Tapes Continued…

Scotch Tape

Scotch tape was invented in 1930 by Richard Drew, an engineer at 3M. Scotch tape was the world's first transparent adhesive tape.

Masking Tape

Richard Drew also invented the first masking tape in 1925, a two-inch-wide tan paper tape with a pressure sensitive adhesive backing.

Duct tape

Duct tape was first created and manufactured in 1942 by the Johnson and Johnson Permacel Division. Its closest predecessor was medical tape. The original use was to keep moisture out of the ammunition cases. Because it was waterproof, people referred to the tape as "Duck Tape." Also, the tape was made using cotton duck - similar to what was used in their cloth medical tapes.

Military personnel quickly discovered that the tape was very versatile and used it to fix their guns, jeeps, aircraft, etc. After the war, the tape was used in the booming housing industry to connect heating and air conditioning duct work together. It wasn't long before the color was changed from Army green to the silver color that is so familiar today. Today you can also find duct tape available in a variety of colors and widths.

Using Tape for Painting

We use tape for just about everything. Some of the most common uses of tape include holding things together; hanging things from the wall and helping you mark off areas of your home for painting.

Taping your room is a key preparation element in the painting process. Taping a room can be very time consuming, but is well worth the effort. It is important that you purchase a quality painters tape for painting. Although tape may seem like an unnecessary expense, a good tape is well worth the cost. Nothing ruins an effect more than sloppy ceiling lines and paint bleeding through to trim and other non-painted surfaces.

When you've painted a portion of the room and feel satisfied with the outcome you can remove the tape. In fact removing tape early is a good idea. When the paint is wet the tape will simply lift off of the surfaces it was applied to, but when the paint is dry it will adhere to the tape. This means as the tape is pulled it will take chunks of paint with it. However, be careful when removing tape that is wet with paint. You may be able to keep it off of your walls, but wet paint can get on other surfaces in your home when removed.

By Chris Saunders