Applying Heat Transfer Vinyl With An Iron
Applying Heat Transfer Vinyl With An Iron.
At Stahls' UK, we get asked 'Can you apply HTV with an iron?' almost every day, so we thought it was time to make a blog tackling this issue.
Can you apply Heat Transfer Vinyl with an iron?
Technically, yes
Should you apply a Heat Transfer Vinyl with an iron?
Absolutely not.
Want to know why? Keep reading...
To apply a Heat Transfer Vinyl to a garment with the guarantee that it won't peel off after a wash or two, you need to be able to control the following three things:
- Time
- Temperature
- Pressure
Time
It's very easy to think that timing your HTV application is not difficult. Counting how long you are using an iron is quite simple, after all... right?
That is until your heat transfer vinyl is larger than the surface of your iron. When this is the case, you cannot guarantee that every area of your HTV design has had the correct amount of time needed for a proper application.
If you accidentally miss out a section of your transfer it could result in water getting between the transfer and the fabric during washing, which will cause bubbles and air pockets that will result int the peeling of the transfer.
You might be thinking, this isn't a 'me' problem, right? I won't be the person washing the garment, the buyer will?
If you want repeat customers who are happy with quality garments, then it is DEFINITELY a 'you' problem.
Temperature
A commercial iron temperature gauge can range from 110℃ to 200℃.
So the question to address here, is what temperatures does HTV apply at?
Most HTV applies between 150℃ and 180℃. While on paper it might appear that an iron should give out enough heat to apply your HTV, its very unlikely your commercial iron will actually achieve high temperatures like this.
Furthermore, a commercial iron is also not designed for accurate and even temperature distribution. Inside most irons is a small curved heating element that covers just 10% of the surface area. This means that while the heating element could reach your desired temperature, the rest of the iron plate will not.
The surface of an iron is also littered with grooves and holes that let steam and water slip through. While great for removing creases in clothing, these holes will add moisture in to your heat transfer application which will cause it to not adhere correctly.
Pressure
No matter how hard you push your iron into the garment, you simply cannot achieve the correct pressure to apply HTV with an iron.
A high-quality Heat Transfer Vinyl will require medium pressure to adhere accurately. This is 4-6 on a Hotronix heat press, or 40-60psi.
In order to achieve 40-60 psi of pressure to correctly apply your heat transfer you would need to apply 8640 lbs of force per square foot (Which is approximately the size of a heat press platen).
The average weight of a UK male is 188lbs which means you would need to find a way to accurately apply the weight of 73 men to your iron to achieve accurate pressure.
Even if this was actually possible, as most irons are made from plastic, it certainly wouldn't hold up against that kind of weight.
So what's the alternative to applying a heat transfer vinyl with an iron?
A reliable heat press such as a Hotronix.
Hotronix® heat presses are stronger, more advanced and more durable than any other heat press on the market. They are so robust that they come with a lifetime guarantee on the heating element, ensuring quality that will outlast the life span of your business.
Hotronix uses RTD heating probes that are accurately spaced by 1.5 inches and cast into a 3/4-inch thick upper platen. This means the probe can reach behind the surface where the heating element meets the garment you're fusing so that the temperature readout of the press will be accurate to the degree.
All Hotronix heat presses come with built-in timers to accurately time your application as well as over-centre pressure adjustment to control your pressure for every fuse.
While it might seem a large investment to buy a heat press for your small business, quality application creates quality product which results in repeat business.
With a lifetime guarantee on heating elements and the 5-year guarantee on the framework, a Hotronix Auto Open Heat Press would cost just 94p per day when spreading the £1720 price point across the 5-year framework guarantee.
Can you afford 94p per day for quality application, quality product and repeat business?
