Arkansas HVACR NewsMagazine November 2025

HVACR NewsMagazine November 2025

Tech News

Here is the step-by-step guide to gluing tubing insulation:

Gluing Tubing Insulation

Bryan Orr, HVAC School October 24 2025

1. Make tubing insulation cuts clean and even.

2. Apply glue on BOTH sides of the cut.

I see a lot of techs and installers use tape over foam tubing insulation joints (Rubbatex, Armaflex, etc.) rather than using the glue that is designed for it. Some of them use tape because they don't know the glue exists; some use tape because it's what they happen to have on the truck, and others don't use the glue because they attempted to use it and couldn't get it to work right. There is a trick to using contact adhesives like tubing insulation glue and spray glue. You need to allow it to dry a bit and “tack up” before pressing it together.

3. Hold the sides apart and allow them to dry and get tacky.