About Dye Sublimation

Tutorial DVD available below for setting up a dye sublimation business

What is Dye Sublimation?

Dye-sublimation is a very simple, yet highly effective process of professionally and permanently applying a photo quality image into (not onto) the surface of a vast range of items to create high quality saleable products.

In other printing processes, a transfer paper or film is printed and applied onto the substrate or blank item, however, with dye-sublimation, the image is dyed directly into the surface of the item.

How does it work?

Dye-sublimation utilises the chemical process called sublimation (which is also the chemical process which produces dry-ice), which means the change of states from solid directly into a gas without going through the liquid stage.

So, dye-sublimation literally means changing dye particles from solid to gas and back into solid.

Dye-sublimation "ink" is actually fine dye granules held in a liquid carrier. The dye-sublimation inks are printed with an ink-jet printer onto dye-sublimation paper, which holds the image in place.

The image is then placed image facedown onto the blank imprintable (the t-shirt, mouse mat etc.) and heat-pressed.

The dye "sublimates" into a gas, and as long as the blank item has a polymer content or coating, with the help of the pressure being applied by the heat press, is embedded into the surface of the blank.

The dyes then turn back into a solid and have now bonded with the polymer molecules that are present in the blank - which means the image is now permanently in the surface of the substrate.

It is important to understand that the inks will only adhere to materials with a polymer content or coating and therefore if you try to print onto items such as 100% cotton t-shirts the process will fail.

What equipment do you need?

You need a computer with graphics manipulation software to manipulate and print your images, the most popular programmes being Corel Draw and Photoshop, an Epson printer, a bulk feed system running dye sublimation ink, and you need a heat press.

The main considerations when buying a computer would be memory, hard drive space and processing power. The more you have of all of these, the quicker and easier it will be to produce high quality printouts. A good graphics card is also essential with at least 128Meg of RAM and a high colour density capability. As for monitors, a minimum screen size of 17 inches is recommended. Look for one with a high contrast ratio, low milli-second refresh rate (less than 8 milli-seconds is good) and a minimum screen resolution of 1280x1024.

Inkjet printers, which are made by Epson, work by firing tiny droplets of ink onto the paper. Other manufacturers use bubble jet technology, in which the ink is heated into bubbles that burst in order to fire the droplets onto the paper. This wouldn't be good for dye sublimation ink, as the dye would react to the heat.

Epson have an exclusive technology called Piezo, in which electricity passes through the piezo elements and causes physical distortions, which helps to fire the ink. You don't really need to know what this means, all you need to know is that Epson piezo technology doesn't create heat, and that is why we have to use Epson printers.

But not all Epson printers can be used.

You're restricted to the models for which there are dye-sublimation bulk feed systems, or dye sublimation cartridges available. In the A4 & A3 printers you really need a bulk feed system, as cartridges hold too little ink to make it cost effective. However with the A2 printers which take 110ml & 220ml cartridges, it can be cost effective to use cartridges.

The main printers currently used for dye sublimation, are the A4 Epson R265 the Epson 1400 A3 Epson R1800 A3+, and Epson 4400 / 4800 A2.

You can also use the wide format Epson printers, such as the 7600 & 9600, and specialist wide format printers are produced using Epson heads, such as Mimaki printers.

The majority of you watching this will only be interested in small format, rather than wide format dye sublimation and therefore for your Epson printer you will need a Bulk Feed System, containing dye sublimation ink.

A bulk feed system, commonly referred to as a continuous ink system - CIS, bulk ink system - BIS or continuous feed system - CFS consists of cartridges, which are tube fed from bottles that sit next to the printer.

There are many bulk feed systems on the market for most Epson printers, however bulk feed systems that are used for dye sublimation ink have to be made specially for dye sublimation.

The plastic used in the pipes in some bulk feed inks systems can react with dye sublimation inks, and the gauze which is used in the filters on the systems needs to be a larger gauge for sublimation ink than for standard inks. For this reason, you should avoid the cheap bulk feed systems which are sold on well known auction sites, often along with cheap imported dye sublimation ink.

Dye sublimation ink for small format use is a patented technology, and the patent holder is a US company called Sawgrass. We'll talk about this in more detail shortly, however It's highly recommended that you stick to official licensed Continuous Ink Systems such as Sawgrass Artanium, Sawgrass Rotech, or Sawgrass Sublijet IQ.

Apart from anything else, the Continuous Ink Systems supplied by Sawgrass are made especially for dye sublimation printing. These are a lot less likely to develop problems, and if problems do occur you have a guarantee that is backed up by the manufacturer.

These inks also come supplied with an ICC colour profile.

What products can you produce using dye sublimation?

Dye sublimation is for use with any product that has a polymer content substrate or coating which is white or light in colour and has a melting point of higher than 180 degrees Centigrade, that's 356 degrees Fahrenheit. Items to be printed are both flat and go in a standard heat press, or have a custom shaped heat press available.

Fabrics must be white or light in colour. 100% polyester, poly / cotton mix (at least 50% polyester is advisable) microfibre & nylon can all be used.

All other blank imprintables, including ceramics, wood, glass & metals, must have a polymer coating.

When it comes to ceramics and mugs in particular, the cheaper ones have a coating that is not suitable to be placed in a dishwasher.

There are others that are dishwasher proof or dishwasher safe.

For the best results, look for mugs which have a Rich Neally or RN certified coating. Rich Neally is the American who invented this particular coating.

Does Dye Sublimation Work on Dark Coloured Substrates?

It is important to be aware that there is no white colour in dye sublimation inks and this is the reason that most printing is done onto white substrates. Equally, printing into a dark substrate would mask some of the colours and the image would not be vibrant and stand out.

You can apply dark colours to light shades of colour, for instance black would show up on a light blue, but the lighter the substrate the more striking the image.

If you're planning on printing onto dark garments, then this is possible with dye sublimation, however you will need to use a product called dye sub dark. Dye sub dark is a polyurethane transfer sheet, white in colour. After it has been printed onto, the heat press is used to adhere the polyurethane sheet to the fabric. This process is different to the dye-sublimation process in as much as if you don't use a cutter/plotter to shape the transfer, you are limited to applying the whole sheet to the fabric including the white background and this can give the fabric a rubbery feel. Although good for printing onto coloured garments, this process is not as durable and long lasting as the dye-sublimation process.

Using dye sub dark, you can print onto dark 100% cotton T-shirts!

You can also purchase polyester badges with a heat-seal backing, which are becoming popular. You dye sub onto the badge / patch first and then heat seal onto the garment.

How much will it cost?

You can get involved in dye sublimation for anywhere from around £850 - £4,000 and beyond, and how much it will cost you really depends on how much you have available to spend, and what you want to achieve. But really the answer to this question is, as much as you can afford.

The old cliches "buy right or buy twice" and "you get what you pay for" are worth remembering when you're purchasing your dye sublimation equipment. If you want the most reliable & best performing equipment in order to ensure that you have the minimum in costly downtime, then it's not realistic to expect to achieve this by buying the cheapest equipment available.

Most companies sell equipment which range in price, based mainly on size, but usually the larger & more expensive presses are more reliable, and better made.

For instance, the George Knight Jet presses 12 & 14 are very well known & popular heat presses at the bottom of the scale, costing from £350 & £450 + Vat. They're a good press for the money, and fine for start up businesses, and for small usage, but not intended for volume.

The Digital presses higher up in the George Knight range of presses, such as the DK20S at £999 + Vat are sold with lifetime element warranty, and are much more substantial. They're suitable for doing large volumes, and are digitally controlled, making them easier to use, and are likely to still be working fine in ten years time.

So try not to just think in terms of the cost, as buying only based on price can be extremely costly if you buy equipment which isn't suitable for what you intend to do.

Ensure that you buy a printer & heat press large enough to do the largest items you need to do. It's quite common for instance, for people to buy an A4 set up, only to then discover that the main item they wanted to print is just larger than A4!

How much space will I need?

One large desk is usually enough space for a full sublimation set up. If you're using a swing head heat press, then remember you'll need the full depth of the heat platen all the way around the side & the rear of the press.

It is also important to choose a desk that is strong enough not only to take the weight of the press, but also the force of using the press.

Where can I learn how more about setting up a dye sublimation business?

UK Production Company Humber Multimedia in partnership with Subli Nation has produced a tutorial DVD on all aspects of dye sublimation.

HUGE PRICE DROP!!

The DVD is broken down in to 7 main chapters:

What is Dye Sublimation Equipment & Consumables Working with Artwork Printing Pressing Safety, Trouble Shooting, Tips & Tricks Increasing your product range

This isn't a home made dvd, knocked up in an afternoon - this is a professionally made DVD, created in a film studio with a Professional presenter, filming & production crew, that has taken the best part of a year to turn from initial concept to finished product.

It is available from au.how2imprint.com for Australia and New Zealand. (PAL).

Or, buy it here now! PRICES INCLUDE SHIPPING!!!! - Available in PAL or NTSC versions -

£16.75 - Dye Sublimation Tutorial DVD - PAL Version £22.75 - Dye Sublimation Tutorial DVD - NTSC Version

View a sample of the DVD