If time is short, a hair dryer is typically used to speed up the drying process. The trusty old fan has been used for years, and a thick layer of dust coats the blades. After coating, screens are leaned against the side of the tub with a fan blowing on them. The shower curtain has been replaced with a piece of black plastic to protect the screens from light exposure when they are in the tub.įor coating, a coating trough with a smooth, nick-free edge is used to apply freshly mixed dual-cure emulsion onto properly stretched screens. When the room is used for other purposes, coated screens are stored in the bathtub (which also serves as the developing and screen washout/reclaiming area). Still, the screenmaker needs to see what he's doing, so the bathroom door is left slightly ajar to allow a small amount of light into the room. Coating occurs with the bathroom's fluorescent lights turned off, because everyone knows that light will expose the emulsion. Screens are made in a bathroom converted for the purpose. Consider the following scenarios.Ī screen printing business operates in a small crowded shop. But because it appears so simple, many printers tend to gloss over the factors that lead to a correctly dried screen. Screen drying is a basic prepress step that seems like a no-brainer on the surface. In no time, you will have the fire department visiting you, and not for cake and coffee.ĭrying a screen is not unlike baking a cake. You don't have to be a pastry chef to know what will happen. Instead of following the directions, you decide to spread the batter out over a cookie sheet and bake it at 650☏ for only 20 min. Say you're in a hurry, though, so you try to speed up the process. A piece of cake, so to speak.Īs long as you follow directions, the cake is likely to turn out fine-not too dry and not too moist. Have you ever baked a cake? It's easy! Just rip open a box of cake mix, dump it into a bowl, add some water, an egg, and some oil, then stir it around a bit, pour it into a cake pan, and bake it for 40 min at 325☏. In this comprehensive article, Mick covers these procedures and conditions and how to implement them correctly in your operation.ĭrying a Screen for Screen Printing is Like Baking a Cake It requires attention to the coating process, understanding of common drying procedures, and knowledge of the conditions that must be present in order to achieve reliable coated screens on a consistent basis. Screen drying involves more than just making sure emulsion is dry to the touch. Just like baking a cake, drying a screen requires that you follow a specific recipe. By Mick Orr, Applications Training Specialist for Chromaline
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