Tensorgrip adhesive canisters are designed to dispense a steady and precise flow of your chosen adhesive, making them a reliable choice for a wide range of projects. 

However, it's important to properly care for your adhesive canister to ensure that it continues to work properly and dispense the correct amount of adhesive. 

Quality care centers around proper storage, temperature control, and cleaning of your Tensor product. However, to ensure the life of your product, you must also set it up properly, break it down correctly to reuse parts, and test the output to make sure these processes were done correctly.

In this article, we’ll run through the setup, care and maintenance, storage, and safe disposal of your canister. 

Let’s start with getting your Tensorgrip canister set up.

Setting up your canister

Tensorgrip canisters need several components to use: a flexible rubber hose, a wand gun, and the gun tip. You can also use the canister trolley for moving around during jobs.

1. The hose has two differently sized attachments at the end. Attach the smaller end to the canister with your fingers, then tighten it with a wrench an extra ⅛-¼ turn.                                              
2. Attach the other side of the hose to the gun, and tighten it with a wrench as before.
3. Attach the spray tip to the gun (you can find it in the plastic bag on the canister). Be sure to align the tip vertically. Don’t remove the needle seat at the end of the gun, only remove the retaining nut.  
4. Tighten it with a wrench as before.
5. Slowly turn the valve counterclockwise to the Open position. You’ll hear a release of pressure.
6. Wind up the adjustment and locking knob on the gun to open it up
7. Test the spray, ensuring glue is spraying properly. We recommend testing it on a piece of cardboard before applying. It may take a bit of spraying for the spray pattern to settle at first.
8. You can adjust the gun to provide a wider spray pattern, dispensing more of the adhesive.
9. Between applications, you will notice a bit of adhesive on the end of the gun tip. You can wipe it off with a wet rag, or use a bucket of water to keep the tip in good condition.
10. Place your canister into the trolley if you’ll be moving it around. You can wind any extra hose around the hooks on the trolley. There’s also a spot to place the gun when not in use.

Care and maintenance

Care and maintenance of your hose, tip, and canister is simple, and necessary if you want to keep your Tensor products in top working condition.

Cleaning the hose

Make sure the adhesive isn’t able to dry on the tip. You can either clean it with water or a wet rag between uses, or let it soak in water overnight. 

For best results, clean with Tensorgrip S101, our citrus cleaner and adhesive remover. You can simply spray S101 on the tip to make sure the material is off. Be sure to wear safety goggles to avoid getting it in your eyes. This is especially important when spraying directly into the tip, like this:

When done spraying, you can let it sit overnight. Whenever you’re letting the hose tip sit overnight for cleaning, be sure to wind the knob at the back of the gun, locking the trigger so you can’t accidentally release more adhesive.

Handling chilled temperatures

If the adhesive gets chilled and has a poor or sputtering spray, you can fix it by warming it up slowly, such as in a sink or bath of warm water. Then pick up the canister and gently rock it to get things back to normal.

For more insights about caring for your adhesive during the cold winter months, this article may help: (link article here).

Proper storage

Store the canisters in at least 60 degrees Fahrenheit. If it’s in the back of a van overnight for instance, make sure there’s something to keep it warm. 

Powerblankets are ideal for this — they are a 110 volt plugin that keep the canister at exactly 70 degrees Fahrenheit, regardless of the temperature outside. Be sure to keep the canister off of concrete floors, which can cool them excessively.

Switching canisters

Whether you’ve finished a canister or just need to change to another one, follow these steps to transition smoothly to your next adhesive:

1. Turn the valve clockwise to Closed position
2. Spray the gun until hose is cleared of glue
3. Loosen the hose and remove it from the canister
4. Attach the hose to the new canister, and tighten it with a wrench
5. Turn the valve counterclockwise to the Open position
6. Test the spray (Tip: your hose and gun may need to be cleaned if left attached to a canister and unused for longer than 6 months)
7. Remove the hose from the canister, as done previously
8. Attach the hose to the new Tensorgrip canister, tighten it with a wrench
9. Turn the valve counterclockwise to the Open position
10. Spray the gun for 30-40 seconds, or until hose is cleared of glue

Canister Disposal

So your canister is empty now. How do you dispose of it?

1. Close valves on the canister and hose
2. Remove the hose (some excess liquid may leak out)
3. Lay canister down, with the outlet pointing away from people or objects
4. Turn valve counterclockwise to release canister pressure and ensure it’s empty
5. Puncture the disk (the safety release valve) as shown below to finish

With these steps completed, you can safely dispose of your canister.

To request a sample or more information on any of our products, please contact our team.