Water Based Discharge Printing

Water Based Discharge Printing

Would you like your custom printed clothing to have the softest feel?  Most custom screen printing is done with plastisol inks and though they do the job, sometimes it can be a bit ‘tough’.  Plastisol inks don’t contain a solvent, so in order for them to set, you need to put them through a drying process.  The heat causes the ink to stiffen up while it dries and for some all over designs and multi-color designs, that can be irritating.  So what do you do if you want screen printing, but also want it to be lightweight and soft to the touch?  You get water based discharge printing!

Water Based Discharge Printing

Water based discharge printing is a form of screen printing that uses a different type of ink altogether to get the job done.  Water based inks, as denoted in the name, typically use water as a solvent.  In order to set these types of prints, the solvent must evaporate instead of cure like with plastisol inks.  What that means for your prints is that they are much more flexible and not tough at all.  The inks are less viscous which means that you can print over seams more easily, which makes water based inks perfect for all over and wrap around printing.

Now you may be thinking, where does the ‘discharge’ factor into the printing?  Well, with an added discharge agent to the water based ink, you have water based discharge printing!  The discharge agent is responsible for removing the pre-existing color in a garment and which is replaced by the color of your choice.  If you would be interested in trying out custom water based discharge printing, you can come to AMBRO Manufacturing where we can provide our garment decoration services to you.  If you would like to place an order, or if you would like to learn more about our company and customization services, you can contact us by email or by calling us at (908) 806-8337.

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Water Based T Shirt Printing

Water Based T Shirt Printing

For most custom printing needs, plastisol inks will suffice.  Screen printing with plastisol inks is very common in the apparel decoration world because it’s easy and affordable.  Plastisol inks contain virtually no solvent so they are not susceptible to drying out in the open air.  Since they won’t dry up you can leave them on the screen and reclaim at will for reuse which keeps costs low.  However, as with anything, there are drawbacks involved.  When plastisol inks are dried, they stiffen up and the more ink you have on the shirt, the heavier it feels.  For some designs or garments, plastisol inks don’t have a noticeable effect, but that’s not going to be true for them all.

Water Based T Shirt Printing

Water based T shirt printing is a different way of screen printing because the inks don’t behave the same way.  With water based T shirt printing you get much softer prints due to the low viscosity inks.  Since water based inks contain a solvent, which is generally water, they are susceptible to drying out and thus each batch must be mixed for one-time use.  The tradeoff is that the ink is capable of penetrating deeper into the garment, which is ideal for all over printing that goes across raised seams.  Also you are free to work with lightweight and flowy-style garments because you don’t need to worry about heavy plastisol prints.

You can even use water based T shirt printing to remove the existing color and put in your own custom color in one step by adding a discharge agent to the ink mixture.  If you are curious about all that you can do with water based T shirt printing, you can come to AMBRO Manufacturing to find out more.  You can contact us to place an order, or to speak with a representative, by email or by calling us at (908) 806-8337.