# Estimating Per Shirt Ink Costs



## Leadfoot (Sep 10, 2009)

I just discovered this forum last night and have already found it very helpful. I am looking into starting an in home small silk screening business. Since I have never done printing before I have been having some trouble finding out a ballpark figure to estimate the ink costs per shirt. I understand it will depend on the size and complexity of the design but I need at least a ballpark figure. 

So for example I have an 8oz container of black ink, approximately what amount of ink would I be looking at for about a 10-12"x12-14" design? 

Like I said I know it all depends on size, etc but at least a ballpark would help. An ounce, two ounces, etc. This would really help me in determining my bottom line.

Thanks and I look forward to participating here and hope to get the business up and running ASAP.


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## out da box (May 1, 2007)

It's really cheap- thus the efficiency of the screen print process. Pennies per print.


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## Leadfoot (Sep 10, 2009)

So would you say an 8oz jar of ink would do approximately 24 prints? More? Less? Again, I understand it all depends on size, etc.


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## InkedApparel (Mar 18, 2009)

an 8oz jar would last for quite a few shirts...example..I did a 250 shirt order ..the design was text ..the name of a company vertically from the shoulder to the waist on the left side..the size of the text was 3 inches wide by 15 inches long...so I bought a gallon of ink.....I used 1 full knife full of ink out of the gallon..so 8oz of ink will last at least 200 shirts.....

Inked


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## Leadfoot (Sep 10, 2009)

Really? 8oz will go that far? I had no idea, like I said I am completely new to this with zero experience.


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## polarbear (Jan 31, 2008)

Leadfoot said:


> Really? 8oz will go that far? I had no idea, like I said I am completely new to this with zero experience.


It also depends on if you are doing all those shirts in one run or if you are doing a few here and a few there. You lose some ink when cleaning up your screens so if you were only doing a few here and there your number of shirts would be less.


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