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If you’re reading this article, then you are probably looking for a low-cost option to segregate areas of your warehouse or mark out pallet spaces.
At £120 a roll, the Mighty Floor Tape is not cheap, especially when you can buy a PVC Builders Tape for around £5 a roll from Screwfix.
The purpose of this article is not to justify spending £120 a roll on an expensive tape but to help you understand why some rolls of tape are more expensive than others. There is a wide range of options available, but each option has its strengths and weaknesses. The purpose of this article is for you to understand what the lowest cost option for marking in your warehouse is.
- What is line marking tape?
- What factors affect the cost of a line marking tape?
- When is a budget line marking tape the best option?
- When is a premium tape the best option?
- How to justify the cost of a premium floor marking tape?
The cost of a floor marking tape ranges from £5 to nearly £300 a roll. The two products on paper appear to be very similar: both are made from PVC, both array are available in a wide range of colours and they both have a sticky adhesive on the underside and that is where the similarities end. Usually, a cheap PVC floor marking tape is derived from electrical tape or similar. Whereas a premium floor marking tape has been developed engineered and produced purely for the purpose of line marking in warehouses and factories. The one major difference between a cheap £5 line marking tape and a premium product is durability.
What factors affects the cost of a line marking tape?
An engineered floor marking tape has five key elements that make it durable and these are:
- A hardware topcoat to make the tape easy clean
- Thicker adhesive layer, allowing the tape to conform to the undulations of the Floor
- Sheer strength to prevent damage from pallets and forks being dragged over the top
- A smooth chamfered edge to Assist with pets and wheels etc
- Cleanly removable without leaving adhesive or residue
A hardwearing topcoat refers to the physical toughness of the tape. As with vinyl flooring, a soft surface becomes quickly scratched and the print layer worn away, whereas a hardwearing topcoat makes the tape easy to clean and prevents scuffs and scratches.
On many budget tapes, you will find a thin sticky adhesive layer. This is great for the initial tack to hold the tape in place; however, a thicker adhesive layer will allow the tape to conform to a rougher textured floor.
A softer adhesive is prone to leaving residue behind after the tape is lifted. This residue is very difficult to remove and requires special chemicals. After a short while, this adhesive layer will attract dirt and leave a filthy line that is hard to clean.
A high-quality tape can be reapplied to suit a changing layout.
Mighty Line tape is nearly 8 times thicker than a budget floor marking tape . This in itself is a feature and not a benefit, but the additional thickness gives the tape A drag resistance to 1000 times higher than traditional budget tape. With a tape of this thickness, consideration must be given to the step incurred by the additional tape thickness. Mighty Line have addressed this step in two ways: firstly they have created a smooth chamfered edge and they have prevented the ad player running right to the very edge to allow. The very edge to run smooth with the floor.
When is a budget tape the best option for you?
A budget tape is the best option for a temporary solution in an environment where contamination from the adhesive is not a problem. Typically, this will be a construction site or as a temporary measure prior to floor painting, etc., where the floor surface will be abraded and cleaned. A budget PVC tape also has better flexibility than a premium tape and therefore can be applied to rounded surfaces, especially on tight radii.
A budget PVC floor marking tape could be the best option for very light traffic and storage areas with FLT traffic or pedestrian traffic.
A premium tape is the best option for warehouses and factories with daily pedestrian or forklift truck traffic. If you have just moved in or recently changed the layout of your warehouse, then a premium floor marking tape will help you define your walkways until you are settled on the design. Floor marking tapes such as Mighty Line can be removed and reapplied to suit a changing layout, and because they don’t leave an adhesive residue behind, they will not permanently disfigure your warehouse floor.
Remember, even if you decide to use a premium tape afterward, using a budget tape to set out or define your areas may cause contamination that affects the durability of a premium tape.
At £120 a roll, a premium floor marking tape is many times more expensive than a budget construction-grade tape from a DIY store. Before spending any money on a budget-grade tape, you should consider the hidden costs associated with it:
- Expect to have to replace the tape on a weekly basis
- If you decide to change your layout, you may need to employ specialist cleaning contractors to remove the residue
- Even with minimal pedestrian traffic, you can expect to see the edges lift and curl
- Where the bleeds out of the edges will collect dirt and dust
- When the edges curl and lift, the tape then becomes a major trip hazard
Want to trial the premium Mighty Line floor tape?
