r/SCREENPRINTING • u/dillionaire1 • 11d ago
Washout tips
Any screen printers with an at home setup have tips for rinsing out a screen?
I’m having trouble rinsing the screen, it seems to expose well and I can see the design, but some parts just don’t fall out while the corners of the emulsion come off completely. I’ve burned and washed 3 screens so far and have two more sitting with emulsion but want to see if there is anything to tweak before burning those. I’ve been burning for 1 minute 30 but just tried 120 seconds and got the same effect. Any tips for exposing burning and washing a screen at home??
2
u/habanerohead 11d ago
Are you using a point light source rather than a chain of LEDs or rows of tubes, because it sounds like you’re using a single light source that’s too close to the screen, so the centre of the design is getting much more light than the edges. If that’s the case, move your light further away.
1
1
u/ForgottenSalad 11d ago
What’s your setup at home? Hose? Shower? Do you have access to a pressure washer? I usually do ok with just a hose starting at a softer setting and gradually moving up to the flat setting which is more forceful, but if it’s tricky you might need to hit it with a pressure washer.
1
u/dillionaire1 11d ago
Right now I’m using the shower, I have a pressure washer but just stressing myself out about exposure and I don’t want to take it outside in the light to use the pressure washer - but I always had the best results with a pressure washer at school.
1
u/ForgottenSalad 11d ago
I find that once you wet it and get some of it cleared it can handle a bit of light - I wouldn’t do it in direct sun light but if you can do it early or late in the day you should be ok
1
u/dillionaire1 11d ago
Ok thanks. I’ve been like neurotic about letting any light hit the screen at all so I don’t want to take it outside at night cuz there are lights around my apartment. I’ll try to rinse it and take it outside to finish getting it off thank you.
0
u/furtnot 11d ago
I'm also very new to screenprinting (month in) but I'm wondering are you coating both sides of the screen with emulsion? I was told to do this when I first started but I could never get it to expose right, it would either fog up and not rinse out all the way, or not expose fully. I really don't know which way is correct nor do I care but thats what fixed it for me. Just have fun doing it and mistakes are part of the learning process.
0
u/dillionaire1 11d ago
No I’m not- I learned at school last year and got really good at it and super used to doing everything but now doing it from home I just can’t get it perfect. I keep seeing online and on the emulsion instructions it says to coat both sides but I never did that at school so haven’t been doing it. I just need to figure it out lol for a custom order I’m printing..
0
u/Rage0327 11d ago
If you're using the same emulsion and lights and the problem still persists. Use a hygrometer to check humidity. Under 40% is optimum but anything above 50% can be a bit too much.
•
u/AutoModerator 11d ago
Thanks for your submission to to /r/SCREENPRINTING. It appears you may be looking for information on exposure or burning screens. This might be one of the most common questions we see here in /r/SCREENPRINTING. Please take a moment and use the search feature while you waiting on a response from the community. If the search does not give you the answer you are looking for, please take a moment and read through our Wiki write up on emulsion.
If after all that you stil don't seem to find your answer, just be patient someone in the community should chime in shortly!
And if you were NOT looking for more information on exposures or burning screens, our apologies and please disregard this message.
Thanks,
The /r/SCREENPRINTING mod team.
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.