Customer Spotlight: Train2Build with Bill Robinson

Bill Robinson is a nationally known construction trainer and presenter and owner of Train2Build and Train2Rebuild, a company that provides education for the building industry and homeowners. Headquartered in New Orleans, Robinson hosts consulting and training programs that focus on detailing the building envelope in the hot/humid climate, best practices for installing doors and windows, flood hardy building materials and methods, and moisture management in the Gulf Coast region. 

And it just so happens that one of his favorite building materials is double-sided tape. Which makes Bill Robinson one of our favorite customers, obviously. 

How did you first learn about ECHOtape? Through blogging, actually. Amanda Voss reached out to me when she was researching a series of stories on moisture management and adhesive trends.

Customer Spotlight with Bill Robinson of Train2Build | ECHOtape.com

When did you start using our products? I had become fascinated with the powers of double-sided tape through my work with JLC, but ECHOtape was new to me. I reached out to Steve Underhill and he sent a couple of sample rolls for me to try and I was blown away. That was three or four years ago. I’ve been using ECHOtape ever since.

Using Double Sided Tape with Bill Robinson | ECHOtapeHow many different ECHOtape products have you worked with? Any favorites?  Although I have used your seaming tape, I’m mostly interested in double-sided tapes, using them in applications where I need to adhere to a substrate that I can’t typically drive nails through. Or even ones where you can, because I don’t like the idea of penetrations. Any hole, no matter how small, has the opportunity to become a problem when there is moisture involved. Double-sided tape allows me to have the same powerful hold, but with the added benefit of keeping things dry. For windows and doors, I am really impressed with the Double Sided Acrylic Foam tapes, UB-F3504 and UB-F3557.  And I’m a firm believer in seaming housewrap with tape, instead of fasteners or nails. Sure, it takes a bit more time, but the air sealing benefits are worth the extra effort.

What’s been the biggest surprise using tape in your construction projects? The surprise is the versatility. The reward is the adhesion level.  A nail is a nail; it has one job and does one thing. Caulk, which is something that I use often, is more versatile, but it’s still limited.  Tape is truly multi-purpose. The different adhesive components allow me to choose the best stick for the job. And it allows me to connect, or adhere to different substrates that were previously huge challenges, such as irregular surfaces. The cool thing is that I can weather strip without fasteners and ensure a moisture-resistant barrier.  

What has your customer experience been like? Phenomenal! My go-to guy is Steve Underhill. Mostly because I’m old school; I like talking through my challenges and you can’t do that with a chatbot.  Steve listens, he’s genuinely curious, and what he’s doing makes me look good. The results speak for themselves. 

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What’s next for you and your business? Bottom line: I’m a building envelope guy that lives in the humid Gulf Coast of Louisiana. Moisture issues are what we’re trying to solve every day. Building homes to withstand hurricanes and tornadoes is important.  But the real challenge is moisture and microbial growth. 

Right now, I’m involved in a number of flood recovery and rebuilding projects, including the Disaster Justice Network in Lake Charles and lowernine.org in New Orleans. We’re creating training programs and resources — for builders and homeowners alike—to help these areas create durable, healthy, efficient, moisture-resistant homes, to better withstand the next weather event.  

As a consultant, I’m also on all kinds of Zoom meetings with building pros, the best of the best. But most of these guys are from the Northeast and Midwest, their concern is insulating houses for heating. In the humid South, we need to focus on air sealing a house for cooling and moisture. Those are two different things.  When it comes to hiring a company for a job, whether it’s an engineer, architect, or builder, make sure they know your climate challenges. If you don’t know, ask me. I’m an educator and a connector, I can find you to the right people. 


7 Ways to Use Double-Sided Tape in Construction Applications

Double-sided tape is any tape that is coated with adhesive on both sides. Designed to stick two surfaces together without being seen, these versatile tapes deliver neater-looking projects and better craftsmanship. And unlike screws or rivets – which join materials at a single point – high-strength double-sided tape permanently adheres one substrate to another while spreading the stress load.

Sounds great, right!?  Yet, much like everything else on the job site, choosing the right double-sided tape for the specific application is not as easy as it sounds.  Whether you’re bonding glass, wood, steel, concrete, foam, and/or plastic together, it’s important to understand the materials you are bonding. Concrete with a textured surface is going to require more adhesive strength than, say, carpet padding.


Best Uses for Double-Sided Tape in Construction

Outside of materials, it’s also important to understand the field conditions. A product that you used in spring or summer might not work in sub-zero winter.  Ice, rain, humidity, heat, UV, and dirt are all factors to consider when choosing the right tape or, more importantly, preventing tape failure. For more on this, check out our infographic, The Secret to Choosing the Right Tape.

That said, we are thrilled to see more and more tape being used in construction applications, especially since adhesive technology has come a long way.  As more and more builders start to focus on seaming the building envelope and getting improved HERS scores, tape is fast becoming a way to get the job done well.  Here are just some of the construction applications where double-sided tape plays a major role and we expect more and more in the future.

Overlap housewrap seams. Here’s the deal: single-sided tape used to seal housewrap may allow water to migrate behind the tape, and ultimately into the structure. Using a roller to bond the tape may help, but the better solution is to use double-sided tape as a housewrap tape so you can overlap seams and ensure no water gets through.

Overlap vapor barrier seams and attach them to cement walls in crawlspaces. More and more builders are putting vapor barriers down in crawlspaces to seam the building envelope as even in the basement there is air leakage.  You can also use a high-performance double-sided vapor barrier tape to attach the barrier to the walls instead of using screws.

Overlap any flooring underlayment including sound attenuation barriers. With more buildings becoming airtight, sound is becoming a big issue.  Use double-sided tape for any flooring underlayment including sound attenuation materials.

Permanently attach insulation to walls. Use double-sided insulation tape to attach insulation to the building and ensure it sticks.

Temporarily mount something prior to permanently fastening. Temporary double-sided tape is the perfect solution to hold something in place while you permanently mount it.  Examples include light switch junction boxes; electrical panels; electronic thermostats; baseboards; and crown moldings.

Floor protection. Often you need to cover floors or walkways with carpets or floorboards to protect the surface while construction is underway.  Our double-coated carpet tape features an aggressive adhesive system that’s perfect for carpet hold-down but will leave no residue once removed.

Easy installation of building materials. More and more manufacturers are making their products with double-sided tape for easy installation.  As labor shortage becomes a big issue, finding ways to save installation time is becoming critical.

For more information on double-coated adhesive tapes, please visit The Complete Technical Guide to Double-Sided Tape.  And if you still have questions, please contact us! We love solving unique tape challenges. 

 


3 Steps to Seam Housewrap The Right Way

No matter where you live, you will find housewrap being used on construction sites. It’s one of the most widely applied water and air barriers in modern home building. Unfortunately, house wrap is often installed poorly — blowing in the wind, loose seams, ripped or torn sections, laid edge-to-edge, and even left with large gaps.  All of which prevents housewrap from doing it’s job, even after it’s been covered with cladding or stucco.

To get it done right and have house wrap do its intended job, Building Envelope Specialist Bill Robinson shares the three steps necessary for proper installation.


Step 1: Start With a Clean Surface

Dust, dirt, and debris will keep any tape from sticking, including seaming tape.  Using a wide bristle brush, clean the housewrap from the top down.


Step 2:  Seal The Seams with Seaming Tape

One of the biggest, most common issues surrounding any house wrap is improper seaming. Robinson says: “Housewrap without seaming tape is like an umbrella with holes. You’re going to get wet.”

Which is exactly why IBC 1402.2 and IRC R703.1.1 insist that “Other approved materials [i.e. housewrap] … are used as a WRB they shall be installed in accordance with the water-resistive barrier manufacturer’s installation instructions.”

Most housewrap manufacturers require that every house wrap seam — vertical and horizontal — be sealed with tape, ensuring that the tape is wide enough to sufficiently cover the seam.

Robinson reminds us that there is another important consideration when taping a wrapped home, ambient temperature. “Tape applied to house wrap that is too cold or too hot may not adhere properly. Be sure to choose a high-quality seaming tape best suited to the extremes of your climate region.

Here we used PE-M4535, a seaming tape specifically formulated with a proprietary extreme weather adhesive, that can be applied at  -4°F to 105°F (-20°C to 40°C), and will adhere -40°F to 148°F (-40°C to 120°C)!


Step 3: Apply Pressure

Pressure sensitive adhesive tape needs pressure to form a proper bond. Without it, the tape may gap, wrinkle or lift, all of which will allow unwanted air or water incursions.

Using a squeegee, roller or J-roller, apply firm pressure to the tape in upward and downward strokes, making sure to smooth any wrinkles or gaps.  The appropriate amount of pressure will cause the aggressive adhesive on the seam tape to form a permanent bond with the housewrap within 72 hours.


Consider Using a Tape Gun

Although many contractors will apply seaming tape by hand, Robinson recommends using a tape gun.  “A tape gun allows you to apply seaming tape more easily, quickly and evenly than by hand. Plus, even though ECHOtape’s Seaming Tape tears really easily by hand, a tape gun is just plain faster.”

“Also, don’t make the mistake of thinking that a tape gun replaces a roller or squeegee. It doesn’t.  You still need that additional pressure to really seal the overlap.  It’s a step most contractors skip, and it’s almost always a costly or even litigious mistake.”

Seaming house wrap is not difficult. Clean. Seal. Apply pressure. Repeat. But for large projects, it can be time-consuming and tedious to do it right the first time.  Is it worth it?  Absolutely!  Seaming tape is critical for creating a weather-resistant seal on the exterior of new construction, so it is vital that the tape properly adheres to the housewrap material.

Keep in mind,  not all seaming tapes are created equal.  Seaming tape for house wrap should have high shear and holding power to ensure that the tape will hold long-term. It should also have the ability to withstand a wide temperature ranges and humidity levels in order to prevent flagging or failing, and should be hand-tearable for easy application. UV-resistance is another critical characteristic that allows housewrap tapes to withstand sun exposure throughout the duration of the project.

Have more questions? Check out our Field Guide to Housewrap Seaming Tape or call us directly at 800-461-8273. We love solving tape challenges!

 

1.800.461.8273 | info@echotape.com | echotape.com