The adhesive sits under the face stock where nobody looks at it, but it is what decides whether your label is still on the bottle after six months in a freezer or falls off on the way out of the shower. At DJB we run three workhorse adhesives every day: water-based, oil-based and hot-melt. Each has a clear best use, and each has a failure mode we have seen in our own shop. This guide covers what they are made of, where we spec them, and where we deliberately avoid them.
How to use this guide. We describe the three adhesives in the order you will meet them on a quote — default first, then specialised. For each we list what it sticks to, what it does not, and the environment it survives. If you only have a minute, jump to the quick selector table at the end.
1. Water-based adhesive
Our default adhesive. Emulsified acrylic or polyurethane in water; low odour, low residue, and the cleanest print surface of the three.
At DJB, water-based adhesive is made by running acrylic or polyurethane resin through a dedicated emulsifying unit with water as the carrier. It is the most environmentally friendly option in our lineup, it costs less per kilogram than the solvent-based grades, and it is the adhesive we reach for first unless the job tells us otherwise.
Why we use it
- Wide viscosity and solid-content range — we can dial penetration and wetting to match paper, film or foil face stocks.
- No toxic smell, no fire hazard during coating, and the presses clean with water.
- Thin glue line means high-resolution printing stays sharp; ink does not bleed or halo.
- Food, supplement, pharma and daily-use cosmetic labels where low odour and clean application matter.
Where it falls short
- Slow cure. Standard grades need roughly 24 hours to hit full bond strength. We can shorten that with a drying cylinder, but it still cannot match oil-based or hot-melt speed.
- Hates water and oil. Shower bottles, sauce bottles, anything that sees condensation — the label may look fine on day one and lift by day five.
- Low initial tack. On low-energy surfaces or curved bottles applied by hand, you can sometimes peel the corner straight back off.
- Cold kills it. Below 0 °C it freezes and the label wrinkles or curls. It also softens above about 60 °C, so it is not for engine bays or hot-fill lines.
- Metal interaction. Left in contact with some metal containers it can corrode the surface, and its electrical performance is poor.
2. Oil-based adhesive
The bond we choose when the label has to survive water, oil, solvents, heat or -20 °C freezers.
Oil-based adhesive dissolves acrylic or polyurethane in organic solvents — toluene, DMF and ketones are the ones you will see on our spec sheets. It films out harder and grabs the surface more aggressively than water-based, which is exactly what frozen seafood, automotive fluids and outdoor chemical labels need.
When we spec it
- -20 °C freezers Cold-chain food labels — frozen seafood, ice cream, frozen meat. Water-based fails here; oil-based holds.
- Outdoor Garden chemicals, automotive fluids, anything that lives in a shed or in direct sun.
- Oil / chemical Industrial oils, lubricants, cleaning products, anything the label touches directly.
- High heat Engine bays, electronics, industrial machinery labels where water-based would soften.
Trade-offs you should know
- Fast cure, low drying energy. It sets quicker than water-based and does not need a long drying tunnel.
- High initial tack. Sticks on contact, even on slightly dusty or textured surfaces.
- Strong water, oil and alcohol resistance. The surface has to be heavily contaminated before the bond lets go.
- Harder to remove cleanly. Peel it later and it either tears the face stock or leaves residue. We do not recommend it for refillable or returnable packaging.
- Smell and flammability. Lower solid content means more solvent smell. Some solvents are toxic, so ventilation and fire control are non-negotiable.
Safety note. We spray, roll or knife-coat oil-based adhesive like the others, but the work area needs extraction, no open flames and a full solvent wash-down after the run. That is why our solvent coating is kept away from the clean finishing area.
3. Hot-melt adhesive
The no-water, no-solvent workhorse for corrugated boxes, e-commerce waybills and cold warehouses.
Hot-melt is a 100% solid thermoplastic polymer — usually EVA — blended with tackifiers, viscosity modifiers and antioxidants. At room temperature it is solid; heat it to its softening point and it flows. There is no water to evaporate and no solvent to flash off, which changes the whole economics of the job.
Where it lives
- Shipping labels — e-commerce parcels, courier waybills, tracking labels.
- Outer carton labels for food, pharma and cosmetic packs — the box, not the bottle inside.
- Warehouse and inventory labels applied in cold storage down to about -10 °C.
- Short-term price stickers and promotional labels on cardboard displays.
Why it works there
- Sets almost instantly — good for high-speed applicators at 200+ labels per minute.
- Sticks to rough, recycled or slightly dusty cardboard where water-based would need pressure and dwell time.
- No drying equipment needed, and shipping cost is lower because there is no water weight.
- Storage-stable; the continuous film blocks moisture vapour.
The catch
- Needs special equipment. Dedicated hot-melt applicators and tight temperature control are mandatory.
- Heat limits the bond. Leave a hot-melt label in a hot truck and it softens.
- Thermal degradation. Holding it at temperature for a full shift breaks the adhesive down, so pot life and tank temperature matter.
- Coating weight is harder to control. It is less forgiving than a water or solvent line for fine glue-line tolerances.
- Substrate pre-heating and higher energy use. Sometimes unavoidable on difficult surfaces.
Hot-melt is rarely used for premium product labels that the consumer sees. It is functional, fast and cheap — perfect for logistics, wrong for a wine bottle or a cosmetic jar.
Quick selector
| Scenario | Use |
|---|---|
| Dry food, supplement, pharma, daily cosmetics | Water-based |
| Freezer / cold chain (-20 °C) | Oil-based |
| Outdoor / automotive / industrial | Oil-based |
| Shipping carton / e-commerce waybill / cold warehouse | Hot-melt |
| Promo / removable / window sticker | Removable adhesive |
| Security / RFID / high-value | UV-cure adhesive |
| Tire / extreme industrial | Tire-grade adhesive |
Other adhesives we keep in stock. Removable, UV-cure and tire-grade adhesives are available for edge cases. We do not list them as defaults because they are project-specific — send the substrate, environment and end use and we will spec the right one.
Not sure? Send us the substrate (what the label sticks to), the environment (temperature, moisture, oil contact), and the end use. We will spec the right adhesive on the first quote — not the second.