FAQ – What’s The Difference Between All Of The Adhesives On Your Website?

Here's a guide to the different types of label adhesive that are used to make our self adhesive labels.

There are all sorts of components involved in choosing the right label for the job and one of the most important factors is using the correct adhesive. This guide will talk you through some of the terms used to refer to adhesives and descriptions of each of adhesives supplied by Label Planet.

INITIAL TACK: how strong the adhesive bond is at the moment a label is applied to a surface
ULTIMATE ADHESION: adhesives continue to strength after the initial application; ultimate adhesion refers to the strength of the bond once the adhesive has fully set
REMOVABILITY: the ease with which a label can be removed from a surface
SUITABLE FOR: the kinds of applications, surfaces, and temperatures the adhesive works best with
USED ON: the product ranges available from Label Planet that are made with this kind of adhesive

• Standard Permanent Adhesive
  INITIAL TACK: Good initial bond strength.
  ULTIMATE ADHESION: Good ultimate adhesion.
  REMOVABILITY: Difficult to remove; if removed, it tends to leave behind adhesive residue and damage may be done to the surface and/or the label being removed.
  SUITABLE FOR: General use applications where a label needs to stay in place. This adhesive suits a range of surfaces and temperatures BUT may struggle with unusual or curved surfaces and may fail to function in environments with more extreme conditions, e.g. highs or lows in temperature.
  USED ON: Standard Paper Labels (STA), Coloured Paper Labels (C), Fluorescent Coloured Paper Labels (FC), Gold and Silver Paper Labels (LG/LS), Mirrored Silver Labels (MSP), Gloss White Paper Labels for Laser & Inkjet Printers (GWPQ), Gloss White Paper Labels for Laser Printers (GW), Matt White Premium Quality Paper Labels (MPQ), Gloss Clear Polyester Labels for Inkjet Printers (GCP), Gloss Transparent Polyester Labels for Laser Printers (GTP), Matt Transparent Polyester Labels (MTP), Silver Matt Metallic Polyester Labels (SMP), Recycled Paper (RCY), and Translucent Paper (TL).

• High Tack Adhesive
  INITIAL TACK: Very good initial bond strength.
  ULTIMATE ADHESION: Very good ultimate adhesion.
  REMOVABILITY: Very difficult to remove; if removed, it will leave behind adhesive residue and damage will be done to the surface and/or the label being removed.
  SUITABLE FOR: General use applications where a label needs to stay in place on a curved or unusual surface (e.g. fabrics) or where it is very important that a label is difficult to remove. This adhesive works on a wide range of surfaces at a wide range of temperatures and is also compliant with the German BgVV for indirect food contact and short term contact with dry and moist food.
  USED ON: High Tack Paper Labels (HT)

• Marine Quality Adhesive
  INITIAL TACK: Very good initial bond strength.
  ULTIMATE ADHESION: Very good ultimate adhesion.
  REMOVABILITY: Very difficult to remove; if removed, it will leave behind adhesive residue and damage will be done to the surface and/or the label being removed.
  SUITABLE FOR: Applications requiring a waterproof label that is highly durable and permanent even when exposed to wet or outdoor conditions. This adhesive works on a wide range of surfaces at a wide range of temperatures and is primarily used to make “long life” durable, tracking labels.
  USED ON: Matt White Polyester Labels (MWP), Matt White Polyethylene Labels (MWPE), Matt White Polyolefin (MWPO), and Matt White Polypropylene (MWPP)

• Removable Adhesive
  INITIAL TACK: Low initial bond strength.
  ULTIMATE ADHESION: Low ultimate adhesion.
  REMOVABILITY: Easy to remove; when removed, it should require little effort, leave behind no adhesive residue, and do no damage to either the surface or the label being removed.
  SUITABLE FOR: Applications that require a temporary label; the label should remain in place during the length of the application and then remove cleanly and easily once the label is no longer needed. This adhesive works on a range of materials at a range of temperatures, but it should be noted that the removability of the label may be affected if certain factors reach an extreme level (e.g. extreme temperatures).
  USED ON: Removable Paper Labels (REM), Removable Coloured Labels (REMC), Removable Gloss Transparent Polyester Labels (GTR), and Removable Matt White Polyester Labels (MWR)

• Super Removable Adhesive
  INITIAL TACK: Very low initial bond strength.
  ULTIMATE ADHESION: Very low ultimate adhesion.
  REMOVABILITY: Very easy to remove; when removed, it requires little effort, leaves behind no adhesive residue, and causes no damage to either the surface or the label being removed.
  SUITABLE FOR: Applications that require a temporary label to be applied to a delicate surface; this adhesive is ideal for use on temporary labels that will be applied to items made of glass or paper. The adhesive is designed to lightly hold the label in place for the duration of the application and then remove cleanly and easily once the label is no longer needed. It works on a wide range of surfaces at a range of temperatures.
  USED ON: Super Removable Paper Labels (GREM)

• Freezer Adhesive
  INITIAL TACK: Quite good initial bond strength.
  ULTIMATE ADHESION: Good ultimate adhesion.
  [NB: it should be noted that the permanent freezer adhesive acts like a removable adhesive at room temperature; however, in freezer conditions, the adhesive will create a strong permanent bond.]
  REMOVABILITY: Difficult to remove; if removed, it tends to leave behind adhesive residue and damage may be done to the surface and/or the label being removed.
  SUITABLE FOR: Applications where a label is applied to items that will be stored or used in freezer conditions. This adhesive is most commonly used when labelling food and drink products (and is compliant with the German BgVV for indirect food contact and short term contact with dry and moist food) or labelling samples in medical and/or research facilities; in both cases the adhesive must provide strong, permanent adhesion even during exposure to low temperatures.
  USED ON: Freezer Labels (DF)

• Opaque Adhesive
  INITIAL TACK: Good initial bond strength.
  ULTIMATE ADHESION: Good ultimate adhesion.
  REMOVABILITY: Difficult to remove; if removed, it tends to leave behind adhesive residue and damage may be done to the surface and/or the label being removed.
  SUITABLE FOR: Applications where the label must completely cover up (or block out) any existing print or design work on the surface being labelled. This adhesive suits a range of surfaces and temperatures and is most commonly used when replacing out of date information, reusing existing packaging, or covering up errors in existing print.
  USED ON: Opaque Labels (OPQ)

You can view our range of adhesives on our website.