How well a print holds up depends on a couple of factors - how it's washed, how hard the water is in a given area, how much coverage is required by the graphic. In general and by testing, digital prints survive 50 washes. This is comparable to screen print. Large solid areas resist water flow in the wash, so they can develop cracks before a more open design would.

The above pertains to any colour other than white. For white cotton shirts, we still print DTG, so cracking isn't the issue, but fading. This happens gradually over the course of 50 washes and is mostly due to fiber loss in the shirt fabric rather than ink loss. Cotton fibers unwind and start to simply wash away, together with the print on them. If you've ever had a pen leak on a garment, you know how hard it is to get the ink to go away. Bleach of course is also the enemy of DTG prints.

Washing of any custom-printed tee should be luke-warm or cold water, garment turned inside-out, low- or permanent-press cycle and either dried on low or hang-dried. This will extend the life of the print and will also reduce the amount of shrinkage that even pre-shrunk garments can experience

An alternative is dye transfer sublimation on a 100% polyester fabric. In that process, the "ink" is transformed into a gas under high heat and pressure and transfers into the polyester fibers permanently. This will not wash out under normal circumstances, will not crack or peel and is not detectable under the hand. This process is only available for polyester, usually white of very light colours, though the light colours will tint the final image.

Regardless of the method of print, custom tees should not be dry-cleaned, nor bleached and softener should be avoided comepletely! Instead of fabric softener, adding a quarter cup of distilled white vinegar to the rinse cycle. This will work just as well without building up on the garment. Fabric softeners use surfactants that can be made from animal fats or plant oils and they can disturb print to the point of failure.

Although clothing is a consumable product, proper care should have the print holding up for a very, very long time. Using better quality tees helps since the weave is tighter and can be smoother, providing a better print surface.

Altacolor has experience with all the major brands of apparel including some specialty brands. We very much like Next Level's NL3600 for its soft, ring spun cotton construction. It prints well and looks nice and also tends to hold shape. If something heavier is desired, there are offerings like Hammer from Gildan and the Beefy-T from Hanes that are also ring spun cotton but top 6 oz/yd.

We love showing off how much we know about our business, so, ask your questions! You can also text (512) 885-3521.

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