What kind of paint can you use with thermofax screens?
If you’re printing on fabric you can use textile paint, screen printing inks, thickened dyes or Decolourant discharge paste.
How long will my screen last?
If cared for properly a thermofax screen can be used hundreds of times.
How to print with a thermofax screen
Work on top of a padded surface. You can place a piece of craft foam, batting, or felt (larger than the image your printing) underneath your fabric. I have an 18″ x 18″ foam floor mat that I use, smooth side up, on top of my table.
To print, place the shiny or film emulsion side of the thermofax screen face down against the fabric. Place ink across the top of the screen between the taped edge and the image. Hold the screen firmly against the fabric using your thumb and index finger along the top taped edge of the screen. Use a squeegee to drag the paint downward across the image. Do not remove your hand that is holding the screen in place, gently lift the bottom edge of the thermofax screen to see if enough paint came through the screen to print a crisp image. Sometimes a second or third pull of the squeegee is needed for full coverage on the first print made from a clean screen.
To care for your screens:
Do not let paint dry in your screen, or you will damage it.
When printing, I keep two dish tubs of cool water nearby: I use one tub for dirty screens and one tub for rinsing screens. As soon as I finish printing an image I toss the dirty screen into a tub. The longer the screen sits in the water, the easier it is to clean. I let them soak a minimum of 5 minutes before washing.
Wash the screen gently on both sides using your fingers tips (not nails) to work paint pigment off of the screen. Then rinse it in the second clean tub of water or under cool running water. Then hang to dry or pat dry with a towel. I use a bungee cord laundry line with clips to hang screens to dry when printing.
Tips:
Before printing, write “front”, or “top”, or your name or the name of the image onto the taped border on the front side of the screen with a waterproof marker. The front of the thermofax screen is the side that you can feel the woven screen mesh. The back side is the side that has the shiny film emulsion, this side will always go face down on the fabric.
Do not ever scratch or pull a squeegee across the film emulsion side of the thermofax screen, or you may damage it.
Download Printing and caring for thermofax screens PDF for your files.