Welding Tape & Purge Paper FAQs

To remove welding tape residue use a clean, low-or no-lint towel saturated with denatured alcohol. That should clean away any adhesive residue and leave you with a clean, weld-ready finish.

Insulated aluminum backing tape, or simply called insulated backing tape, has a high-temperature fiberglass insulation strip down the center of the tape. We recommend using our insulated backing tape for sheet metal butt joints and similar applications where you can’t easily add a backing shield gas, and you want a high-quality weld bead profile on the back side.

Insulated backing tapes capture the shield gas as it moves through the root gap, providing a backup shield of argon gas. Additionally, they provide support for the molten weld puddle, which contributes to a uniform and more consistent bead profile.

Insulated aluminum backing tape comes in 2" wide and 4" wide versions.

EZ Zone tape has an "adhesive free zone" down the center of the tape. We recommend using EZ Zone tape for butt joints and similar applications where you do not want or need adhesive properties. EZ Zone tape is available in 2" and 4" wide versions.

Why use aluminum welding tape instead of masking tape, duct tape, or aluminum duct tape?

Home improvent tapes are NOT designed for high-purity welding applications, and may not be allowed on many jobsites. The adhesive is not engineered to withstand welding applications, and will contribute to substandard, contaminated welds that are messy to clean up.

Aluminum welding tape is formulated with no contaminates in the adhesive, resulting in high-quality welds.

Aluminum welding tape – also called welding, backing, or purge tape – is a specialized aluminum tape that is engineered for high-purity welding applications. The tape is formulated with no contaminates in the adhesive, and is commonly referred to as halogen-free tape.

NO! Purge paper does not dissolve in jet fuel.

Neither Purge Paper nor Purge Film is soluble in jet fuel. Both of these purging products require water in order to be effectively dissolved. Jet fuel has little or no actual water content. The purge paper and filme both just congeal and come out in messy, gummy clumps.

We recommend the purge paper be applied 6" (152mm) from each side of the preheated area, or weld joint, leaving a 12" (304mm) purge chamber.

If the purge paper is too close to the heat affected zone of the pre-heat equipment, grinding area, or weld root it can cause the purge paper to char. Charred purge paper does not completely dissolve.

According to specifications, purge paper shelf life is one year from the date of purchase. That said, we are aware of many welders that have used the material past this date with no apparent ill effects.

Purge paper heat capacity is well beyond atmospheric temperature exposure (high heat) levels. However, during welding, ensure that the purge paper and tape are set far enough away from the heat affected zone – typically a greater than 300 degree F temperature range – to avoid any charring or burning. This charring or burning will physically change the paper and may eliminate its ability to dissolve and possibly be flushed through the pipe via water or steam.

Purge Paper should be stored indoors, away from moisture, kept in its original packaging.

Standard ASW 35 paper (.0035" thick) in non-moving water breaks down in 20-30 seconds. Flushing with water or steam breaks the paper down immediately and it completely dissolves in seconds.