What is the Best Reflective Tape For You?
In this article, we are going to go through all the different types of reflective tape that we currently carry at Reflective Pro. We will go over the special attributes on each tape, the brightness, colors offered, and what application it is best for. The tapes will be discussed in order of brightness (The same order as the photo shown above from left to right).
Engineer Grade (ELG) Type 1
Brand: Nikkalite
Colors Offered: Red, Blue, Green, Orange, White, Black, Yellow, Gold
Candelas: 75
Life Span: 7 Years
Great For: Vehicles and general use. ELG is flexible and conformable so it is also good for corners and bends.
There are two main types of Type 1 Engineer Grade tape which is EG and ELG. EG is "Engineer Grade" and more rigid and stiff whereas ELG stands for "Flexible Engineer Grade" and is flexible and conformable. It is the most popular reflective tape due to its versatility in being cut into designs with a vinyl cutter or used in rolls for vehicle striping. It's even more flexible when heated up with a hairdryer or when left out in the sun.
Click HERE to buy our rolls ELG.
Super Engineer Grade "SEG" Type 2
Brand: Nikkalite
Colors Offered: Red, Blue, Green, Orange, White, Yellow
Candelas: 135
Life Span: 12 Years
Great For: Everything you would usually use EG or ELG for such as vehicles. Approximately 60%-100% (varies by color) brighter than Type 1 Engineer Grade.
Super Engineer Grade is a super bright material that is denoted by a star watermark in the film. It is 60%-100% brighter than normal EG or ELG. It is only slightly more expensive than ELG, but is much brighter so it is perfect for the individual who wants to be more seen from further away.
Click HERE to buy our rolls of SEG.
Ultra-Light Grade "ULG" Type 3 Barrel Tape
Brand: Nikkalite
Colors Offered: Orange, White, Yellow
Candelas: 250
Life Span: 10 Years
Great For: Traffic Barrels, Cones, Bollards, Hard Hats
Over three times brighter than standard Engineer Grade. This particular product is designed for traffic barrels because of its flexibility. If a barrel gets hit and dented, the tape will bend with it and still be attached and functioning when the barrel is fixed. Even though it is designed for barrels, it works great for many other applications. The honeycomb design in the material designates it as a high-intensity material.
Click HERE to buy our rolls of ULG.
High-Intensity Prismatic "HIP" Type 4
Brand: Nikkalite/Oralite
Colors Offered: Orange, Green, White, Blue, Yellow, Red
Candelas: 360
Life Span: 10 Years
Great For: Marking loading dock areas, bollards, gates, barricades, non-DOT regulated trailers, and vehicles
This is an air backed prismatic film which is why it has the most vivid colors. It is ultra visible during the daytime and 45% brighter than Type 3 ULG during the nighttime and 5-6 times brighter than Engineer Grade. Its a more rigid film so not as good for curves, corners, etc (unless it's a large radius such as some bollards).
Click HERE to buy our rolls of HIP.
Oralite V98
Brand: Oralite
Colors Offered: Fluorescent Lime, Fluorescent Orange, Green, White, Blue, Red, School Bus Yellow
Candelas: 750
Life Span: 5 Years
Great For: Vehicles graphics, stripping, chevron panels. This is the most popular material with Fire Departments
My personal favorite material, V98 is 7 times brighter than Engineer Grade and has many great attributes and technologies such as its conformability, flexibility, and its ability repositioned. It is one of the only materials with forgivable an adhesive allowing you to apply the product and then take it off to reapply it (within reason). After is sets for 24-48 hours though there is no getting it off. We use this material for all our chevron panels. This material is also easily cut with a vinyl cutter allowing us to make custom designs and decals. Our best all-around film.
Click HERE to buy our V98 rolls.
Oralite V82 Type 5
Brand: Oralite
Colors Offered: Orange, Green, White, Blue, Red, School Bus Yellow, Standard Yellow
Candelas: 900
Life Span: 10 Years
Great For: Brightest colored tape on the market. Like SOLAS but in colors. Used to mark emergency vehicles, fire trucks, ambulances, helmets, loading dock areas, bollards, poles, dumpsters, gates, barricades, tractor-trailers, and more.
Oralite V82 is an incredibly bright prismatic reflective tape. This tape is ideal for fire, EMS, and police vehicles. ORALITE V82 tape is about 10 times brighter than standard engineer grade tape and three times as bright as high-intensity. Light is reflected using micro-prisms which makes the film much brighter than glass bead type films.
Click HERE to buy our V82 rolls.
Oralite SOLAS "Safety Of Life At Sea"
Brand: Oralite
Colors Offered: White (Silver)
Candelas: 1000+
Life Span: 10 Years
Great For: Marine Environments, Boats, Ships, Life Jackets, etc. Brightest tape in the world.
SOLAS tape is probably the most recognized reflective tape due to its brightness. We carry all three types of SOLAS which are 1403, 1404, and Sew On. They are all the same as far as reflectivity and brightness but 1404 is a thicker and stretchable material made for Zodiacs and 1403 is a thinner more rigid material designed for boat marking. Sew On SOLAS is has no adhesive and is to be sewed into your clothing. SOLAS only comes in one color which is White (Silver).
Click HERE to buy our SOLAS rolls.
This article covers all the rolls of tape that we carry, but there are a few others out there that we don't carry. All candelas that we referenced were for the white rolls. It should be noted that a darker color such as blue won't be as bright and have the same candelas as a white roll of the same material.