular and commoditized products in the foam tape market, especially on the retail side. These foam tapes are available in single or double sided adhesive options with two color options in black and white. Pres-On PE, PF1600 foam tape is comprised of a cross linked polyethylene foam with a closed cell structure that offers a smooth finish. These foam tapes are excellent with chemical resistance and thermal insulation.
Polyester Urethane Foam Tapes similar to the PVC are cast products but do have a higher grade release liner. Pres-On polyester and polyether foam tapes are supplied with single side rubber based pressure sensitive adhesive (PSA) but we do offer it with an acrylic based PSA.
These foam tapes have open cell structure and comparatively highly breathable materials. Polyurathane foam is extremely soft and pliable, making it easy to compress down and fit into tight gaps and small spaces to fill air filter voids and prevent rattling. Pres-On P8500 polyester urethane foam tapes do not have a skin side, and are rough to the touch. We typically recommend the polyester foam tapes for HVAC, air filters, general filtration, packaging, and it is a favorite of the automotive and RV markets.
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