# DTG 100% COTTON vs. 50/50 COTTON POLYESTER



## 129858 (Jan 20, 2017)

Hi guys,

Sorry for another thread, but this is in regards to printing on 100% cotton and 50/50 cotton - polyester.

I'm planning on printing on a shirt and hoodie. For the hooded sweatshirt, might be using Gildan 12500.

I've heard that when using DTG you should print on either 100% cotton or 80/20 cotton - polyester to get more color and vibrance.

However, I'm planning on printing on 50/50 due to my liking of a certain blank style.

Is it bad? How is the durability/quality? Does anyone have experience with this?

Can someone please provide me with an example or side by side comparison? I've looked on YouTube and other places, but can't find one.

Sorry for all the questions, but please let me know. Thank you!


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## FBNick (Oct 21, 2015)

Anything with polyester is more likely to stain. Polyester itself will melt under the sort of heat that most inks need to cure. One workaround is to press it in intervals, so breaking it up into three or four presses instead of a single one


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## AnACustomPrints (Dec 1, 2016)

We have been DTG-ing 50/50 for quite a while and they hold up as well as the cotton. Often they have a brighter print. We are also successfully printing on 100% poly and doing wash trials. Bright prints and they are not fading.
So you should have little problem with 50/50. You will need heavy pressure on the 50/50 after hovering for 60-90 seconds, depending on the ink amount. Then apply the heavy pressure. Do not hold down as long as cotton, but do the same time in 2-3 segments.


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## ssmedia7 (Sep 26, 2013)

I can't speak to the the subject of Poly or 50/50 being good for DTG because we just got our machine and we are still experimenting BUT as for what the other guy said about Polyester not standing up to hear... that is completely not true. We have been doing sublimation printing on shirts for years and we put 400 degrees for 45 seconds on those shirts. Far more brutal than DTG. So, I wouldn't worry about the heat on those Poly shirts. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Starbb (Mar 12, 2017)

Question: you said that you have to cure it with heavy pressure, but I've been struggling all day with my 50/50s as the heat (even brought it down from 330f to 270f) lifts the fibers and causes a fiber fluff, almost like white noise, look. Do you have any experience with this? Still have yet to make one 50/50 good enough to sell..


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## OSSKOBRET (Sep 17, 2011)

I did Dtg for years you do not need heavy pressure to get a good cure you need consistency of heat try letting the heat plate just rest on the garment covering your print first of course and you will notice more of the moisture evaporate from the garment this eliminates fibrillation in most cases if garment is prepared properly to begin with.heavy pressure is great for sublimation not DTG


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## Starbb (Mar 12, 2017)

Okay, thought I'd share some of my new discoveries. For 50/50 white shirts, ive found that curing on a low setting (I did 270F) with heavy pressure helps push the fibers down, so there's less filibration, which seemed counter intuitive because hovering actually raised the fibers more. The print still isn't 100% where I want to be, but oh so close!


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## Starbb (Mar 12, 2017)

*fibrillation


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## rklovestruck (May 1, 2015)

Color wise for us... if we print on a 100% cotton with white ink the ink is opaque and fully white. When we print on a 50/50 the white looks less bright and sometimes takes on the color of the garment. For instance the Gildan 5000 has 50/50 color such as Antique Royal and Russet. When we DTG print white ink on those colors, the ink tends to take on the color of bluish or brownish. Technically the ink is binding more with the cotton and not so much with the poly.

Also as mentioned above, the shirts tend to discolor when we heat with a heat press. Some colors show more than others. We print on the 18500 Gildan hoodies in black without discoloring them but the print is not as vibrant when compared to a Hanes F170.


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## Starbb (Mar 12, 2017)

The fact that you took the time to write all of this is amazing, thanks! So aside from color vibrancy, is the ink consistent with your prints as in no holes or cracks? If so, what heat temperature do you use to cure your shirts? Just wondering if there is a more efficient way for me to do this!


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## STPG Press (Jul 6, 2015)

I came here to say this too. Glad you were able to respond much earlier. 




ssmedia7 said:


> I can't speak to the the subject of Poly or 50/50 being good for DTG because we just got our machine and we are still experimenting BUT as for what the other guy said about Polyester not standing up to hear... that is completely not true. We have been doing sublimation printing on shirts for years and we put 400 degrees for 45 seconds on those shirts. Far more brutal than DTG. So, I wouldn't worry about the heat on those Poly shirts.
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## TomNJ (Apr 9, 2017)

We regularly print on 50/50 sweatshirts & hoodies. Pretreating with Image Armor Ultra for both light and dark seems to work well for us. We lay down white base on most all colors except white. We cure the pretreat for 45 seconds at 330 and print on an Epson F2000. We cure for 90 seconds also at 330 degrees with light pressure. Haven't had any issues and have done wash testing up to 40 cycles with no objectionable issues.


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## puw (Apr 12, 2015)

In looking for info related to this, a more updated explanation of the issue between cotton and poly can be found here Why is Polyester So Hard to Print with DTG? - Image Armor DTG Pretreatment Solutions

This is more for people using fulfillment with large production than DIY I think, since the machinery/technology being used is different.

From what can be seen, the weave of poly doesn't help the ink. It works better with white poly shirts as darker shirt colours affect the ink colours.

So if using DTG, it seems best to stick with as close to 100% cotton as you can, and go for the best quality for the ring-spun's.


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## freckledgirl (Nov 16, 2019)

TomNJ said:


> We regularly print on 50/50 sweatshirts & hoodies. Pretreating with Image Armor Ultra for both light and dark seems to work well for us. We lay down white base on most all colors except white. We cure the pretreat for 45 seconds at 330 and print on an Epson F2000. We cure for 90 seconds also at 330 degrees with light pressure. Haven't had any issues and have done wash testing up to 40 cycles with no objectionable issues.


Does this prevent dye migration?


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## sublial (Mar 24, 2011)

Tom, I think you did find something that is blocking the dye migration. 50/50 is distressed dyes and should migrate at 90 seconds.
AL


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## Ybarraness (Dec 10, 2020)

rklovestruck said:


> Color wise for us... if we print on a 100% cotton with white ink the ink is opaque and fully white. When we print on a 50/50 the white looks less bright and sometimes takes on the color of the garment. For instance the Gildan 5000 has 50/50 color such as Antique Royal and Russet. When we DTG print white ink on those colors, the ink tends to take on the color of bluish or brownish. Technically the ink is binding more with the cotton and not so much with the poly.
> 
> Also as mentioned above, the shirts tend to discolor when we heat with a heat press. Some colors show more than others. We print on the 18500 Gildan hoodies in black without discoloring them but the print is not as vibrant when compared to a Hanes F170.


So were you able to do anything about not fading the color on 50/50 shirts after heat pressing?


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## CountryChick (Sep 21, 2017)

AnACustomPrints said:


> We have been DTG-ing 50/50 for quite a while and they hold up as well as the cotton. Often they have a brighter print. We are also successfully printing on 100% poly and doing wash trials. Bright prints and they are not fading.
> So you should have little problem with 50/50. You will need heavy pressure on the 50/50 after hovering for 60-90 seconds, depending on the ink amount. Then apply the heavy pressure. Do not hold down as long as cotton, but do the same time in 2-3 segments.


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## CountryChick (Sep 21, 2017)

can you please share your pretreat method? I use a speed treater. bidding school shirts and hope to be able to do them al in house


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