Question: Hey guys! Is the gold Mylar considered bleachable, appropriate for hospital use? What about the terralon smooth? We print water based inks on the terralon smooth. I know we would have to test the ink but what about terralon?
Answer: Yes most of our materials will resist bleach, with a few exceptions noted below. We have tested our standard vinyls as well as the different colors from the Flash series. In the photo below you can see samples of Silver Flash and Gold Flash which were tested for 16 hours with bleach sitting on the surface. No visible change to the base material.
*So while we would never recommend cleaning with something as harsh as bleach, it is encouraging to know that most of our products will withstand exposure.
DreamScape Terralon, Terralon Regatta, Terralon Smooth, Nolar, Nolar Sailcloth products would be an exception to this, they can not withstand long exposure to bleach. Long exposure to bleach on these highly porous surfaces will result in a light yellow stain.
Bling and Prisma could also be changed by long exposure to bleach. We tested Bling! at 2 hours and there was no visible change, but after 16 hours the area that was exposed became whiter. If the product is hit with bleach by accident, you can clean with soap and warm water and should have no damage as long as the exposure is limited.
Regarding printed inks - whether you are using a water based ink like Latex, a solvent based, or a UV curable ink, we recommend checking with the ink manufacture for exposure to bleach or other harsh cleaners. In any case, Dreamscape would recommend a protective coating to further shield the ink if you know that it will be exposed to something harsh. NOTE: Our DreamGuard coating will not resist alcohol. If you need to clean a wallcovering product that has had Dreamguard applied, we recommend cleaning the surface with Lysol Multi Surface for virus and health concerns. Dreamguard will also resist cleaning with a 10:1 bleach to water dilution, and 3% Hydrogen Peroxide. Always test a small section first of the wallcovering first, evaluate the surface to see if there are any changes, before applying to your entire wall. *For general cleaning we recommend trying a mild soap and water mixture, and if that doesn't work you can try some of the options above.
