Two Interesting Copper Tape Applications: Slugs and F1

When you think of copper tape and its uses, you may be inclined to go down the electromagnetic shielding route and you would be right to do so – there are many applications that utilize copper tape in this area, but what if we told you that copper tape is also used to combat slugs and snails as well as making Formula 1 races safer? Surprised? Read on!

Copper Tape To Repel Slugs and Snails

Now used in many gardens, copper tape has become the ‘go-to’ for dealing with those unwanted slime producing creatures. You may have seen copper tape attached to plant pots, planters and even the trunks of fruit trees.

In what has to be the most effective way to repel slugs and snails from specific areas of a garden, self-adhesive copper tape is utilized. Why? The answer is simple, copper tape is highly conductive.

That still doesn’t make sense until you add in that slugs and snails secrete mucus from their bodies as they move along, we have all seen the slime trails left behind.

When this mucus comes into contact with copper, it reacts and gives said slug or snail a tiny electric shock – which they really do not appreciate.

A fantastic deterrent and a very different use for copper tapes. A nice side note here is that over time, the copper will turn a lovely shade of green to better match the environment it is being used in.

From the slow-paced world of slugs and snails to the fast and exciting world of Formula 1 racing…

Copper Tape and Formula One

The next time you are watching a big race, keep an eye out for some close up pit-stop action. There’s a good chance you will spot copper tape stuck in a strip or strips to the floor, close to the refuelling rig.

The rig and tape are connected, and there’s a very good reason for this, grounding. Why? Imagine if any static charge was present near the nozzle of the refuelling nozzle – there could be serious implications.

FIA Technical Regulation 6.5.3 states: Before refuelling commences, the car connector must be connected electrically to earth.
All metal parts of the refuelling system from the coupling to the supply tank must also be connected to earth.

On a smaller scale, Scalextric users are using copper tape to bind sections of track for enhanced connections and conductivity, with lap times improving hugely apparently!

Diamond Coatings supply self-adhesive copper tape in 6, 12, 25 and 50mm widths are standard stock sizes (non-standard widths are available upon request). All rolls are supplied in 20 Metre lengths. Please view the range HERE.