SOPScreenPrinting

Trainingisrequiredbeforeusingthisequipment.

Reservationsarerequiredwhenusingthisequipment.

NISUSESWATERBASEDINKSANDCLEANINGPRODUCTS

ScreenPrintPricing

ScreenRental

21”x28” $7.00perscreenfor2weeks

23”x31” $9.00perscreenfor2weeks

4”x6” $3.00perscreenfor2weeks

Markyourscreenbywritingyournameandtoday’sdateonapieceofmaskingtapeandadheringittotheshortsideofthescreenframeedgesoitisvisiblewhenstored.TransparencyFilm–0.25₵perlinearinch

Transparencyfilmissoldbythelinearinch.Youarepayingforthenumberoflinearinchesyouremovefromtheroll,notthewidth.Besuretoorientyourimage(s)alongthewidthofthetransparencyinordertousetheleastamountoftransparencyaspossible.Your artboard (in illustrator) should always be 17” wide as that is the width of thetransparency.WaterBasedInk

Basecolor$1.50perounce

Customcolor $1.50perounce

Basecolorsareusedstraightoutofthecontainer.Todeterminehowmuchinkyouwillusefirstweightheentirecontainerandwriteitdown.Whenyouhavecompletedyourprintjobforthedayweighthecontaineragainandpayforthedifference.Customcolorsareyourstokeepforever.Mixyourcolorinastudiosuppliedcontainerandweighyourcustomcolorbeforeyoustartyourproject.Youpayforandtakehomealltheinkyoucustommix.

NIScarriesavarietyoftshirtsinavarietyofcolors.SeeNISstaffforspecifics.

CHEMICALS

PhotoEmulsion:

Alightsensitiveliquidthatisappliedtoacleanscreen.Whenunexposedtolightouremulsionisanarmygreenorbrowncolor.Whenexposedtolightitturnsviolet.Emulsionhasanapproximate1.5hourdrytimebeforeitcanbeusedtoexposeyourimage. Makesuretocleantoplip&sealcontainertightlyandstoreinrefrigerator.

EmulsionRemover:

Achemicalthatremovesthephotoemulsionfromyourscreensoyoucanreclaimthescreen.Toreclaimyourscreen:Spraybothsidesofyourscreenwithemulsionremoverandallowtheremovertositonthescreenfor1minute.ScrubthescreenlightlywithScotchbriteandusethepowerwasherwithCOLDwatertoremovetheemulsion.Aimthepowerwasher4-8inchesawayfromyourscreen.

AdhesiveSpray:Thissprayisappliedtotheplatenandwillhelptoalignyourregistrantaswellasadhereyourmediatotheplatensothatitdoesnotmoveduringtheinkingprocess.

Ink: NISpurchaseswaterbasedinksinavarietyofcolors.

Fornon-customcolors(inkuseddirectlyoutofthecontainer)youpayforwhatyouuse.Forcustommixedcolorsyoupayforwhatyoumix.

ScreenCleaner:

Emulsionremoverisusedwhenyouarereclaimingyourscreenorwhenyouneedtoperformadeepcleanonascreenyouareabouttouse.Placethescreeninthewashstationandspraythescreenliberallywithemulsionremover.Usingascotchbritepadscrubthescreenlightlyuntilyouhaveremovedasmuchinkanddirtaspossible.Rinseyourscreenusingthepowerwasher.

TOOLSANDEQUIPMENTScoopCoaters:

Scoopcoatersaremetaltraysthatdipsensetheemulsionwhencoatingyourscreens.Wesaveallunusedemulsionbyscooping/placingitbackinthecontainer.Makesuretorinseoutthescoopcoater,squeegeesandspatulaswellafteryouarefinishedcoatingyourscreens.WehavemultiplesizesofscoopcoatersatNIS.Choosewhichoneworksthebestforyourimage.

Squeegees: Squeegeesareusedforapplyingyourink.We

havevarioussizes,typesandrigidityavailable.Chooseasqueegeethatwillfullycoverthestencilpartonyourexposedscreen-notnecessarilythewholescreen.

Screens:

NISprovides160meshscreensthatareavailableformemberstorentfor2weeksatatime.Seepricingguideformoredetails.

ExposureUnit: Wehavea32”x48”vacuumexposuretable

thatpullsyourscreentoyourfilmwhileexposing.Thereare3switchesontherightsideofthetablethatcontrolthevacuum,lightandmainpower.MakesurethelightandvacuumswitchesareintheonpositionbeforeturningtheMasterswitchon.Thestandardexposuretimeis5minutes.

DryingCabinet:Whenscreenshavebeencoatedwithemulsiontheymustcureinthedryingcabinetforapproximately1to2hours.Alwaysplaceyourscreenonthemostbottomrackandwellsideupsoyouremulsioniscontained.Youremulsionmustbecompletelydrybeforeburningyourimage.

DryingRack:

Afteryouhavecleanedtheemulsionoutofyourimagewiththepressurewashertorevealyourimage,orhavereclaimedyourscreen,youwillneedtoplaceyourscreentodryonourrackbesidethewash-outbooth.Alwaysplaceyourwetscreenonthelowestrung.Youmayneedtomoveotherscreenstocreatespace.

PressureWasher&WashoutBooth:Ourpressurewasher&washoutbootharelocatedintheartstudio.Donotusesinkstowashoutscreens.Neverplaceanypartofyourbodyinfrontofthenozzleasseriousinjurieswilloccur.

EmulsionStation:

Inthedarkroomthereisadesignatedtablewithaslotforplacingscreenswhencoatingwithemulsion.

FourStationPress:

Thefourstationpresswillallowyoutoprintanywherefromsinglecolortofourcolorprints.Thepresswillallowyoutoadjustprintlocationsup,down,left,&right.Wehavetwosizesofplatensfordifferentsizeshirts.

FlashDryer:

Theflashdryerwillspeedupyourinkdryingprocesstoapproximately90seconds.Afteryourinkhasbeenapplied,placetheflashdryeroveryouritemandletitsetforbetween90and120seconds.Youwillthenbeabletosafelyremoveyourscreeneditemwithoutthepossibilityofruiningitduetowetink.

Step1: CREATINGYOURDESIGN

Thereareanumberofwaysthatyoucanimportafileorimagethatyouwanttoprint.

• CreateavectorfileusingAdobeIllustrator.• Importadesignfromotherdesignsoftware.• Importadesignfromtheinternet.• Mosttshirtimagesarelessthan10”wide.

-Your design must be solid black. If you want gray scale use half-tone and design it in photoshop.

Step2: PRINTINGYOURTRANSPARENCY

• PrintyourimageontheEpson4900LargeFormatPrinterusingthetransparencyroll.

• Yourimagecanbenowiderthan17”dueprintarealimitations.• Yourimagemustbeprintedinsolidblackink.Youwillselectyourfinalimagecolorusingthewaterbasedink.

• Youcandrawonatransparencywithasharpieorpaintaswellascutoutashapethatisopaqueenoughtoblockoutthelightwhenyouareexposingyourscreen

Step3: APPLYINGEMULSION

• Placeyourscreenintheslot,wellsideout

• Selectascoopcoaterthatfitsinsidethewellofthescreenandisslightlylargerthanyourimage.

• Removetheemulsionfromtherefrigerator.• Pouremulsionintothescoopcoater.• Allowtheemulsiontoleveloffinthescoopcoater.• Thescoopcoaterhasathickandathinmetaledgeoneachofthelongsides.Usethethinsidetoapplyyouremulsion.

• Restthethinsideofthescoopcoateragainstthebottomofthescreen.• Tipthescoopcoaterforwarduntiltheblackplasticedgesofthescoopcoaterarerestingagainstthescreen.

• Waitfortheemulsiontorunforwardandiscontactingthescreen.• Applyathinlayerofemulsiontothescreenbydraggingthescoopcoaterfromthebottomtothetopofthescreen,usingafluidandsteadymotion,applyingequalpressureduringtheentireprocess.

• Tiptheemulsioncoaterbacksoonlythemetaledgeisrestingonthescreenandremovethecoaterfromthescreen.

• Iftheapplicationisunevenorhasvoidsyoucanrepeatthisprocess.

• Ifthereistoomuchemulsiononthescreenyoucan“scrape”offtheexcessemulsionusingjustthemetaledge.Youmayneedtodothisonthefrontandbacksideofthescreentoachieveoptimalapplication.

• PlacethescreenwellsideupandinthelowestlocationintheDri-Cab.Youmayneedtomoveotherscreensuptocreatespaceforyourwetscreen.Makesurethedoorisfullyclosedandlatched.Turnonthecabinetifitisnotalreadyon.

• Usingaspatula,scrapeallunusedemulsionbackintotheemulsioncontainerandstorethecontainerinthefridge.

• Immediatelyrinsethescoopcoater,spatula,andanyothertoolsthatcameincontactwiththeemulsion.

• Rinsethesinkthoroughly.• Yourscreenwillneedtodryforupto2hours.

•

Step4: EXPOSINGYOURIMAGE

Whenyourscreenisdryyouarereadytoexposeyourimageontoyourpreparedscreen.

• Placeyourprintedimagerightsideup,ontheexposureunit.

• Removeyouremulsioncoatedscreenfromthedri-cabandplacewellsideupontopofyourtransparency

• Whenusingthe4stationpressoraplatenitisbesttoalignyouimagejustbelowthecenterofthescreen.

• Yourimagemustfitintheemulsionarea.

• Lowerthelidoftheexposureunit.

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Thereare3switchesontheexposureunit:

• Thefarleftswitchisthemasterswitch.• Themiddleswitchisforthelights.• Thefarrightswitchisforthevacuum.

• Setthemiddleandtherightswitchestomanual.• FliptheMasterswitchto‘ON’• Exposeyourscreenfor5minutes

• TurnofftheMasterswitch,allowvacuumtoevacuate,liftthelidandremoveyourscreen.

The exposed area of your screen should now be purple. The un- exposed area (image area) should be yellow. If not, find an NIS staff member.

Step5: WASHINGOUTYOURSCREEN

• Rinsingyourscreenisacriticalstep.Ifyoudonotfollowthisprocedureasstatedyoumayruinthescreen.

• Placeyourscreeninthewashoutbooth.• TurnonthepressurewasherandtheCOLDwaterfaucet.• Holdthepressurewashernocloserthan12inchesfromyourscreen,pullandholdthetrigger.Movethewandinslowandconsistentmovements.Ifyougetcloserthan12inchesyouwilldamageyourimageandscreen.

• Yourscreeniscorrectlywashedoutwhenthereisnomoregreen/yellowemulsioninyourimageareaandyouseenothingbutclearmeshintheimagearea.Makesuretolookcloselyatallareasasevensmallamountsofemulsionleftinthescreenwillcreatefailuresduringprinting.

• Placeyourscreeninthelowestpositiononthedryingrackbymovingallotherscreensup.

Step6: SCREENREGISTRATION

• Therearemultiplewaysyoucanprintonyourdesiredobject• 4station4colorpress• Largeplatenboardwithhingedclamps

• Whenprintingsomething14”x16”orsmaller(t-shirt,bag,etc.)usethe4stationpress.

• Spraytheplatenboardwithalightmistofthefabricadhesivespray.

• Slideyourshirtovertheplatenandlineuptheneck,shoulderandsleevestitchlinessoyourshirtiscenteredandsquare.

• Pluginandturnontheflashdryer.• Usemaskingtapetosealtheareasaroundthescreenframewherethereisnoemulsion.Thiswillpreventinkbleedingthroughontoyourmedia.

• Placemaskingtapeacrossthescreenapproximately4”aboveandbelowyourimagetoassistwiththeinkapplicationlocation.

• Placeyourtransparencyonyourprintmediaatthelocationyouwanttoprint.

• Securethescreenintheclampswiththewellsideup.Adjustyourlefttorightpositiontolineupwithyourtransparencybeforetighteningclamps.

• Adjusttheplatenwiththelowerarmknobtomovetheplateninandoutsoitlinesupwithyourtransparency.Liftupontheplatenandtightenknobsothattheplatenwillbelevel.

• WEIGHTHEINKCONTAINERINOUNCESBEFOREPROCEEDING.Writetheweightdownonapieceofpaper.

• Forcustomcolorsyouwillpayforallinkmixed.Fornon-customcolorsyouwillpayforwhatyouused.

• Loweryourscreentothehalfwaypointandplaceyourdesiredinkcolorinalineaboveyourimageandjustbelowthetapelocatedaboveyourimage.

• Selectasqueegeethatisjustwiderthanyourdesign.• Placethesqueegeeata45°onyourscreenwiththeinkbetweenthesqueegeeandimage.Usingtwohands,applyequalpressureonthesqueegeeandpulltowardsyou,stoppingatthetapejustbelowyourimage.

• Flipyoursqueegeesotheedgewiththeinkisnowfacingawayfromyouandpushthesqueegeeawayfromyou.

• Formultipleprintsusethesqueegeetolayathickcoatofinkoveryourprintarea.Thiswillpreventthescreenfromdryingoutbetweenscreenings.

• Placeyoursqueegeeagainsttheframebracketandliftyourscreentochecktheinkapplication.Ifmoreinkapplicationisneeded,repeatthisprocess.

• Placetheflashdryernocloserthan6”aboveyourprintedimagefor90to120seconds.Theinkshouldbedrytothetouch.

• Whenyourprintisfinished,removeyourprojectfromtheplaten.Ifyouareprintingmultiplescontinueprintingtherestofyourprints

• Topermanentlysettheinkonatshirtorfabricitem,placeitinaclothesdryerfor20minutesonhighheatbeforewashing.

Step7: CLEANINGYOURSCREEN

• Scoopallexcessinkfromthescreenandplaceitbackintothecontainer.• Weightheinkcontaineragain.Documentthisnumberalongwiththeweightpriortoprinting.Youwillpaythedifference.

• Forcustomcolorsyoupayforalltheinkyoumixed.• Removealltapefromthescreen.• Wipeanyremainingexcessinkfromthescreenwithapapertowel.• Placescreeninwashstation.• Turnonpowerwasherandcoldwater.• Holdpressurewashernozzletwofeetfromscreenandremoveexcessink.Thiswillpreventexcessivesplashing.Whenmostoftheinkhasbeenremovedmovethenozzlenocloserthantwelveinchesfromthescreenandusingslowandsteadymotions,removingtheremainingink.Youmayneedtoflipthescreenandwashtheback.

• IfthereisalotofinkresidueremainingyoucanusetheBlueMacstainremover.Applyaconservativeamountdirectlytothescreenandscrublightlywithascotchbritepad.

• Rinseagainusingpowerwasher.• Placeyourscreenonthelowestrungofthedryingrack.Youmayneedtomoveotherscreensup.

• Rinsesqueegees,spatulas,andanyotheritemsyouusedinthesink.• Thoroughlyrinsethesink.• Thoroughlyrinseoutthewashstation.Clearthedrainbyremovingallchunksofink,emulsionandanyotherobjects.

• Turnoffthepowerwasherandthewater.Placethewashernozzleinthesinktodrainoffthewaterline.

Step8: RECLAIMINGYOURSCREEN

Screensarerentedfortwoweeksatatime.Attheendofthetwoweeksyoumayeitherrenewyourrentalorcontinuetousethescreenorreclaimyourscreenandreturnitforothermemberstouse.

Duringyourtwoweekrentalperiodyoumayreuseyourscreenwithyouroriginalimageasmanytimesasyouwish.

Duringyourtwoweekrentalperiodyoumayalsoapplynewimagestoyourscreen.Everynewimageapplicationrequiresa$2.00emulsionapplicationfeedueatthetimeofapplication.

Toreclaimyourscreen:

• Placeyourscreeninthewashoutbooth.• SpraybothsidesofyourscreenwithEmulsionRemoverandletitrestforoneminute.

• Lightlyscrubthescreenonbothsideswithascotchbritepad.• Turnonthecoldwaterandpowerwasher.• Holdthenozzlenocloserthan6”fromthescreen.• Usingveryslowandfluidupanddownmotions,sprayyourscreen.Yourspeediscorrectwhentheemulsionisbeingremovedinasinglepass.

• Re-applyemulsionremoverandsprayscreenuntilalltheemulsionhasbeenremoved.

• Someareasmaynotremoveeasily.Applymoreemulsionremover,BlueMacstainremover,andflipthescreenaroundsothatlargechunksofemulsionarebeingpushedoffthescreenratherthanthroughthescreen.

• Placeyourscreenonthelowestrungofthedryingrack.Youmayneedtomoveotherscreensup.

• Thoroughlyrinseoutthewashstation.Clearthedrainbyremovingallchunksofink,emulsionandanyotherobjects.

• Turnoffthepowerwasherandthewater.Placethewashernozzleinthesinktodrainoffthewaterline.

Step9: CLEANUP

• Wipedowninkbottlesandstoreincloset.• Cleanandputawayallsqueegees&spatulas.• Storeadhesivespray,maskingtape,tapemeasure,etc.onthescreenprintingcart.• Unplugandputawayflashdryerandextensioncord.• Wipedownworkareas.• Rinseoutsinkandwashstation.• Mopfloorandputupwetfloorsign.