Zodiac Aquarius Bright Discharge Base
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Zodiac Aquarius™ Bright Discharge Base is a premium printing solution designed to achieve vivid, opaque discharge prints while maintaining a superior softness and flexibility. This product is ideal for creating high-quality, multicolor discharge prints with a soft hand feel that remains smooth and comfortable on the fabric.
Use a water-resistant emulsion like Baselayr Complete and degrease mesh with Baselayr Emulsion Prep. For extended life and long runs, it is recommended to post-expose the screens or uses an emulsion hardener like Baselayr Emulsion Hardener.
Zodiac Aquarius Bright Discharge should be fully cured* at 330°F (165°C). Flashing is NOT Recommended.
Curing is a time and temperature process; a lower dryer temperature setting with a slower belt speed while maintaining recommended ink cure temperature is always best to protect fabric, control dye migration, and reduce energy consumption.
*Cure is attained when the ENTIRE ink layer has fully evaporated and the remaining ink layer reaches 330°F and holds there for 20-30 seconds, meaning that the ink is 330°F from the top to the bottom of the ink layer.
For curing we recommend either a Gas Dryer or a Forced Air Electric Dryer like the Aeolus for best cure results.
If you are using a laser gun to read the surface temp, this will be misleading. Laser temp guns give you a reflective reading. When tested side-by-side with a donut probe, you will see temperature differences as great as 120°F–150°F early in the cure cycle (the donut probe accurately measures the contact temperature where the crosshairs reside). As you reach the end of the dryer, those temperatures will get closer together. As a direct result – you will need to read a surface temp as little as 60°F above what the stated cure temp is and as much as 100°F depending on how short the conveyor dryer tunnel is and how hot the settings are. This is due to a few variables.
The length of the tunnel of the conveyor. Curing ink is about temperature and time. It takes time for the entire ink layer to heat up and reach cure temp.
Is there air movement or "Forced Air". If your dryer does not have any air movement assist, curing any WB ink becomes problematic. The ink layer will take longer to properly heat up and reach FULL cure temperature. Because of this you may not reach proper cure temps and time and the garment can experience ink wash out. This looks like the colors are getting dull after the first few wash/dry cycles.
Cotton garments take longer to heat up than polyblends. Cotton naturally soaks up and holds onto water. When putting the shirt through the dryer, the dryer will release the water in the cotton fibers, slowing down how fast ink heats up. You will find Poly blended garments will heat up faster than 100% cotton.
The quality of the infrared panels. IR Panels are not created equal. Some panels are more efficient in creating heat within the ink layer than others.
Ink should be removed from the screen as soon as printing is completed. General wash-up (on ink that has not dried) can be done with water, though using Sgreen® Aqua Wash is much easier and recommended. For aggressive or dried screens, use Sgreen® Aqua Wash to dissolve the ink and blast out areas of stuck ink with water pressure.
Store at temperatures around 40-77°F (5-25°C). Avoid direct sunlight. Use within one year of receipt.
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