Applying Frame Sealing Tape

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Larry Peterson

Larry Peterson

SPFG, Supreme Picture Framing God
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Apr 8, 2003
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Wilkes-Barre, PA
I am on a quest....................to figure out how to properly install Frame Sealing Tape.

OK, probably not on the 10 all time quests, but one that has befuddled me..........not that that is hard to do.

I have looked all over for any 'how-to's that might be available. Can't find anything here, nothing on Lineco's site and nothing on the whole gall darn internet that I can find. You would think that Lineco might have YouTube'd something but nothing I can find.

Let start with their nice demo picture.

ALV-L3870151_2.jpg



Looks pretty but I don't know how to achieve that look. Unless they only used a single VNail, the tape was applied after the frame was joined. How? And they have covered the lip also.

Now look at my photo below.

FrameSealingTape.jpg


This shows #1, tape applied to the entire back and #2 tape applied to the rabbit area only with no tape on the corner.

To do the first, the only way I know is to apply the tape before the moulding is cut and joined. The second way is done after the frame is joined.

I have been doing the second way for years. I think it is OK as the entire rabbit area that might touch the art is covered. Neither method covers the lip. I would like to know if either way is the proper way.

Some considerations.

Is covering the lip necessary? It would be very easy to the this over the edge so that it is visible.

Applying the tape before cutting the moulding is problematic. You have calculate closely how much tape is needed. Too little and you will have to have an undesirable seam to add more tape. Too much and the extra overly aggressive tape is hard to remove.

The saw has a tendency to tear the tape more than cut it as you can see in one corner. I'm not to thrilled either about cutting the metal faced tape with a wood blade.

So what is the right way to do this?
 
Well........ when I first learned how to frame....... from an old school, know~all~the~tricks framer...... ;)
She taught me to seal the "package" with the sealing tape. I've never once put it on the wood. :shrug:
 
Larry Peterson said:
So what is the right way to do this?
Click to expand...

When I saw the title, I thought, well that is an easy one, but now that you have defined the real issue, I agree.

For me, I cover the lip probably 1/16th of an inch, but not so it is visible from the front. This way the glass has tape on 2 sides (top and edge).

I apply it to the frame in 4 pieces, so you do get the "notch". I haven't worried about the tape on the back, so I don't cover the notch. In fact, if it is a narrow frame, I cut the excess off so little is in the back, because otherwise the adhesive for the dustcover won't stick to the tape.

Interested to see what others do.
 
Grey Owl said:
In fact, if it is a narrow frame, I cut the excess off so little is in the back, because otherwise the adhesive for the dustcover won't stick to the tape.
Click to expand...

Narrow frames is another issue. The frame sealing tape is 1 1/4" wide which is too wide for most mouldings under 1" wide. You have to trim it from 1 1/4" to something narrower or it will overlap the side of the moulding. I used to try applying it whole and then use my backing razor to remove the excess but with such an aggressive tape its hard to remove after trimming. Now I trim it before applying.

I wish I could find a narrower tape, say 3/4" wide, for those narrow mouldings.
 
Congratulations to anyone who has cracked the secret of this tape. I have tried applying it a few times and never succeeded. I once did manage to actually get the release paper off after about 20 mins of picking about and a lot of screwed up bits. And then the darn stuff twisted and stuck to itself before it got anywhere near a frame. In the end I gave up on it.

Thinking kitchen foil and double-stick tape would do the same job. :thumbsup:
 
Grey Owl said:
I apply it to the frame in 4 pieces, so you do get the "notch". I haven't worried about the tape on the back, so I don't cover the notch.
Click to expand...

If you start with pieces a little extra long, you can square cut them at the corners and let the extra lengths overlap on the back. Then square them up to the width of the tape that goes around on the back. This uses a little more tape, but will give you the no-notch look. In fact, if you are OCD, you can use a no-notch razor blade to do the trimming. :icon11:

:cool: Rick
 
I apply it after the frame is made. Stick to the back of the frame first. Make a cut against the rebate in the two corners, then form it down into the rebate, gradually, pressing it into the rebate corner and onto the lip. The tape overhangs the lip slightly and can be trimmed off with a blade against the lip or half a millimetre in from the edge using a piece of matboard as a straight edge. The matboard straight edge is cut half a mm smaller than the rebate width and about 6 inches long. The tape is overlapped in the corners making two layers. Not mitred.

That's how I do it!
 
The way I do it is to lay a strip of tape across the back of the joined frame with enough over the rabbit of the frame to fold down. This strip goes from the outer edge of the frame to the other outer edge. Now with a razor blade slice the tape on the 2 perpendicular rails of the frame. You can then fold the tape down into the rabbit. Repeat on the other 3 sides.

If you really want to get picky, you can also put a small strips into the corners of the rabbit first so that there will be no gaps.
 
prospero said:
Congratulations to anyone who has cracked the secret of this tape. I have tried applying it a few times and never succeeded. I once did manage to actually get the release paper off after about 20 mins of picking about and a lot of screwed up bits. And then the darn stuff twisted and stuck to itself before it got anywhere near a frame. In the end I gave up on it.

Thinking kitchen foil and double-stick tape would do the same job. :thumbsup:
Click to expand...

That's one area I have solved. It does require a little effort to get the first piece started on a new roll - but much. For the first piece I score the tape just beyond that glued section at the start of the roll. I then bend it back and forth until the score separates and you can remove the first piece with the glue on it leaving the backing in place.

What I do is to lay the tape on the frame lining up the start and one end of the rabbit and then lightly marking the end with an X-Acto knife. The then use the X-Acto knife to score the tape where the cut is. It takes a little practice so you score/cut the tape without cutting the backing. You then pull the backing off starting at one end and when it gets to where you made the score, the tape should be free or lightly attached and wil 'snap' off. When you are done, the backing is still attached to the existing tape so it is easy to remove the next piece, yada, yada.

After you are done with the frame remove all the excess backing tape, leaving a short 'leader' of the backing for you to start on your next frame.
 
Larry Peterson said:
I wish I could find a narrower tape, say 3/4" wide, for those narrow mouldings.
Click to expand...


Just the other day I came across a neat trick for scoring and cutting roll tape. Take a nice thick book and a mat blade - insert blade between pages ( at correct height) right near the spline with the blade sticking out at an angle - with the book and the roll of tape both sitting on the workbench rotate the roll of tape against the blade to make your score - do enough passes for the length you need - repeat
 
I figure if you’re going to bother with lining the rabbet, you might as well wrap the lip, too.

I generally cut the length of the Rabbet Seal Tape to the exact length of the rabbet. Measure the width of the lip minus about 1/16”. GENTLY, score that width of the release paper with a sharp X-Acto knife making sure you only cut the paper and not all the way through to the tape itself.

RabbelSeal_zpsb7f81214.jpg


Peel off the paper that will cover the lip width. Gently apply the tape to the lip and press it down. Once secure, then remove the remaining release paper and push it into the rabbet depth and over the back of the frame.

RabbetSealTape2_zps7b951fe4.jpg


The end result looks kinda like this, but the art is completely protect by the tape in both the rabbet and the lip.

Lining the rabbet and lip of an oval frame is a real bother, though. :)
 
I've done the deed somewhat like Bill Henry's approach; however, instead of cutting lightly along the (dotted line) length, I've been folding the tape along that dotted line length.

Then when I'm ready to apply the tape I peel-back the backing about 8 inches at a time. But, I will definitely try Bill's approach of lightly cutting the strip that covers the lip... I still might fold that strip after lightly scoring it.

I wouldn't mind over-applying the tape and then trimming it... but I'm afraid I would damage the visible part of the lip!

Your idea sound good Bill... unless someone else comes up with a more foolproof approach!




Z
 
This may be a silly question but here goes. If you are using glass why cover the lip? IMO the glass would act as the buffer between the lip and the art/mat. I would think all is well if the tape is attached along the depth of the rabbet to the lip. With oil/acrylic painting that do not have glazing then of course you would cover the lip. Just my thought and I could be all wrong.
 
Since we are of varying opinions on this, I just sent an email to Lineco inviting them to participate in this discussion. Hope that they do.
 
Joe B said:
This may be a silly question but here goes. If you are using glass why cover the lip? IMO the glass would act as the buffer between the lip and the art/mat. I would think all is well if the tape is attached along the depth of the rabbet to the lip. With oil/acrylic painting that do not have glazing then of course you would cover the lip. Just my thought and I could be all wrong.
Click to expand...

That's the reason I use, but that's also one of the reasons I started this thread; to find out.
 
Joe B said:
This may be a silly question but here goes. If you are using glass why cover the lip? IMO the glass would act as the buffer between the lip and the art/mat. I would think all is well if the tape is attached along the depth of the rabbet to the lip. With oil/acrylic painting that do not have glazing then of course you would cover the lip. Just my thought and I could be all wrong.
Click to expand...

Good question.

I cover part of the lip because the glass is loose in the frame to allow for expansion, so some of the rabbet is still exposed.

I have not tried a thin cut on the back as some others suggested but I may.

As I mentioned earlier, I do a side at a time. I place the bottom edge of the tape on the "window lip", but do not press. I then place the top part of the tape along the back of the frame, with some pressure. Think of an L with the tape on the ends of the "L". Once it looks okay, I press the tape from the back of the tape along the back edge of the rabbet. I then take a bone and force the rest of the tape into the rabbet. This pushes the part that was touching the window lip back toward the crevice so it does not show. I then use the bone to apply additional pressure.

As I mentioned earlier I do get the notch. I have the tape a little longer so it overlaps in the corner, but as was suggested I will go with a longer piece to eliminate the notch.

We will see what Lineco says
 
Most frame moldings have straight grain wood, which is not a significant source of pollutants. Open grain, exposes the lignin, which lines the veins of the wood and that poses a problem, but if the grain is straight and has no knots, only the cellulose between the veins is exposed and the wood should be much less of a problem than urban air. If the package is closed with a tape seal that runs from the glazing to the plastic backing board, the one thing that is needed is a layer of barrier foil to keep the tape adhesive from polluting the interior of the enclosure. This can be made by cutting a roll of metal/plastic sealing foil on a power miter box to produce rolls of foil, which can be addes as the tape is applied to the sides of the package. This addresses a number of issues: it moderates climate flux, it inhibits pest entry, and it keeps pollutants away.



Hugh
 
Lineco never got back to me about this. So much for their customer service.
 
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