How poly(vinyl acetate ethylene) (VAE) emulsions are made has a critical role to play in the properties and cost of the adhesives that they're used to make. While batch reactors are more flexible, loop reactors should make the cheapest, most consistent, emulsions. However, deposits in the reactor pose challenges in fulfilling this potential. Also, surfactants and protective colloids used to create the emulsion detract from VAE adhesives' wet tensile strength. Knowing how these issues can be overcome is useful for an adhesive formulator, whether making their own VAE emulsions, or using commercially produced ones.