Understanding what screen printing is and how it varies fromother production techniques can help you comprehend how it has lasted for solong. There is a strong possibility that any t-shirts you have everpurchased—whether from your favorite theme park or a rock concert—were screenprinted. Much more work than you might imagine goes into screen printing! Thereare a staggering variety of chemicals, ink types, screen sizes, and cleaningmaterials. One of the most popular processes for making bespoke clothing isscreen printing. The design options are endless! It is rather quick, creates aproduct of good quality, and can quickly turn a profit after initial costs.It's not shocking that businesses from all over the world utilize it to createtheir clothing. Cotton works best for screen printing on fabrics. Naturalcotton fibers have the added virtue of being soft and breathable, and theyperform admirably during the printing process, absorbing or adhering to the inkvery well. Ink is applied to a t-shirt or other fabric using a screen stencil,which is how screen printing is defined.
Here is a basic rundown of how screen printing works:
The t-shirt is initially stretched out tautly, where it willstay stretched during the screen printing process. The ink is then forcedthrough the stencil of the screen, either manually or mechanically. There mayneed to be several layers of ink, depending on the type of ink being used.Because your design is only shown on that portion of the screen, and not on therest, the design is successful. This makes it possible to create an exacting,striking design.
- The shirt must nowdry, commonly known as a cure, after being printed. Although the manufacturerwill choose what temperature the ink has to reach, 320° F seems to be the norm.
It's crucial that the clothing doesn't move about a lotduring this period! Nobody desires a garment that looks messy or has ink thatis bleeding. These are merely the simplest screen printing procedures, but theyshould help you understand how it operates.
If the shirt is not treated with care, it could becomediscolored. The screen printing on a shirt ought to remain intact after beingwashed and dried correctly. Detail, color, discoloration, and number are thefour considerations when it comes to vinyl or screen printing on t-shirts.Counting how many times a screen-printed garment will need to be washed isimpossible, but I now know that with the right care, a screen-printed t-shirtwill survive for a very long time.
Let's now go through some extremely useful advice I'vepicked up over the years for extending the life of your screen-printed shirtwhile dispelling some common myths about the process.
You may greatly increase the lifespan of your shirt byemploying a few methods!
Wash in chilly water
This advice will assist you in maintaining the best possiblecondition for all of your clothing, not just screen-printed shirts.
Hot water washing will quickly destroy your clothing byrobbing it of color. Cold water washing will preserve your clothing much morequickly.
If your shirts are washed in cold water, the screen printingink will remain longer.
Inside-Out Rotation
Turning the shirt inside out before washing is anotheressential component of caring for screen-printed shirts.
As a result, the shirt's design is protected from being destroyedby other laundry or snagging on machinery.
Rinse hands
Screen-printed shirts should ideally be hand-washed. By farthe most delicate method of washing garments is by hand. Use a delicate cyclein the washing machine if you must wash your shirt.
Using mild detergent and avoiding bleach
Never use bleach on your screen-printed garment, and try toavoid over-washing it. These strong chemicals and soaps will reduce thelifespan of your shirt by degrading the materials.
A screen-printed garment is particularly vulnerable todamage from bleach. The link will deteriorate as a result of the bleach and mayappear splotchy.
Dry Low or Dry Hang
The lowest tumble dry setting should be used if you must dryyour garment in the dryer. A screen-printed shirt should be hung up to drybecause it is the safest method. Keep as far away from the heat as you can!
Without liquid fabric softener
Sadly, liquid fabric softeners do not work well withscreen-printed shirts. The screen printing ink may break due to the fabricsofteners' chemical degradation of the ink.
But you don't have to give up all of your favorite laundryscents—dryer sheets are safe.
No need to iron
Any form of heat can wreak havoc on the screen-printeddesign on your shirt. If at all possible, try to avoid ironing screen-printedimages as this increases the risk of cracking.
Keep any steam away from the ironing if necessary. Toprotect the screen-printed shirt from direct contact with the iron duringironing, drape a towel or other protective layer over it.
You will be as surprised as possible at how long yourscreen-printed shirts will retain their brand-new appearance if you try yourbest to go by these instructions. The time and energy spent are worthwhile!
It's critical to comprehend what screen printing is and howit varies from other production techniques to comprehend why it may endure forsuch a long time. In the process of screen printing, ink is transferred to asubstrate using a mesh, except for locations where a blocking stencil renders thesurface immune to ink. Screen printing is one of the most adaptable printingtechniques because of the elasticity, plastic nature of the ink, and manualoperation. In addition to using halftones, DTG also employs diffusion ditheringand digital printing at up to 1200 DPI.
Although DTG machines are capable of producing a respectablebottom base (pretreatment of plastic particles and white titanium dioxide ink),the results are not as impressive as screen printing. The ink used in screenprinting is thick and soaks deeply into the fabric of the t-shirt, making itmore durable. In this application, versatility refers to the capacity to printon a wide range of materials, as well as a wide range of garment types, printplaces, and locales. A DTG machine is essentially a sizable inkjet printer,much like the one in your home office, except it is specifically made to printon t-shirts and other clothing.
The greatest option, though, would be to move to screenprinting if you wanted to print on caps (or embroidery). DTG is the best optionwhen you want a delicate and light print that hardly feels like it's on theshirt, particularly on dark garments and if there are many colors in thedesign. And that is precisely what DTG printers were created for; with their 1200dpi print resolutions and diffusion screening, the dots on their prints areinvisible to the unaided eye. Nevertheless, we'll make sure you pick wisely ifyou rely on R&P Prints for your custom printing requirements.