Signage Printer
Signage Printer Hp Latex Ink: An Eco-Friendlier Alternative To Solvent Inks For Wide-Format Printers Until recently, most inks used for signage, billboards and other outdoor display media printed wit...
Signage Printer
Hp Latex Ink: An Eco-Friendlier Alternative To Solvent Inks For Wide-Format Printers
Until recently, most inks used for signage, billboards and other outdoor display media printed with wide-format printers are solvent inks. That is because most of these display media are made of vinyl and the solvent in the inks used to print them help the pigments bind with the vinyl. This binding makes the printed outdoor display durable enough to withstand both rain and storm.
These days, however, print service providers are now looking for alternatives to solvent inks due to the health and environmental problems that these inks can create. Hewlett-Packard, a leader in the printer and printer ink cartridges, has come up with one such alternative, and that is the HP Latex Ink.
The Advantages of HP Latex Ink over Solvent Ink
Despite the effectiveness of solvent inks in making more durable outdoor display media without any loss of quality, it is not really that safe or eco-friendly. For one, you need to be in a well-ventilated room with a proper air discharge system in order to use these printer inks. Otherwise, the technician operating the wide-format printer runs the risk of breathing in toxic fumes as the inks are let to dry.
In addition, solvent inks are not environment-friendly. They are made from petroleum-based chemicals which, as we know, are not renewable resources. They also have high levels of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that are harmful to the environment.
By comparison, the HP Latex Ink is water-based and made from completely recyclable materials. The ink's main ingredients are latex polymer and pigment particles. Its composition is 70% water and 30% additives. It is also odorless.
As thus, you do not have to be strict about enforcing air ventilation requirements when using HP Latex Ink because it does not release any toxic fumes when it is used.
What about Quality?
Of course, any print service provider would be worried about the durability of outdoor display media printed with wide-format printers fed with HP Ink Cartridges. Are they as durable as signage created with solvent inks? The answer here is "yes," to a certain degree.
According to product information released by Hewlett-Packard on the HP Latex Ink, any outdoor signage printed out with this ink on a wide-format printer can last up to three years if unlaminated and five years if laminated. As for indoor signage printed using this printer ink, the lifespan would be five years if unlaminated and ten years or more if laminated.
Durability aside, images on these display media are supposed to be vivid in color as well as sharp in detail with the use of the HP Latex Ink. This would be the expected result of the proprietary formula used in creating this printer ink, especially when paired with the proprietary technologies HP uses in its own wide-format printer models.
Many industry experts believe that the HP Latex Ink is far from conquering the print service provider industry from the clutches of solvent inks just yet. However, it does represent a safer and eco-friendlier alternative.
About the Author
John C Arkin from printerinkcartridges.printcountry.com the contributor of PrintCountry Articles. More information on the subject is at HP Latex Ink: An Eco-Friendlier Alternative to Solvent Inks for Wide-Format Printers, and related resources can be found at HP Ink Cartridges.
Four Basic Tips On Buying Media For An Inkjet Wide-Format Printer
When you own a wide-format printer, whether it is for your studio, your office or your printing shop business, it is an absolute must that you use the right kind of print medium for your printer. After all, not all wide-format printers are alike. Some wide-format printers work with paper. Some are designed for printing on fabrics. Some are more geared towards working with solvent inks for printing signage on vinyl.
If your wide-format printer is an inkjet printer, it is even important that you are finicky about your choice of printing medium. It has to be the kind that is appropriate for your printer. Not only will this ensure that the print quality will be terrific, but it will also prevent any damage to your printer heads.
How do you choose the right printing medium for your wide-format inkjet printer? Here are a few tips.
1. Check the manual. Before you do work on your printer, you need to know exactly what kinds of printing mediums that your printer accepts. Some wide-format printers are versatile enough to accept different kinds of mediums but that cannot be said for every wide-format inkjet printer out there. Check your printer's manual if it can accept a particular printing medium before you run it on your printer.
2. Check your RIP software. Your raster image processing software or RIP is the translator between you and your printer. You use this software to communicate with your printer and tell it what you want to do. Now, not all RIP software pieces are capable of translating exactly what you want for your printer to do all the time. Thus, before you run a printing job on a particular medium on your wide-format printer, make sure that the printing job is something that your RIP software can handle.
3. Use coated mediums. If your wide-format printer is an inkjet printer, you are better off using mediums that have a coated inkjet receptor layer. This coating will allow the medium to absorb and disperse the printer ink more properly, thus maintaining the integrity of the print quality. The coating protects the printer heads as well.
4. Buy only from a trusted source. When you buy your office supplies or mediums for your printer, whether it is fabric or paper or anything else, you should always buy from a source that you can completely trust. There are many stores out there that are only out to make a quick buck; you will find plenty of those on the Internet. But what may seem to be a great deal for you initially may turn out to be a complete rip-off, like selling you the wrong kind of printer medium without the giving you the opportunity to return the product and get your money back. You will end up wasting both your time and your money.
It is a must that you know your wide-format printer and what it is capable of doing before you start doing your print jobs. In this way, you will be sure to get great quality print jobs as well as protect your printer from possible damages.
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About the Author
John C Arkin from printerinkcartridges the contributor of PrintCountry Articles. More information on the subject is at Four Basic Tips on Buying Media for an Inkjet Wide-Format Printer, and related resources can be found at Office Supplies.