Control your studios dust,humidity and static for better face mounting results.

[dgberg]

I have been trying for several years to get better results when face mounting acrylic.
The industry standard has about an 85% success ratio for face mounting acrylics. (So I have read.)
I have never been able to get much better then 25% which means I was throwing away 75% of my pieces,and the biggest reason I never offered them for sale.
All the cleaning in the world never made anything better. Once I realized the issue was more static and humidity related I started making progress.
I started with a trip to Loews and purchased 2 Idylis pieces. The CDR-200 air purifier with Hepa filters and the HUM-10140 4 gallon humidifier.
At the same time I got one of the AcuRite temp and humidity control monitors. Takes a little bit of work to keep the water levels full when you have no water in the building.
About every 2 to 3 days I carry 2-5 gal. buckets from the house to the shop.
I needed an infeed work table for my larger laminator so I purchased one from Global Industries as they also have the ESD tops(Electrostatic discharge)
Hooked up the grounding wire and that was all there was to that.
The workstation chair I got from them had the static chain and figured it would not hurt.
My last purchase(Thanks to Wayne Fox) was a Kinetronics Ionizing Air Gun.
I think this has helped almost as much as everything else put together.(Except maybe the humidifer.)
In a nutshell it boosts the performance of an existing compressor by creating a flow of ions that neutralizes static charges and releases clinging dust.
The results are amazing! I am looking at 75%+ keepers when face mounting an improvement of at least 50%
In the past I have only been demonstrating acrylic face mounting for workshops. I am now seriously contemplating offering them for sale.
Everything in the studio is working much better. Head clogs are way down on my 9900 and 4880 with the humidity controlled to about 45%
There really is something to all this!

[shadowblade]

I've always wondered how to create a dust-free environment for HVLP spraying of prints - or even drying of prints - without spending tens of thousands of dollars on a clean room (Print Shield from a can is much more forgiving). No matter what I do or how much I clean the place, dust always seems to collect in unacceptable amounts.

I've considered setting up a sealed, HEPA-filtered 'tent' for spraying and drying, using plastic sheets, airtight tape and a tent frame, with an air pump attached to an inline HEPA filter pumping air in and another one pumping air out, but am unsure as to how well that would work.

[BillK]

Dan, thank you for sharing this information.
I have always been reluctant  to go this route because of the dust issues.
You have given me hope that it is possible to do with a reasonable failure rate.


Bill

[BrianWJH]

I thought maybe one of these might be adapted with exhaust fans and hepa filters, also easier to assemble and disassemble than a makeshift plastic covered homemade room.

If you lose interest in mounting/spraying you can repurpose it

Brian.

[dgberg]

I've always wondered how to create a dust-free environment for HVLP spraying of prints - or even drying of prints - without spending tens of thousands of dollars on a clean room (Print Shield from a can is much more forgiving). No matter what I do or how much I clean the place, dust always seems to collect in unacceptable amounts.

I've considered setting up a sealed, HEPA-filtered 'tent' for spraying and drying, using plastic sheets, airtight tape and a tent frame, with an air pump attached to an inline HEPA filter pumping air in and another one pumping air out, but am unsure as to how well that would work.

Totally dust free spray area  is important but not that critical when spraying. My spray booth has one open doorway out to my large wood shop and no problems at all.
Hang your canvas or pin them up at an angle when spraying and there is no way the dust can get on your canvas.
After spraying I pin mine up to a homosote cord board on the wall to dry.
Still a lot of folks trying to spray canvases laying flat,just asking for trouble.

[shadowblade]

Totally dust free spray area  is important but not that critical when spraying. My spray booth has one open doorway out to my large wood shop and no problems at all.
Hang your canvas or pin them up at an angle when spraying and there is no way the dust can get on your canvas.
After spraying I pin mine up to a homosote cord board on the wall to dry.
Still a lot of folks trying to spray canvases laying flat,just asking for trouble.

I'm talking about paper prints, not canvas - dust is generally more visible on a smooth paper surface than textured canvas.

Even if you hang the paper vertically (can't pin it up, since the holes will show, and clamps or wooden clothes pegs will leave unsprayed areas) doesn't dust still blow onto the surface while it's drying?

[dgberg]

I only spray canvas no paper but you would have to have an awful lot of dust blowing around to have it settle on vertically hanging prints. I get zero dust when hanging canvas prints to dry using Timeless.

As an after thought if I was spraying paper I would use a solvent finish.
I have used Clearstar FA a little and 2 light coats dry as fast as you spray it on.
Spray solvents on vertically hung prints and you will get no dust on your paper,period.

Addressing your hanging issue. Are you not mounting the prints and trimming the white border off?

[shadowblade]

I only spray canvas no paper but you would have to have an awful lot of dust blowing around to have it settle on vertically hanging prints. I get zero dust when hanging canvas prints to dry using Timeless.

Living in a central Melbourne penthouse, I don't have much choice but to spray indoors, where dust from living areas and carpets can settle anywhere. The garage isn't an option, since it's shared. A friend's wedding photography studio/office - also in the inner-city area - is also equally dusty.

As an after thought if I was spraying paper I would use a solvent finish.
I have used Clearstar FA a little and 2 light coats dry as fast as you spray it on.
Spray solvents on vertically hung prints and you will get no dust on your paper,period.

I'd normally use Print Shield or Hahnemuhle Protective Spray.

But this got me thinking - is there any reason *not* to use something like Eco Print Shield on paper? After all, it gives a more flexible coating that can bend without cracking, apparently bonds with the inkjet layer to stabilise it and reduce its brittleness so that it can be folded without cracking (e.g. when stretching canvases) and can also be used to give the paper any surface characteristics you want - matte, semi-gloss or high-gloss. Does it not provide an equally effective barrier against pollutants and UV light, or does it turn yellow over time?

Addressing your hanging issue. Are you not mounting the prints and trimming the white border off?

Good point - I never thought of spraying it first before trimming!