Confused about what painter’s tape to use while painting? Then read on to find out what things you should keep in mind while choosing your painter’s tape.
Everything seems more beautiful when you add colors doesn’t it? So, why shouldn’t you decorate your home in colors? In order to do so, you will need to paint your house. For that, you are most likely to hire a painter, who is sure to do a great job of making your house look colorful and beautiful. Or you might prefer to do it yourself with a personal touch. But hard work and creativity are not enough to do the job – one will also need specific tools to get the job done effectively.
One such tool is painter’s tape or masking tape. I know many would not consider this as an important tool for painting but believe me when I say it, it is pretty much essential. They help to cover up the areas which you don’t want to paint without damaging your walls.
At first, you might think tape is such a trivial part of the painting process but it’s really important if you don’t want your wall to look messy after painting. So, choosing the perfect painting tape is a no-brainer when painting your house. The tapes should be chosen depending on the conditions and surface you`ll be working on.
Conditions are not the same when you paint indoors or outdoors, on regular or irregular surfaces, or during winter or summer. The difference between these conditions or surfaces requires a particular type of tape to get the job done as cleanly and perfectly as possible.
You can visit online stores like https://www.tapejungle.com/ and others to buy the best quality tapes. When buying even from the best places you will need to keep some things in mind. So, scroll down till the end of this article to find out.
Masking or Painters Tapes For General Masking
If you are planning to paint indoors on regular surfaces, with a warm temperature, then you should definitely choose a tape that is designed for general masking. This is one such product that will give you flexibility and performance at a decent price.
However, you’ll have to make sure of one thing: that the tape resists the paint you’re working with. Because, if it doesn’t, it is sure to ruin your wall while it is being painted. So, if you’re going to do general masking, make sure you apply the tape carefully on the surface you want to protect.
Masking or Painters Tapes For Outdoor Painting
When it comes to outdoor painting, many other critical factors need to be considered. Outdoor environments could include sudden rain or wet weather, exposure to sunlight or UV rays, high and low degrees of temperature, etc.
When masking tapes are exposed to such extreme conditions, not all of them can perform efficiently. So many of them tend to lose their sticking ability or adhesive power which is the reason why paint bleeds through the edges. And that is why you should choose a painting tape, which is perfectly suited for outdoor painting. They are specifically designed to be waterproof and used for outdoor painting.
Masking or Painters Tapes For Curved Surfaces
Sometimes, while doing painting jobs, you will face the need to cover surfaces that are narrow or curved. In this case, most of the masking tapes will just break as you push them to their limit by stretching them to cover a curved area.
In this sort of situation, your go-to masking tape should be those types of masking tapes that are specifically designed for flexibility and stretching. Also, the masking tape should be made of a material that is high quality in its elongation capabilities.
Masking or Painters Tapes For Places With High-Temperature Applications
Suppose you live in such a place that has a really hot climate. So, it goes without saying that during summer that climate will get even hotter and when you try to paint your house you`ll need masking tapes which can bear such high temperatures. The same goes for a building that is under construction or an industrial setting that is being painted. This is because these sorts of places generally have walls or specific parts in the building which tend to be exposed to really high temperatures.
So, for this sort of job you should definitely choose masking tapes that can resist high-temperature exposure for a longer period of time. Consult someone in your hardware store about the different tapes on the shelf and which one is most suitable for your next painting project.
Masking or Painters Tapes For Delicate Surfaces
The toughest job of painting something is to paint delicate surfaces. This is because you can damage those surfaces pretty easily when you pull off the tape that’s too sticky. Even though you mask those areas with painting tapes to protect them from paint, you’ll need to be really careful not to damage the area when you finish up.
In order to save those areas from damage, you should use masking tapes that have low tack. Tack is the ability of an adhesive to adhere to any surface quickly and sticks to that strongly as it comes in contact with the surface.
But when it is applied on a pre-painted surface, tape should provide a restrained tack in order to prevent the paint from coming off. Otherwise, that could create that particular problem which is known as paint flaking.
So, to prevent that from happening you will need a masking tape that has a gentle and controlled tack. It will also ensure smooth painting over delicate surfaces.
Final Thoughts
In closing, I would say that masking or painter’s tape might seem like a really small part of painting your home, a building under construction, or an industrial building. In reality, it plays a really important part because, without it, it would become really difficult for you to have a nice clean finish around the edges.
Remember that if you are going to paint outdoor surfaces or delicate surfaces you need to use the right type of tape. Moreover, I really hope this piece has really helped you to understand the importance of masking tapes and also what you should keep in mind while choosing one.
