If you have experienced your DTF white ink running down the PET film, read on for some advice:
Tip 1:
The first thing you need to check is the ink loading. For most types of prints, we'd recommend printing with a white ink resolution of 60-70%. Some of our customers want to print with a white ink resolution of 100% to give their colour a great base. (For those new to DTF printing, you print your coloured image first, then print using white ink, so that when you turn the print over and place it on your garment on the heat press, the coloured ink layer sits on top of the white ink layer). If you use such a high resolution, the white ink may run. So try to decrease the ink loading.
Tip 2:
If reducing the white ink resolution does not work, try our double side frosted DTF PET film (available in A3; A4 sheets, and 30cm; 33cm, 42cm and 60cm rolls all in single and double sided (cold or hot peeling)), which absorbs more ink more than single side frosted film because it has 6 layers of coating which is designed to absorb more ink. (Our single sided PET film has 5 layers of coating).
Tip 3:
You can buy a heating plate to help dry the ink immediately after the design was printed on the film. The commercial DTF printers coming in from China have a built-in to the front of the printer (where the printed PET film is dried after coming out of the printer). They can definitely help especially if you are printing in a cold environment or using very high resolution white ink.
Note: some new printers might feature two heating plates - one located at the back of the printer where the film enters and the second one positioned after the design has been printed on the filament, as in figure1 below;
figure1
Tip 4:
Check whether your PET film has absorbed moisture/ humidity. Moisture has been known to affect the PET film’s ink absorption. Use a hair dryer on very low setting to dry it out if that is the case. Or use a heat press to press the film for about 5 seconds with the heat press before using it to remove any moisture (note that only the sheet can be pressed in this instance, as pressing the the film from roll is challenging)
The heat platen referred to in tip2 is also an effective method for removing moisture before and after printing, including the area surrounding the print, to prevent the powder from adhering to the film.
Our redback premium PET film sheets a plastic zip-locked bags and the rolls in plastic bags with a silica moisture absorber for added protection from moisture. Our customers report that different weather conditions and even different times of the year require different settings if their setup is their garage (with open door).
Tip 5:
The number of printheads, such as 2, 4, 6, or 12, varies depending on the printer size. For instance, printers with 4 printheads often allocate two heads for white ink. To optimize white ink usage, you can either set one head to a higher level and the other to a lower level, or adjust both to a lower level, such as 5%.
Hopefully these few tips can help if you are experiencing white DTF ink running down the PET film and compromising your prints.
Best of luck with your DTF printing!
Note: the image in this post came to us from a customer, who corrected the issue by decreasing their white resolution. We do not print, nor recommend you print, Disney characters as this is a copyright violation (of course).