Budnick Converting ^®

There’s a growing trend of companies developing new products that take something that used to be done with a messy liquid adhesive or some sort of mechanical fastener and transforming it with an easy-to-apply adhesive-backed product. Adhesive tape is everywhere you look, and it’s starting to creep into places you’d never think you would ever see it.

Two of these places are the kitchen and bathroom.

Caulking is one of those things that no one really wants to do, but every once in a while, you have to scrape out the old stuff and pretend you know how to put the new stuff on. You pull out the caulk gun, a scraper of some sort, and a slew of wet paper towels to clean up the mess you’re inevitably going to make. Every time I go to re-caulk something – be it the tub, toilet, sink, or countertop, I can’t help but think “I hate doing this - there has to be a better solution.”

Well, now there is!

InstaTrim™ is a new product that takes some of the headache out of caulking. So what is it exactly? InstaTrim™ is a winged PVC extrusion that is coated on the back side with a strong silicone adhesive that adheres to just about any clean surface – including leftover silicone caulk. From the manufacturer’s website:

 “InstaTrim™ with SilTak silicone adhesive tape is a caulk free peel and stick trim product designed to conform to any 90 degree surface with our Patent Pending “wing” design that is tapered to follow any irregularities in the countertop surface and create a tight finish that will shed liquids and solids. In addition, PVC is inherently resistant to mold growth and will provide a higher quality finished corner that is easy to clean and will last for many years without degradation from cleaning solutions and abrasives commonly used on countertops and plumbing fixtures.”

“I tend to see things and think about solutions,” says InstaTrim™ inventor Greg Amundson, “I designed a solution (for sloppy, dirty caulking) in my head and got up the next morning and drew it up. It looked cool, very functional, and if it actually worked could be used anywhere in the world.”

That solution led Amundson to begin manufacturing and promoting the product himself – he even designed and built his own manufacturing setup. In the true spirit of the American Dream, Amundson created a product and stood behind it.

In 2011 Amundson came to Budnick seeking a solution for improving the adhesive on InstaTrim.  After placing inquiries at with numerous companies, Amundson said that "Budnick is the only one that was responsive, professional and very helpful.  While I understand the "high risk" of working with a new venture such as ourselves, we were never treated as such.  [Budnick] has been relentless in helping us to find solutions to some very unique silicone adhesive tape problems that we had to solve." Budnick worked to find the ideal adhesive for both the application and the extrusion - helping develop a custom adhesive tape just for InstaTrim!

While he sometimes likens the process to treading water – just keep kicking and you’ll keep your head above water – Amundson has taken his passion for invention and innovation and created a product that can make a little part of all our lives easier. Budnick is proud to be a part of this process, and we look forward to seeing InstaTrim’s success grow!

Insta Caulk® is available in some handy kits to handle whichever project you need to tackle – And it’s just about the same price as the liquid caulk! You can learn more about InstaTrim™ at instatrim.com!