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Glass printing options

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Glass printing options

Glass printing options

Traditional printing processes rely on liquid ink. The paper (or other media) absorbs the ink. Glass isn’t absorbent, so glass printing is a challenge. Traditional inks and paints don’t work well, leaving few viable options for printing on glass.

Glass printing techniques

Silk screening. The traditional, tested method of glass printing is silk screening. The technique creates an image that’s clearly visible from a distance. Close inspection reveals that the image is made from millions of tiny dots. Depending upon the size of the screen, silk screen printing can offer coverage off varying percentages. The standard screen provides 60% coverage.

Silk screen printing was invented more than 100 years ago, and involves placing ink on the surface of the glass through a mesh screen. Once the ink has been applied to the glass, the glass and ink are fired to allow the ink to adhere firmly to the glass. Images with multiple colors require a different screen for each color, and the glass must be fired each time a new color is added to the image. The process is time-consuming and is prone to registration and coloration errors.

A related technique is screen transfer printing, where the image is transferred from paper to the glass. As with silk screening, screen printed transfers must be fired once they’ve been applied to the glass in order to permanently bond the image to the glass, and multiple screens may be required to form a single image.

Digital ceramic ink printing. Digital ceramic ink is applied using a flatbed inkjet printer. The ink is precisely controlled and dries on contact with the glass. This allows the printer to eliminate unwanted color blending, and provide precise control over the thickness of individual paint droplets. Once the paint is applied, it’s fired to create permanent adhesion with the glass surface.

UV Inkjet glass printing. UV inkjet glass printing represented an evolution in glass printing techniques. An earlier glass printing technique bonded an image printed on a clear substrate to the glass. UV inkjet glass printing uses an inkjet printer to deposit UV-curable ink directly on glass. Prior to the application of ink, the glass surface is treated with a special primer, like Glassprimer™ glass surface molecular activator. Once the primer and ink have been applied, the ink is exposed to UV light and permanently bonded to the glass. A similar technique uses heat-curable inks that are baked after being applied to glass. The advantage of UV-curing is that it is virtually instant and does not require firing.

If you’d like more information about Glassprimer™ glass surface molecular activator, for use with UV-inkjet glass printing, please check out the rest of our site. If you’d like to purchase Glassprimer™ glass surface molecular activator, please visit our online store .

Photo Credit: Mads Buddig, via FreeImages.com

Transparent painted glass – a how-to

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Transparent painted glass – a how-to

Transparent painted glass – a how-to

In the last couple of posts, we’ve looked at opaque and translucent glass, but can you also create transparent painted glass? The brief answer is yes! One of the strengths of glass as a medium is that it’s transparent. Painting the surface will reduce the transparency of the glass, but you can apply color to the glass while still preserving its transparency.

Transparent painted glass effect

If you’re aiming for a stained glass effect, it helps to understand how stained glass is made, and why transparent painted glass can be a cost-effective alternative to true stained glass.

Stained glass is also painted, using special paints. After the glass is painted, it is fired to achieve that transparent appearance. Most often, stained glass artists work in one color at a time, firing the piece after each addition of color. The finished piece could have been fired many times. This method of applying paint and firing is very labor intensive, requires special equipment and materials, and is really time consuming! It also makes true stained glass expensive to buy.

Glassprimer™ offers an alternative to true stained glass, that’s cost effective, uses common materials and produces a similar transparent painted glass result. Best of all, there’s no need to fire the piece, so you don’t need special equipment, either.

By using Glassprimer™ GP083® molecular activator as a surface preparation, you can use urethane paint to achieve a transparent painted glass effect and still get the adhesion properties you need when working with glass as a painting medium.

The Glassprimer™ GP083® molecular activator doesn’t convert the paint into glass paint, but it does sufficiently treat the surface of the glass to create the nanoscale bonding properties paint requires to adhere to the glass.

The surface preparation is the same as it would be when using Glassprimer™ glass paint. Clean the glass thoroughly with rubbing alcohol and #000 grit steel wool until it’s “squeaky clean.” Don’t use lint-free paper towels – just use the cheap kind from the store.

Once the glass surface has been cleaned, spray it with Glassprimer™ GP083® molecular activator and let it sit for 10 seconds. Wipe it off with paper towels and apply a high- quality 2-part urethane paint, such as those from House of Kolor. You’ll get a great transparent painted glass effect without special tools or equipment, and at a fraction of the cost of true stained glass!

Photo Credit: Derek Boggs, via FreeImages.com

UV glass printing catches on

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GP083® Molecular Activator

GP083® Molecular Activator

At GlassPaint.com, we think that glass is an ideal painting medium, especially when Glassprimer™ glass paint is used! But glass painting isn’t the only thing you can do with glass. We offer Glassprimer™ glass surface molecular activator for UV glass printing applications.

What is UV glass printing?

UV glass printing is popular in Europe, and is gaining popularity in the US. UV glass printing allows designers to print complex graphics on windows, mirrors, glassware and a wide range of other glass products. It’s an obvious solution for businesses, especially those that have glass windows, doors and showcases. In fact, retailing and merchandising are currently the most popular applications for UV glass printing. The technique can also be used in architectural applications and to enhance interior spaces.

UV inkjet glass printing delivers a vibrant, photorealistic image, printed directly onto glass. Printing directly onto glass eliminates the extra labor, materials and expertise needed to mount transparent film on glass. Because the inkjet UV glass printing process is efficient, it produces a superior product at a lower overall cost. It also excels in short-run applications, which means that it can be used to create highly customized printed glass products affordably.

Digital inkjet UV glass printing allows designers to use the full color spectrum to create high quality images on glass. Using glass as a medium also allows designers to control lighting and make eye-catching displays using the fixtures that are normally available in retail settings. Using fixtures that are already part of the retail layout means that designers don’t have to find additional space for marketing or sacrifice space on the sales floor for marketing displays.

As an added benefit, UV glass printing does not require any post-processing or curing to fix the image on the glass. This shortens the production process, making it easy to update glass printed displays.

The Glassprimer™ glass surface molecular activator prepares the glass surface for inkjet UV glass printing. One quart bottle prepares up to 265 square feet of glass for printing. Printed images, adhesives and urethane coatings can make a permanent bond with glass following use of this surface preparation.

If you’d like more information about Glassprimer™ glass surface molecular activator, or if you’d like to purchase it, please visit our online store