Top tips for using Water Based ink

Top tips for using water based ink from the team at Screen Print World

Use a heavy flood to lie the water based ink on top of the screen instead of a heavy push in the screen.
If printing on a manual press, leave the image with a thick flood if you leave it for any time, or between printing other colours (if printing on a manual press) to prevent blocking.
Instead of misting, find yourself a spray bottle which will help you distribute a fine mist of water over the screen. Try not to drench your screen with water.
If printing on an auto, set the press to finish the print cycle on a flood stroke and raise the flood bar slightly – Use a winged flood bar.
Always have clean water and clean rags available for cleaning.
Don’t use fine mesh counts for solid areas (43T is ideal for most images).
Use a retarder to slow the drying of the ink on the screen.
Use a water mist sprayer to help keep the mesh open.
Use less off contact and a softer squeegee.
Use an additive like cold cure if you don’t have sufficient curing facililties to aid curing at room temperature.
Warm up your platens before printing, Doing so will allow the heat to rise through the garment, resulting in a shorter flash time.
A smooth underbase is key: clean your platens, used good quality ink and screens, sharpen your squeegee blade, ensure the correct off-contact.