Media Printing Recommendations
Dreamscape Large Format (64 inch) Media Printing Recommendations
Like all quality ink jet imaging media, DreamScape products perform best when printed within a specific range of imaging conditions. Use the following information provided in this specification sheet as initial recommendations for optimizing your printing system for DreamScape media.
Specific for Solvent and Eco Solvent Printers:
Temperature Settings:
Temperature settings are critical to achieving a quality image on vinyl media. Our recommendations for Dreamscape embossed vinyl are to use a pre-heat temperature of 33 to 38C with a platen temperature of 30 to 33C. Keeping the platen temperature about 5C less than preheat will help avoid buckling of media on the platen. Always test media flatness before launching production.
Some fine tuning may be required to determine the ideal relationship of preheat to platen heat on your particular equipment. Fixing temperature can be higher than platen temperature, but should be adjusted such that printed media is dry by the time the printed surface reaches the rewind roller. Excessively high fixing temperatures can cause media to fail to lay flat during printing.
Specific for Latex:
Cure temperature is critical for latex ink. Before beginning a production run, we recommend testing ink cure on a highly saturated portion of the project using a clean cloth rub test. If ink rubs off, it may be necessary to increase cure temperature, increase pass count, or both in order to achieve a full cure. An increase in cure temperature may require a corresponding increase in platen vacuum to assure media remains flat during printing.
General recommendations:
Head Height Settings (for printers that do not automatically sense media thickness): Because Dreamscape wallcovering media is typically thicker than most vinyl media products, it is necessary to set the head height specific to the Dreamscape media embossing in use. Consult the printer manual for recommended head height. We suggest to use the “HIGH” position on systems only offering preset height options. Once the head height has been changed, it is important to validate and/or recalibrate the bidirectional alignment to assure best image quality.
Media tracking: Wallcovering requires a high-precision printing process. To assure that a roll of material tracks evenly from beginning to end, we recommend a careful media loading process, making sure that that feed and take up edges are parallel. Media should be fastened to the rewind core before printing is initiated. For more information see our publication : Managing Mural Panel Size (link)