# Emulsion Problem..!!



## trillion (Mar 21, 2007)

I started printing and hav gotten a lot of tips from experienced users but i still happened to hav problems with the emulsion. i mixed the emulsion with the senisiter and i left it for an hour as it said (autosol). after a couple tried of messing up it got late n the screens wher left over night and the emulsion wont wash off as it did before. i already bought emulsion remover and tried the pressure washer but nothing is working. and is it good to let the emulsion sit in a dark room when not needed for couple days?? did i mess up the screens permanently?? wat should i do to clean my screens.?


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## Fluid (Jun 20, 2005)

You can leave a coated screen in a dark room for quite soem time without it messing up the screen.

You cannot let emulsion remover dry on a screen. This will harden the emulsion onthe screen making it almost impossible to remove. You will need to use serious press to pound the meulsion off.

If you did not let the emulsion remover dry and are still having issues removing the emulsion. 
Check the emulsion remover and try the process again sticking to the direction of the brand your using.
Spray the screen with water on both sides. Spray (with spray bottle) 2-4 times on both sides with emulsin remover
Scrub with a brush on both sides. You should not have to scrub hard. mainly just spreading the remover to all areas of the screen. If the remover is any good you should see the emulsion starting to degrade almost immediately.

Let stand for about 10-20 seconds and start washing off with the pressure washer.


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## Rico Menor (Mar 22, 2007)

What kind of pressure washer is safe for the screens? Garden hose type or car washer type? is it possible to damage the screen if you have too much pressure?


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## Fluid (Jun 20, 2005)

we use a 2500 psi heavy duty pressure washer. If you have a small point stream you can possibly rip a hole yet I havent had any issue and have been using industrial washers for years.

When washing out a burned screen make sure you adjust to a fan and step back a bit. no need for major pressure. mainly used for the cleaning process yet can be benefitial when rinsing out those pesky lil halftones


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## piratestuff (Mar 5, 2007)

trillion,

did you allow the emulsion to fully expose before you tried to wash it out? i think trying to wash out underexposed screens can give you some trouble.


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## jo_lim09 (Jul 31, 2007)

can you give me an idea on where can i buy the photo emulsion in Australia? thanks


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## RichardGreaves (Nov 7, 2006)

*Where can I buy emulsion in Australia*



jo_lim09 said:


> can you give me an idea on where can i buy the photo emulsion in Australia?



Kind of a big place, that Australia.

Pacific Distributors of Ulano Screen Making Products


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## RichardGreaves (Nov 7, 2006)

trillion said:


> i mixed the emulsion with the senisiter and i left it for an hour as it said (autosol).
> 
> after a couple tried of messing up it got late n the screens wher left over night and the emulsion wont wash off as it did before.
> 
> ...


The reason you should let diazo sensitized emulsion sit is because the diazo reacts with water in the emulsion and gives off a small amount of gas. This gas makes bubbles that spoil your coating.

Emulsion is easy: If the emulsion washes out - it wasn't exposed. If it doesn't wash out, it was exposed and crosslinked somehow.

For your next exposure, tape a dime to the stencil to see if the dark areas of your positive are failing you and letting UV-A energy through to the stencil. If the area covered by the dime doesn't wash out, you have exposed the stencil to UV energy or heat energy and the stencil is resisting dissolving with water and going down the drain.

*Reclaim
*Stencil remover has little effect on 'underexposed' stencils. The sodium metaperiodate in stencil remover attacks the cross links that hold the stencil in the mesh. If you underexposed, there aren't lots of links to break, and you have to use brute force to punch the stencil from the mesh, instead of the smooth breakdown of the stencil like turning a key in a door lock.

*Letting Stencils Sit*
Stencils are good for about 4 weeks after you coat them when they are stored in a cool dry place away from heat and UV-A light.

Consider a faster SBQ emulsion. You don't have to sensitize it and it is much more sensitive to UV-A energy, so your exposure time is shorter.

*Power Washer
*Properly used, any psi under 3000 won't do damage. Get too close to the stencil, and it can tear the mesh. Tight screens are in less danger than soft screens - they vibrate and tear. Tight screen resist the spray, and the stencil gets punched out of the mesh.


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## ktrix27 (Sep 3, 2007)

hi, im a newbie in the field of screenprinting. I also have the same problem, I can't remove the emulsion after i exposed my screen. I watched the tutorial from makemagazine and etsy, i saw there that they just washed the screen using water. I did the same thing but won't work with my screen. 

fyi, i used 1,500 metal halide and exposed it for 3:30 mins. is this maybe the problem? or did i miss any material? 

thanks. i hope you could help me with this. i really have no idea.


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## RichardGreaves (Nov 7, 2006)

ktrix27 said:


> I can't remove the emulsion after i exposed my screen. I watched the tutorial from makemagazine and etsy, i saw there that they just washed the screen using water. I did the same thing but won't work with my screen.



Please read my post above yours "Emulsion is easy: If the emulsion washes out - it wasn't exposed. If it doesn't wash out, it was exposed and crosslinked somehow."

I assume if the stencil doesn't wash out, the positive didn't stop the UV light and light leaked through the positive and cross linked the stencil, so now it won't wash out.

Use my advice about using a dime as an ultimate stopper of UV energy. You only need to coat a small 6" area for a test.

Down load the Ulano direct emulsion video to study. 105 Mb
http://www.ulano.com/video/EmulsionStencilUlano20min.wmv


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## piscitelli ink. (Nov 22, 2005)

I had some trouble with the Speedball emulsion. then i tried the pink kind, it doesn't have to be mixed, it comes in a black tub--- someone help me out here-- QTX?? But I have never had a problem with it. You don't have to mix it, just spread it on & let it dry.

hope this helps.. a little.. 

good luck!
becky


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## Big E (Jan 2, 2007)

You're talking about Ulano QTX. The last gallon I got came in a Pink tub with a Pink lid. This stuff works great, quick exposure time and great bridging to hold small detail even on screens with a low mesh count. (86 and 40 mesh)


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## RichardGreaves (Nov 7, 2006)

piscitelli ink. said:


> i tried the pink kind, it doesn't have to be mixed, it comes in a black tub--- someone help me out here-- QTX?? But I have never had a problem with it. You don't have to mix it, just spread it on & let it dry.


Beware. There are plenty of pink emulsions that are pre-sensitized, such as Murakami TXR or Tubelite TTX that DO come in a black bucket.

This like asking if you read my book - It has a blue cover. Ulano QTX has come in a red bucket since September 2005. The label will tell you the name, manufacturer and batch number of the emulsion.

What am I missing Piscitelli? Are you having a problem?

"trillion", the original poster in April never returned, so perhaps we should take new questions to a new thread with a descriptive title. I took the thread off track when I answered the question about suppliers in Australia.


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## tynie626 (May 2, 2007)

RichardGreaves said:


> Beware. There are plenty of pink emulsions that are pre-sensitized, such as Murakami TXR or Tubelite TTX that DO come in a black bucket.
> 
> This like asking if you read my book - It has a blue cover. Ulano QTX has come in a red bucket since September 2005. The label will tell you the name, manufacturer and batch number of the emulsion.
> 
> ...


i use the quart of QTX at home and it comes in a black container with black lid, and it's pink.. i get mine at dickblick


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## RichardGreaves (Nov 7, 2006)

tynie626 said:


> i use the quart of QTX at home and it comes in a black container with black lid, and it's pink.. i get mine at dickblick


I am sorry. 

Yes, QTX does come in black quarts. I assumed when you wrote bucket, you meant gallon buckets.


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