The two types of inks used to print t-shirts via screen printing are water-based and plastisol. Both have fantastic qualities depending on exactly what you’re looking for in a t shirt design. How about we dive in and do a little comparison, shall we?
Water-Based Ink:
Water-based ink for t-shirt printing came into existence before plastisol ink. It’s different in a few ways. One of which is that water-based inks are actually absorbed by the shirt, meaning you can’t feel the image or graphic, only the shirt in and of itself. Given its name, you would be correct in assuming that the ink is very, very liquid. That is, in part, why it is entrenched into the fabric of t-shirts. It also means that you will get a softer feel to the tee because the ink is “soaked” into a shirt. In essence, because it becomes part of a shirt, it lasts longer than plastisol…as long as the lifespan of the shirt itself, to be exact.
If the environment is something on your list of priorities, water-based inks are for you. The solvent is, yes, water. Therefore, there aren’t any toxins where there are with plastisol inks. Another nice aspect of water-based ink on t shirts is the breathability factor. Going back to the fact that the image becomes part of the shirt, it differs from plastisol ink, which sits “on top” of the fabric.
Water-based inks produce the best results and brightest colors when printed on all-cotton t-shirts. You can use these inks to print on blends and tri-blends, but the colors will be less bold. The reason is that the dye holds to the cotton fibers only. When you add in synthetic fibers like polyester or rayon, the hold is not there, and it will cause the print to look faded or dull.
Plastisol Ink:
Plastisol ink was a game-changer when it arrived on the scene in the 1970s. Prior to plastisol, t-shirt images were somewhat dull. Plastisol ink has since provided print shops with brighter and more vibrant colors, and images on shirts really pop.
Plastisol ink is made up of two primary elements. The first is a polyvinyl chloride (PVC) resin and a plasticizer, which is a clear, but thick liquid.
When the printing job is completed, you can clearly see these inks are thicker and more prominent than water-based inks. You can actually feel the presence of plastisol ink on top of your shirt. It doesn’t dye within the threads of a fabric like traditional water-based ink will do. Given the viscosity, plastisol ink delivers better coverage, especially on dark shirts.
Another bonus with plastisol is that there are very few fabric limitations it can be applied to. There is little waste when printing with plastisol ink, and printers (like us) can combine additives to reduce the thick feel if so desired.
Discharge Ink:
Touching on discharge ink with regard to screen printing, it is usable for both water-based and plastisol. The unique thing about discharge ink, is that it actually removes dye from the shirt and replaces the area with its pigment. When screen printing with discharge inks, a cotton shirt or a tri-blend tee is necessary because discharge inks only hold on natural fabric.
There is no hard and fast rule when choosing water-based or plastisol inks to print on a t-shirt. Each has value of its own merit. Want bold and vibrant colors? The choice then, would be plastisol. Rather have breathability and a longer lasting print? Water-based would be the way to go. When it comes to screen printing on t-shirts, it’s a game of subjectivity.