Static issue??? Help!!!! Pics...

[DSC]

This is the worst i have seen this issue..

OCE 250 GT Flatbed printer

We just printed a sheet before this and it was fine..

This was wiped with ISA prior to being printed..

Seriously am pulling my hair out with this thing..

Any help is truly appreciated..

 

[Andriy]

I'm not familiar with that printer but does it happen to have an ionizer?
My FB700 does and turning it on saved me a few times from these.

 

[TimToad]

To start with, get a humidifier for the shop.

Next, get some of those blue paper shop towels and/or a big chamois. After you're done wiping with your ISA, lightly go over the panel with a barely damp towel or the chamois. At the far end of the panel from your gantry or printhead, place the damp towel or chamois. It will act like a static magnet and draw any residual charge into it and away from your panel. I've also heard of folks putting some dryer sheets on the edge of the panel or lightly brushing them over the surface just before printing.

 

[DSC]

I'm not familiar with that printer but does it happen to have an ionizer?
My FB700 does and turning it on saved me a few times from these.

It does not.. I literally just got off the phone and ordered an anti static kit..

We need that anyway, regardless if that is the issue..

Thanks!

 

[TimToad]

Not to come off like one of the ol' crustys, but "back in the day" when we used to reverse paint plex and lexan faces with Lacryl for illuminated signs and actually hand letter on Styrene, those materials would be so full of static that it would suck the paint out of your brush and turn it into an airbrush like the effect you had in your photo. Your spray gun would act like it had after burners on it.

The damp chamois trick has been used for decades and decades. I'm sure there are all sorts of anti-static devices and products we could be using. We do use Swiffer dusters on our material before we wipe with our ISA to pick up the particulate so we're not grinding it into the surface with our wipe towels.

 

[DSC]

Not to come off like one of the ol' crustys, but "back in the day" when we used to reverse paint plex and lexan faces with Lacryl for illuminated signs and actually hand letter on Styrene, those materials would be so full of static that it would suck the paint out of your brush and turn it into an airbrush like the effect you had in your photo. Your spray gun would act like it had after burners on it.

The damp chamois trick has been used for decades and decades. I'm sure there are all sorts of anti-static devices and products we could be using. We do use Swiffer dusters on our material before we wipe with our ISA to pick up the particulate so we're not grinding it into the surface with our wipe towels.

Great Insight!! Thank you!!

I am going to go ahead do all three.

Install a humidifier

Install an anti static kit

And wipe with fragrance free wipes and put a damp chamois on the corner..

Thanks to all !!

 

[TimToad]

Thanks for the props. I wish our flatbed's manufacturer, Gerber had an anti-static kit available, but considering they've discontinued even making flatbed printers, I'm running this one into the ground until the wheels fall off and we eventually replace it.

I'd be careful with wiping with the dryer sheets, as I'm sure they contain all sorts of lubricants, various softeners, chemical compounds, etc. What I've heard people do with them is lightly run the dryer sheets over their substrate with no pressure at all, just letting it barely touch the surface. I'm sure the Swiffer dusters accomplish the same thing without adding any chemicals to the equation.

What type of flooring you have is important also. Our entire shop area under and around the flatbed are those interlocking plastic tiles and the rest of the print shop area is hardwood laminate flooring. Carpet bad........!

 

[DSC]

Thanks for the props. I wish our flatbed's manufacturer, Gerber had an anti-static kit available, but considering they've discontinued even making flatbed printers, I'm running this one into the ground until the wheels fall off and we eventually replace it.

I'd be careful with wiping with the dryer sheets, as I'm sure they contain all sorts of lubricants, various softeners, chemical compounds, etc. What I've heard people do with them is lightly run the dryer sheets over their substrate with no pressure at all, just letting it barely touch the surface. I'm sure the Swiffer dusters accomplish the same thing without adding any chemicals to the equation.

What type of flooring you have is important also. Our entire shop area under and around the flatbed are those interlocking plastic tiles and the rest of the print shop area is hardwood laminate flooring. Carpet bad........!

We have painted/sealed cement for the floor

As far as the sheets, I will try that last then..

I just ordered and anti static "kit" from stopstatic.com, for only $139 .. Come with plenty of options and a static meter as well.. reviews seem good..

Thanks!

 

[ToTo]

Use an airgun with ionized air, available in the web, and blow over the media.
Use a grounding strap from Aluminium overlay to defined potential.
Use a grounded brush with carbon fibres to eliminate surface static.

 

[DSC]

Update

WE ordered that kit and have had NO issues..

It is the only thing we have used and so far it is great ..

Thanks again..

 

[graphxsigns]

I use a can of static guard and wipe down my material when needed, works great for me.

 

[klmiller611]

With our Agfa, it shows every finger mark or touch on coro, even wiping with the Iso shows marks where the paper towel had touched. I took to taking a clean lint free cloth, and spraying the back side of the cloth with a carpet static called Shock Free, which was gotten at a hardware store and the can appears to have been designed in the 1970s. Then I fold the towel in on itself, and very lightly wipe down the material, it seems to cut the static issue a lot, in addition to using a humidifier beside the printer.

Best
Ken

 

[DIGIXTRA]

WE ordered that kit and have had NO issues..

It is the only thing we have used and so far it is great ..

Thanks again..

We had this product long ago.. It does NOT work as good you think...sorry to point it out but someday the problem will come back and you will pull out your hair again ..as it happened to us.

 

[DSC]

We had this product long ago.. It does NOT work as good you think...sorry to point it out but someday the problem will come back and you will pull out your hair again ..as it happened to us.

Can you explain further in detail please?

 

[DIGIXTRA]

Can you explain further in detail please?

It's simply not working. I still have ghost print when using this static rubber band. Using alcohol won't work either as it will leave a wipe marks on substrate... However I now have a perfect working solution for this problem. It is going to cost you a little but it worth every cents..
I used AP2155 cleaning solution from www.supply55.com. This product not only eliminate static it also eliminate finger prints marks and promote adhesion.
Prior to use this product I used to throw away the off cut pieces because it infected with ton off finger marks from handling and trimming but now I can re-use them 100% by simply clean with this solution.. One word of precaution.. this stuff is toxic so use with care and read the instruction carefully.
Good luck

Ps: try it on coroplast and print a solid patch to see for yourself..

 

[DerbyCitySignGuy]

This is the worst i have seen this issue..

OCE 250 GT Flatbed printer

We just printed a sheet before this and it was fine..

This was wiped with ISA prior to being printed..

Seriously am pulling my hair out with this thing..

Any help is truly appreciated..

Not sure if you're still having the issue, but we clean with 91% IPA using a shop rag and then use Techspray Zero Charge on coro, also with a shop rag. I've found that spraying the IPA and the Techspray on the rag as opposed to directly on the material makes a difference also.

We also run a humidifier when our humidity gets out of the "sweet spot" and if everything else fails, I'll put a damp rag at the end of the gantry.

 

[DSC]

Not sure if you're still having the issue, but we clean with 91% IPA using a shop rag and then use Techspray Zero Charge on coro, also with a shop rag. I've found that spraying the IPA and the Techspray on the rag as opposed to directly on the material makes a difference also.

We also run a humidifier when our humidity gets out of the "sweet spot" and if everything else fails, I'll put a damp rag at the end of the gantry.

We are still having the issue..

I have heard of this damp rag , Where exactly do you put it?

 

[fresh]

Does anyone have a recommendation for a free-standing humidifier that I can hook up directly to a water line, the room is approximately 8,000 cubic feet. We had a large unit that held 4 gallons of water (2 in tank, and 2 in the base.) I'd fill the tank 3 times a day, and we still couldn't get the humidity up enough. Our heater is outside on the roof, so we can't install a furnace unit.

When it gets bad, I fill up spray bottles and spend 15 minutes spritzing the air and pour water on the carpet to get rid of the static. We also have a fabric curtain next to the printer that I douse with water, and that all helps more than a standard humidifier.

We can't deal with another winter like the one we just had.

 

[DIGIXTRA]

Does anyone have a recommendation for a free-standing humidifier that I can hook up directly to a water line, the room is approximately 8,000 cubic feet. We had a large unit that held 4 gallons of water (2 in tank, and 2 in the base.) I'd fill the tank 3 times a day, and we still couldn't get the humidity up enough. Our heater is outside on the roof, so we can't install a furnace unit.

When it gets bad, I fill up spray bottles and spend 15 minutes spritzing the air and pour water on the carpet to get rid of the static. We also have a fabric curtain next to the printer that I douse with water, and that all helps more than a standard humidifier.

We can't deal with another winter like the one we just had.

We used to have Armstrong EHF-2, EHU-6000 series Humidifier that hook up directly to water line..
http://www.ontimemall.com/manuals/armstrong-ehu600-series-owners-manual.pdf

 

[DerbyCitySignGuy]

We are still having the issue..

I have heard of this damp rag , Where exactly do you put it?

Right at the end of the gantry so that the carriage gets close to it without touching it. It just rests right there on the carriage end plate.