Adhesive for polyethylene sheeting

Jul 13, 2008 Last reply: 4 years ago 13 Replies

I'm putting polyethylene sheeting on the floor of a crawlspace. My plan is to run it up the walls (concrete block) and glue it to the wall to seal and adhere it. Can someone recommend a good adhesive for this application? Predictably, perhaps, water-based adhesives don't work; I've had some luck with one of the Liquid Nails (tm) products (hydrocarbon solvent, not water), but while that was ok, it was not great. The difficulty, perhaps needless to say, is finding something that adheres well to the poly.



Thanks, Mike Lacy Fort Collins CO


Try liqued nails, if it eats the plastic you will know soon enough then try a latex base adhesive

No adhesive sticks to poly. Fact is, polyethylene is often used as a release backing so parts won't stick together. You may have luck using a mechanical system, such as a nailing strop to sandwich it to the wood at the top of the wall.

Poly-plastic sheeting always seems to rot over time or get cut. I might put small anchors in the walls and tie it up to the wall using grommets in the sheeting so if it were to get damaged it would be easier to replace.

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on 7/13/2008 10:16 AM snipped-for-privacy@gmail.com said the following:

I've used Elmer's wood glue to attach polyethylene panels into the recessed panels on a wood garage door. They've stuck for some 20 years now. I don't know how it would work on concrete though.You might try a spray adhesive like 3M's Blue Tack Carpet adhesive. It says it works on concrete and polyethylene.

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ABATIX makes a product: Abatix Spray Adhesive .*

Said to adhere to poly and many other materials (porous/wood,etc). It needs to "tack" before applying the poly. The can mentions temporary and permanent bonds. Crafts shops also carry spray adhesive.

I inherited two full cans. Right now I have an interior door panel off in my truck. I plan to spray the adhesive on and replace the poly behind the inside door panel (vapor barrier). What ever adhesive was used on the original held until I removed the barrier, so I could fix the motor on the electric window.

The OP may need something else.

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I have used a hot glue gun to bond poly to itself. I wouldn't consider it a seal, you will likely get holes if you touch the gun to the sheet.

If I remember correctly from my laboratory employment a few decades ago, adhesives for polyethylene contained tetrahydrofuran (THF), among other things -- but that was for joining polyethylene to itself not to other materials. It's probably been banned by now anyway.

Perce

They state that this adhesive will bond to polyethylene. You might contact them to see if they would recommend it for your project.

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Red

Only realistic suggestion I have seen in this thread. Roll up the end a couple of turns around a piece of wood lath, and tack it to the sill plate. Back in the stone age, we didn't even seal the seams in the field- just overlapped them a foot or so, and put hunks of brick over the joint to hold it together. Same overpriced tape they sell for use on window film kits would probably work. If crawlspace is pretty dry, duct tape would work, plastic to plastic.

-- aem sends...

replying to mglacy, Hassan Osman wrote: I want to supply glue for stritch flm manufacturers, what is the exact material used?

You are correct! Henry's Wet Patch sticks to plastic sheeting very well. Warmth seems to make it bond even better. I currently have temporary covering throughout an old block building which were once horse stalls. It's to prevent mainly the dust and dirt...(Oh how when the wind blows the dust bowl calls its name)...form covering everything in there...*_again_* . This property has sold for storage containers development. So I'm using the space to organize STUFF from 3 different properties acquired over 20 years. I am certainly not worried, about having to remove the plastic, since this will all be demoed.

*/As if the plastic would come off with any thing less than fire or time in the Sun./*

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