Image Washing Out After Exposure?
July 21, 2017
"I’ve been having issues with the image washing out of my screen after exposure. What is causing this, and are there ways I can avoid this?"
This was a question posed by a Printwear reader, and here is Kieth Stevens' response: Underexposing the emulsion is the most likely culprit in why it is washing out. Check to see if the emulsion on the squeegee side gets sticky or slimy as you are rinsing out the screen. You may even notice a quicker run-off on that side or a sudsy, soap-like appearance. These are clear indicators that the emulsion is underexposed. Try adding a minute or two to your exposure time or switch to a faster exposing emulsion.
Be careful not to use excessive water pressure as this can also tear parts of unexposed emulsion.
Kieth Stevens is the Western regional sales manager for International Coatings. He has been teaching screen printing for more than 10 years and is a regular contributor to International Coatings’ blogs. Kieth is also the recipient of the prestigious 2014 Golden Image Award Gold Winner, which is given out by SGIA (the Specialty Graphic Imaging Association.
International Coatings manufactures a complete line of Centris™ non-Phthalate screen printing inks, including a wide variety of whites, specialty inks, special effects inks,color matching systems, additives and reducers. In addition, International Coatings also manufactures a line of AXEON™ non-Phthalate, non-PVC special effects inks. For more information on our products, please visit our website at www.iccink.com.
