The weather is cold and people’s lips may be getting routinely chapped. The solution? Your awesome product!
When applying labels to tubes of lip balm, or other curved surfaces, lip balm labels will sometimes try to peel off if not applied correctly. That is such a frustration and can cause more headaches than learning billing software.
Some of our customers have opted to solve that problem with using a shrink wrap seal around the tube, but that adds cost, electricity and time. There should be a better solution than spending more money and time to have a label work properly.
For our label materials, let us explain how they work best in any condition and on any surface. All of our label materials (often called substrates) come with an adhesive coating on the back. The adhesive itself is a solvent based compound. That means that it is not at its strongest the second it touches the surface to which you are applying it. Some companies work with gum-based adhesives. Those are full strength the second you put them down. For our labels, it may take 5-30 minutes for the adhesive to fully bond and set with the surface. Our labels apply most easily and best to clean, flat, hard, dry surfaces.
For tubes and other tightly curved surfaces, here are some tips:
1. Apply your labels in a way that allows pressure to be placed on the labels for 30 seconds to a minute if possible. That is not the full 30 minutes, but it may be enough to give the labels a head start at setting up properly. If you give the labels the chance to set up, they will stay in place for a very long time.
2. Before applying your labels, wipe the surface of the tube or cylinder with acetone or isopropyl alcohol to clean off any oils or residue from the production process. Many companies place a lubricant in the molds to help the finished tubes come out easily and quickly as they are produced. This residue can counteract the solvent, or cause it to bond with something that is not the actual tube.
3. Try constructing or purchasing a holder system to allow the labels to set up after they have been applied. Here is a link to a possible solution. It is repurposing a test tube rack for 15-16mm tubes. There is also a smaller one for 10-13mm tubes on the same site. The places in the system could hold the tubes with labels on them for as long as necessary to allow the solvent to set up. You could also apply a rubber band around each one, but that may take a while to do and undo the band.
We want to try and help as many customers as possible achieve the results that they desire with less time and effort than they expect. This is a relatively new problem that we are looking into, so if you have additional information, tips or tricks, please email us your advice or comments: experienceteam@frontierlabel.com
Feel free to contact us with any questions or concerns by phone at 877-277-4682 or by clicking the “Live Chat” link at the bottom of this page.
