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Early browning on laminated IJ-180c sign in southern Arizona

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aspengraphicsco

New Member
I had this sign printed on 3M IJ-180c w/companion 3M laminate in June 2020. I mounted it to the aluminum sign and the customer installed. It's already starting to brown and look bad on the right and left side where the white material is not printed. I looked into 3M warranty and this has a much shorter warranty period because of the daily time in the sun and location in Southern Arizona. I'm wondering if there are any other products or types of production processes that may last longer? Would something like Oracal 751 or a liquid laminate perform better? What do most sign companies do in this circumstance in New Mexico and Arizona? Thanks very much!
IMG_4551.JPG
 
Scotchbrite

Scotchbrite

No comment
Funny thing is, if you hadn't said anything, I would assume it's an intentional gradient.

Is this true aluminum or ACM? I've had ACM signs do this. Granted it was up longer than 2 years, but we don't have the same climate; arid but not as hot.
 
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aspengraphicsco

New Member
danno said:
8518, 8519 or 8520 would have been better choices. I have used 8548g and on high sun exposure did a double layer of 8548g for best results.
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I outsourced the sign printing and now realize 8510 is calendared and it should have been cast. I’m following up to see if this is accurate and if I can get a reprint.
 
caribmike

caribmike

Retired with a Side Hustle
aspengraphicsco said:
I had this sign printed on 3M IJ-180c w/companion 3M laminate in June 2020. I mounted it to the aluminum sign and the customer installed. It's already starting to brown and look bad on the right and left side where the white material is not printed. I looked into 3M warranty and this has a much shorter warranty period because of the daily time in the sun and location in Southern Arizona. I'm wondering if there are any other products or types of production processes that may last longer? Would something like Oracal 751 or a liquid laminate perform better? What do most sign companies do in this circumstance in New Mexico and Arizona? Thanks very much! View attachment 160614
Click to expand...
Here in the Caribbean, vinyl signs will start to brown and burn within a few years of installation if they're facing the sun. There's nothing that can be done to prevent it. We put a disclaimer on all estimates and invoices to that effect.
 
A

aspengraphicsco

New Member
aspengraphicsco said:
I outsourced the sign printing and now realize 8510 is calendared and it should have been cast. I’m following up to see if this is accurate and if I can get a reprint.
Click to expand...
I'm getting a reprint of the sign this time using 8518. Do you think removal is required or can I go over the existing vinyl face?
 
bob

bob

It's better to have two hands than one glove.
This is the reason that I stopped laminating prints some years back. It didn't matter what vinyl laminate I used, they all turned brown is a relatively short time. This is in western Colorado at ~5000 feet. I started using liquid laminate, which is acrylic and not vinyl, and have never had a coated print turn brown, or any other color. I have coated prints that have been out in the sun for years and still look just fine. I had a print on the front of my horse trailer that started to deteriorate after about 13 or so years. While the liquid laminate is far superior to vinyl in UV resistance and is plenty tough, it lacks the abrasive resistance of vinyl. It would make a difference if it were on a vehicle that went crashing through the brush. Other than that, liquid is equal to or better than vinyl.
 
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