Tsautop Hydrographic provides a competed hydro dipping article on our website, and also design a hydrographic image which includes the hydro dipping steps by steps.
But there is a situation that someone also can’t understand and can’t do hydrographic well, so I decide to write a hydro dipping guide for starter, hope to help you a lot at the beginning of water transfer printing.
Before hydro dipping, there is an important thing you need to do.
Firstly, answer the following questions:
What product do you do?
As a hydrographic starter, you need to ensure which product you will do, realize the shape of your hydro dip item, so you can know the difficulty of this item.
Products with a large arc or complicated shape are more difficult than the panel.
What material of your hydro dip item?
Water printing transfer printing film can be printed on kinds of materials via water medium, but different material needs to be matched with suitable oil primer.
So you need to prepare the relative oil primer for your product.
Choose the right primer: PP material needs PP oil primer, PE material need PE oil primer, Ceramic material needs ceramic oil primer, glass material needs glass oil primer.
And there is an important thing, hydro dipping only can use the oil primer, please do not use water-based primer, metallic primer.
PS: If ABS material, then no need primer, this material can do hydro dip directly.
Which size of the hydrographic item?
Please check the size of your hydro dip item, and then you can cut the suitable hydrographic film sheet for a test.
No need to paste tapes at the side of hydro dipping film, unless your hydro dipping tank (or basin) is too big according to the WTP film sheet, or just make a frame bigger than the film on the water.
If you realize all the above questions, then you can prepare to do hydro dipping now.
Preparation before hydrographic:
1. Suitable primer.
2. Spray gun.
3. Hydrographic film sheet.
4. Hydro dip item.
5. Activator B.
6. Hydro dip tank (or other containers)
7. 28-35 degree water (heat water via hydro dip tank or put the water into the container)
The process of the hydro dipping：
1. Clean the hydro dip items.
Clean hydrographic parts – Polish it with sandpaper – Clean hydro dipping item again – Dry out.
2. Spray oil primer on the items.
To spray primer on the items with the spray gun, and please pay attention to choose suitable oil hydro dip primer according to the material.
3. Dry out the hydrographic parts.
4. Put the hydrographic paint film on the water.
At this step, also have customer asked me which side face the water, and which side face you when put the hydrographic film on the water.
5. How to distinguish the right side of the hydro dip film faces the water.
To wet your finger, and catch and the water dipping film with your wet finger, then the gule side of the WTP film is the right side to face the water.
6. Spray Activator with a spray gun.
Please adjust the spray gun, to make sure the activator B can be sprayed like soft fog. Spray activator after put the hydrographic dipping film on the water 40 seconds later, at the same time, please spray activator evenly.
7. Put the hydro dipping item into the water through the hydrographic film.
Wait about 40 seconds, this film is dissolved in the water after activator spraying, then put the item through the water.
8. To wash the hydro dip items.
After hydro dipping, there are some wtp film dirty on the items, so you need to wash the dirty
9. Dry out the hydrographic parts.
10. Spray the gloss paint on the items.
Spray gloss or matte paint on the items to protect the painting pattern, so this paint can be kept in a long time.
11. Dry out the hydrographic parts.
