Reclaiming Powder

[3Deep]

Can any one give me a little inside on reclaiming powder, I bought some CRER300 from WM Plastics...It's getting to the point where I might buy a dip tank and abandon my old method.  I might can save a few dollars as I think I could use the dip tank and use the chems alot longer and using out of the spray bottle, someone beat me over the head and tell me I'm I thinking right.

darryl

[Sbrem]

We mixed our own for years, sodium metaperiodate, soooo much cheaper than buying emulsion remover, then we got the tank, and it is better indeed. We've switched chemical a few times, so I'm not sure what being used today, but they like it a lot.

Steve

[mimosatexas]

Love my diptank and would never go back.  One or two people claim they hated the dip tank, but I feel like they must just really love working out their forearms, or they have peons doing it for em!

[Itsa Little CrOoked]

We mixed our own for years, sodium metaperiodate, soooo much cheaper than buying emulsion remover, then we got the tank, and it is better indeed. We've switched chemical a few times, so I'm not sure what being used today, but they like it a lot.

Steve

I actually am a candidate for this powder in my diptank because of the chemistry I use. I always remove ink in a separate step, then into the tank for emulsion removal. Where can you buy it?

Stan

[Inkworks]

Love my diptank and would never go back.  One or two people claim they hated the dip tank, but I feel like they must just really love working out their forearms, or they have peons doing it for em!

We just found the stack method faster and we ended up with a cleaner screen, washout booth and everything else the screens touched, it was really a no-brainer. On this very thread we have people removing ink separately and just using the diptank to apply emulsion remover.  To me that makes as much sense as filling a cup with toothpaste and dipping your whole tooth brush in it before you brush your teeth.

<end hijack>

Satti sells an emulsion remover powder in bulk.

[Itsa Little CrOoked]

Love my diptank and would never go back.  One or two people claim they hated the dip tank, but I feel like they must just really love working out their forearms, or they have peons doing it for em!

We just found the stack method faster and we ended up with a cleaner screen, washout booth and everything else the screens touched, it was really a no-brainer. On this very thread we have people removing ink separately and just using the diptank to apply emulsion remover.  To me that makes as much sense as filling a cup with toothpaste and dipping your whole tooth brush in it before you brush your teeth.

<end hijack>

Satti sells an emulsion remover powder in bulk.

I've not found a SINGLE step chem that works very well for TWO totally different processes. Processes as different as night and day. I either get ghost images, or poor stencil break down. With two separpate steps, I have less staining.  And my emulsion of choice reclaims FAR better in a dip tank.


But I'm all ears.  If you have a better way, point me towards it.

[Sbrem]

Love my diptank and would never go back.  One or two people claim they hated the dip tank, but I feel like they must just really love working out their forearms, or they have peons doing it for em!

We just found the stack method faster and we ended up with a cleaner screen, washout booth and everything else the screens touched, it was really a no-brainer. On this very thread we have people removing ink separately and just using the diptank to apply emulsion remover.  To me that makes as much sense as filling a cup with toothpaste and dipping your whole tooth brush in it before you brush your teeth.

<end hijack>

Satti sells an emulsion remover powder in bulk.

I'll bet I reclaimed hundreds of thousands of frames the old way, clean ink out first, then spray on a sodium metaperiodate solution, scrub some, then blast away. The good part of the dip tank is NO SCRUBBING. I also find the inks come out better by removing them first. I don't do much at all of that anymore, but my screen guy, who I hired at my old shop 31 years ago (so he also has a lot of experience) is much happier using a dip tank. And you don't dip your toothbrush in a cup of toothpaste? What's that all about?

Steve

[Inkworks]

Never scrubbed emulsion remover on, dip, brush, done. Aside from that we don't do anything different than someone removing ink first, then using a diptank. If diptanks did decent job of removing ink and emulsion with 1 chemical we'd still be using ours for that, but since the two chemicals will not co-exist in the same diptank without neutralizing each other, it's just a really expensive way to apply emulsion remover. Maybe if we did 100 screens a day I'd fell different about it.

[Sbrem]

Scrubbing, brushing is the same thing pretty much. I just moved the brush around to dig it in a little, probably the same thing you do I'll bet. We've tried the dual chemical bath with ink degradent and emulsion remover, but were unimpressed. So, the mineral spirits bath (a real Cincinnati Screen Washer, not a part washer) does a great job, then off to the tank. On the really odd occasion where I reclaim a screen (usually a personal project on a weekend) I don't use the tank...

Steve

[mimosatexas]

I don't remove ink first using any chemicals.  My process is:

1. Don't flood after final print stroke.
2. Card off excess which is all around edges of image area (minus the tiny bit of film left in the image area after the print stroke).
3. Pull tape.
4. Dip.
5. Pressure wash from shirt side only.
6. Spray on 701 and brush around on both sides.
5. Rinse (quick pressure wash, then once over with the spray nozzle, fan setting).

The screen is scrubbed (basically just to disperse the 701) once and turned twice total.  My screens look and act brand new. I use plastisol and waterbased, SP-1400 emulsion (often hardened), Supra in the dip tank.  I've been using the exact same chems for almost a year now, with one refresh about 4 months ago.  I know it differs in different shops, but I followed Evo's advice and it has been flawless.

[jsheridan]

Spray and scrub then rinse and repeat is a huge waste of water and out here in CA water ain't cheap.
Diptanks and two part chemicals save me water and money at the end of the day.

How much are those salts now.. they doubled in price a few years ago.

[mimosatexas]

Good point on the water usage.

[Sbrem]

Spray and scrub then rinse and repeat is a huge waste of water and out here in CA water ain't cheap.
Diptanks and two part chemicals save me water and money at the end of the day.

How much are those salts now.. they doubled in price a few years ago.

Haven't bought the old stuff in quite some time. Before I found out about it, I had been buying gallons of emulsion remover, ignorant of the fact that it's 99.9% water for crying out loud. I think it was around $11 per gallon, plus freight. 2 lbs. of powder was $40.00 and made lots and lots of gallons, I really can't recall how many anymore, but it was stupid obvious. I'll check with my screen guy and see what their running now and how many screens they think they get, that varies a bit...

Steve

[Inkworks]

Spray and scrub then rinse and repeat is a huge waste of water and out here in CA water ain't cheap.
Diptanks and two part chemicals save me water and money at the end of the day.

How much are those salts now.. they doubled in price a few years ago.

I was under the understanding that there was no such thing as 2-part chemicals as they are not compatible in the same tank without neutralizing each other. Basically they are all just an emulsion remover, and when the emulsion is removed, the ink goes with it.

Am I incorrect?

[3Deep]

I bought some EasiStrip a few years back suppose to be an ink degradent and emulsion remover all in one, well for me it didn't work that well and I've been back to using one part chems since.  I ,m right there with Steve about buying a gal of water and just started buying reclaiming crystals and adding my own water, but this will be the first I,ve used the powder...tried the liquid form that you add to make gals and didn't work no where as well as the crystals.