# tunnel dryer vs. heat press



## dirttoo (Sep 16, 2011)

tunnel dryer vs. heat press is my question. Does anyone use a tunnel dryer for dtg? I have a smaller one for my pad printer I thought I might try. I was trying to keep my colors brighter by not using the heat press. Thanks


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## FatKat Printz (Dec 26, 2008)

The heat press is a vital step into proper cure methods for pretreat. The heat press doesn't dull out the colors, even fact it helps the colors. You can use both if you feel its necessary you will still need a heat press to cure pretreat because it needs to get into the fibers with the pressure of the heat press.


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## dirttoo (Sep 16, 2011)

Ok, I planned on using the heat press for the pretreat. Last night I printed a fairly bright yellow and a good purple for a sample softball shirt. I did a white underbase. Everything looked good until I did the heat pressing of the colors. The brightness went away and the colors really went blah. I used 340 degrees, #3 pressure and 2 minutes on one shirt and 1 minute on the second shirt. Outcome looked the same and not so good. I just thought the conveyor dryer may help. What should I do different.


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## AtkinsonConsult (May 2, 2011)

Marty:

I've been in both environments with different DTG printers. A former company used Brother's, and used a heat press for the pretreat step and also to cure the ink. They used a heat press when they just had the 541, but when they upgraded to the 782 this became an issue curing the ink as the model heat press they had caused numerous issues. Before they purchased the new printer, I recommended using a heat tunnel, but the owners decided they didn't want to spend the money. This decision ended up being a detrimental one as they found that a heat press wasn't applicable to all garments, caused issues with workflow and wash-ability afterwards. 

The company I work for now uses two Kornits, and we use a heat tunnel to cure the ink. Works beautifully, and having the pretreatment as a built in step is much, much better for the workflow.

There are plenty of used dryers on the market, and if you can afford one I would recommend using a heat tunnel to cure the ink. I'm sure there will be plenty of people that suggest that using a heat press is sufficient, but in my experience using a tunnel provides easier labor and more consistent curing of the shirts. 

Good luck,

-M


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## FatKat Printz (Dec 26, 2008)

dirttoo said:


> Ok, I planned on using the heat press for the pretreat. Last night I printed a fairly bright yellow and a good purple for a sample softball shirt. I did a white underbase. Everything looked good until I did the heat pressing of the colors. The brightness went away and the colors really went blah. I used 340 degrees, #3 pressure and 2 minutes on one shirt and 1 minute on the second shirt. Outcome looked the same and not so good. I just thought the conveyor dryer may help. What should I do different.


Good pretreat processes are important for color vibrancy. You don't need a tunnel dryer for anything but production. The tunnel dryer helps speed up the drying process and that's about it. People think it helps so much with pretreat marks but really it doesn't. 

How many DTG manufacturers/distributors sell a tunnel dryer and DTG printer in package deal? None. 

what are you white ink levels at? 
what kind of printer do you have? 
what kind of heat press?


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## AtkinsonConsult (May 2, 2011)

Just to reiterate my point... I wasn't talking about pretreating...but curing the ink.

I've managed both environments, and using a heat press to cure the ink definitely lead to some production issues. 

Ink wasn't cured, extra labor, misprinted t-shirts etc. Using a heat tunnel to cure the ink is a better way to go, as it allows you to dial in the cure time & temp and just place the shirt on the belt. You then can walk away and do something else, so its more efficient.

However, in the end it all comes down to personal preference and the business model of how you run your company.

-M


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## dirttoo (Sep 16, 2011)

So neither way helps the brightness in the end?


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## FatKat Printz (Dec 26, 2008)

dirttoo said:


> I used 340 degrees, #3 pressure and 2 minutes on one shirt and 1 minute on the second shirt. Outcome looked the same and not so good. I just thought the conveyor dryer may help. What should I do different.


Try and hover for about 30 seconds before you press same temperature. Also, try and do (2) 60 seconds presses instead of a full 2 minutes removing your paper or sheet in between presses removing steam. 


Is any ink coming off your paper or sheet that you are using ?


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## dirttoo (Sep 16, 2011)

No ink on the paper. I did 1 minute last night an still looked not as bright as before.


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## 23spiderman (Jun 26, 2008)

for the pretreat, you use HEAVY pressure, but for the cure, i use the lightest pressure i can and still have contact with the shirt.


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## dirttoo (Sep 16, 2011)

My instructions say 8-9 on the pretreat and 2-3 on the ink. I will try turning it down on the ink.


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## GraphicGuru (Apr 18, 2012)

For the pretreatment heat press cure, you certainly want heavier pressure, but not so heavy that you lock the moisture of the pretreatment in the press. You should see fumes off the heat press to know that the pretreatment solution is properly drying on the garment.




23spiderman said:


> for the pretreat, you use HEAVY pressure, but for the cure, i use the lightest pressure i can and still have contact with the shirt.


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