Dye Migration
What is it and why is it bad?
Without getting TOO technical, dye migration happens when a garment has heated up too much during the drying process and the dye of the garment bleeds through into the ink, affecting the color. For instance, if you print white ink on a red t-shirt, you might see the white ink beginning to turn pink from the red dye of the shirt bleeding through. The majority of the time you see this happening it will be on performance, over-dyed, tie-dyed, or camouflage garments.
How do we prevent it?
Now that we know what dye migration is, how in the world do we prevent it? There are typically 3 ways to prevent dye migration – (1) by using a preventative undercoat, (2) using all polyester inks, and lastly (3) making sure your garments are high quality and were made with proper dyeing techniques. We’ll walk through all the techniques below and some pros and cons of each.
Preventative Undercoats
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Within this category we have 2 separate kinds of preventative undercoats. Performance undercoats and dye blocker undercoats. Performance undercoats act as a bleed resistant undercoat that blocks typical migration from happening. It is used INSTEAD of a normal undercoat and leaves a smooth finish. In comparison, dye block undercoats have properties that blocks any dye migration from occurring and are printed BEFORE the normal undercoat.
Pros
+ Blocks any sort of migration from occuring
+ Ensures accurate colors
Cons
– Print might feel heavier than normal
– More expensive than normal undercoats
Polyester Inks
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Polyester inks, otherwise known as low cure inks, are specially formulated to cure at lower temperatures than normal inks. By curing at a lower temperature, the garment never has a chance to reach the “migration point” ensuring that your print will have it’s desired colors.
Pros
+ Better print hand than using a preventative undercoat
+ Prevents dye migration from occuring
Cons
– More expensive than normal inks
Use Higher Quality Garments
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Using higher quality garments helps prevent dye migration in screen printing by offering better colorfastness and stability. These fabrics have tightly woven materials and consistent dye lots, reducing the risk of dyes bleeding during printing. Superior pre-treatment processes in high-quality garments ensure your custom prints remain vibrant, sharp, and long-lasting, enhancing the overall look and durability of your apparel.
Pros
+ Lowers the chance of dye migration
+ Typically better fitting garments
+ Higher quality prints
Cons
– Higher quality usually means more expensive
– Might run into garment stock issues
Frequently Asked Questions
When do you need to use preventative inks?
Why are these dye migration techniques more expensive?
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