Screen printing applied to textiles can be extremely difficult to remove.
Silk screening, technically referred to as screen printing, is a method of printing that uses a screen to apply ink to a variety of surfaces, or substrates. The ink used depends on several factors, such as desired drying time, glossiness, consistency, and most of all, substrate. Inks used on plastic are generally easy to remove, due to the non-porous nature of the substrate. If the ink is industrial-grade textile ink on natural fibers, it can be nearly impossible to remove. This is because the ink is typically catalyzed and heat-cured to withstand hundreds of machine washings.
Instructions
Plastic Items
1. Spray on a water-displacing spray or an oil-based cleaner
2. Allow the the spray to sit for several minutes so that it thoroughly absorbs into the screen printing.
3. Wipe off the spray with a scrubby sponge until you remove all the screen printing from the plastic.
4. Wash the plastic off with dish soap.
Fabric Items
5. Spray a foaming aerosol paint remover onto the fabric. You can test a hidden spot of the fabric first to make sure the paint remover does not cause undue damage.
6. Allow the paint remover to sit for several minutes so that it thoroughly absorbs the screen printing.
7. Wash the fabric immediately in a washing machine.
8. Repeat the removal process with a specialized screen-printing press wash or screen wash if the screen printing is still visible. These chemicals are manufactured specifically to remove ink from screen printing presses and screens.
