Benefits Of Printing With Water Based Inks
As a sustainable print shop, we proudly use water based inks in all of our work. However not everyone knows exactly what water based inks are. It’s important to understand how they work and what to expect when printing to ensure you get the results you want when printing. Luckily we’ve made this handy guide for understanding the benefits of water based inks and why we think they are the best option to create premium quality prints for your next project.
How it feels…
Water based inks are noticeably softer to the touch than their plastisol counterparts. Simply by running your fingers over the print you will feel less of a distinction between the print and the garment - something known in the printing business as “soft touch”. Because water based inks aren’t as thick as plastisol, the ink will penetrate the garment better and allow the ink to sink in more, leaving a soft surface feel. Customers love this because it breathes better and feels less “plastic” to the touch.
No micro plastics…
The more and more we learn about micro plastics, the more we are understanding just how prevalent they are in our water, our environment and even in us! Recent studies have said that we ingest a credit card sized amount of micro plastics each year. Using water based inks ensures no micro plastics are released into your water when washed or on you. Unfortunately plastisol can’t say the same and we hope it leads to a wide spread industry change to water based inks.
They breath…
Because of how water based inks sink into the garment fibers, they provide a more breathable surface than plastisol inks ever could. When printing t-shirts this is especially important. After all, no one wants a giant sweat stain on their back.
Amazing details…
Printing with water based inks allow for incredible details by being able to use very high screen mesh counts. This allows water based inks to pass through the screen and create prints that plastisol ink can’t match. Now you can print photorealistic designs without sacrificing quality thanks to water based inks.
To summarize…
Here is why you want to print with water based inks in your next order:
It’s an environmentally friendly product. Using water based inks allows you to market your prints to those that care about sustainability and the environment.
No micro plastics. They don’t release any of these potentially harmful materials into the water supply or onto you.
They feel soft to the touch. By sinking into the garment, water based inks leave a non-plastic feeling that people love.
They are breathable. No one likes a giant sweat stain on their back. With water based inks, you’ll never have that problem.
They’re long lasting. Water based inks rarely wash off or have problems (like cracking) typical to plastisol.
