Baselayr Complete Emulsion

WARNING!: In winter months we will insulate your emulsion shipment but we cannot guarantee that it will not freeze in transit or if left outside at delivery location.  We cannot accept returns or issue refunds for emulsion shipped in the winter.

Elevate your darkroom with Baselayr Complete. It's a high performance, high solids emulsion made for shops that need the most out of their emulsion. Baselayr Complete was specifically created to work with the most demanding ink types. You can print all water-based, solvent-based, discharge, silicone, plastisol, and UV inks with this emulsion — it’s designed to perform.

Made with high detail and high resolution in mind, images will easily rinse out and screens will painlessly reclaim when the stencil is properly dried and exposed. Exposure units with higher wattage LED like the X-Vactor or FX are recommended. The emulsion also works well with metal halide lamp systems. Printers with exposure light sources like halogen, fluorescent tubes, or black-lights should not use Complete. If your exposure unit is not strong enough, try Baselayr Long Lasting Emulsion.

For those shops with a Direct to Screen unit, Baselayr Complete has an ink receptive surface and is a great choice for wet ink-based and wax-based units.

If you used SVP, TX Discharge, or Cryocoat emulsions, you'll appreciate Baselayr Complete. The emulsion has faster exposure times while maintaining all the same properties printers love. 

Baselayr Complete is designed to hold up during long print runs when correctly and fully exposed (solid step 7). If you need greater resistance or are doing a larger run, add diazo or post-expose for greater durability. Details below.

IF USED WITH DIAZO

For customers that need even greater details in their designs, want to push the boundaries of resolution, or require greater initial stencil durability, try using Baselayr Complete with Diazo. With the addition of diazo, exposure times will increase about 3x but image resolution will be greatly enhanced. Plus, the longer initial exposure time will greatly improve the stencil's longevity on press, exemplifying a similar performance to a long post exposure/leaving your screens in the sun to dry.

RECOMMENDED

For long run water-based/discharge production, use Baselayr Emulsion Prep — a screen mesh degreaser and adhesion promoter.

FEATURES

• Water-resistant and solvent-resistant.
• No emulsion hardeners needed.
• Durable for long print runs using aggressive water-based and discharge ink systems.
• Holds great detail while printing on both the manual or automatic.
• High solids concentration allows for superior bridging of mesh.
• Extremely fast exposure time for quicker screen burning.
• Pre-sensitized
• Diazo is available as an option for those who desire more higher details or resolution.
• Color: Green
• Shelf Life: Opened: 6-8 month
• Shelf Life: If adding Diazo, see below for more details.
  • If kept in a cool environment around 40° (in a refrigerator), you can extend your shelf life to ~12 weeks.
  • The hotter your environment is, the faster the diazo will break down. At 90°-100° mixed emulsion has a pot life of ~1 week. At 70° it's ~6 weeks.
• Add the appropriate amount of distilled water. Do not use tap water. Tap water contains minerals that can interfere with proper adhesion of the emulsion to the mesh.
• Diazo is sensitive to heat.

INSTRUCTIONS 

Baselayr Complete Emulsion is pre-sensitized and ready for use.

If adding diazo, please follow these steps: 

1. Add 50% to 75% of distilled water to your bottle of diazo. Do not use tap water. Tap water contains minerals that can interfere with proper adhesion of the emulsion to the mesh. 
2. Shake the container, completely dissolving the diazo into the water. 
3. Add mixed diazo to the container of Baselayr Complete. Carefully stir in the diazo completely.
4. Let the emulsion sit for a couple hours to let the air bubbles settle out. 
5. Apply emulsion to a clean, degreased, and dried screen mesh with a scoop-coater using appropriate application techniques. We recommend using Baselayr Emulsion Prep screen mesh degreaser and adhesion promoter whenever possible. Depending on your screen and stencil thickness needs, use either the sharp edge or round edge of the scoop coater and coat once or twice per side. More coats will make a thicker stencil. Be sure to rotate the screen so that you push the emulsion from both sides to bond around the knuckles of the mesh. Experiment to find what works best for you within your shop.
6. Allow your freshly coated screen to dry, shirt side down. 
7. Expose your screen with the recommended light source. As with all emulsions, we recommend testing for appropriate exposure time for your unit before exposing the design. Use a Step Wedge Calculator to determine the proper amount of time needed to fully cure a stencil. If needed, you can harden your stencil by post-exposing it (make sure the stencil is completely dry), putting it back in the exposure unit, and exposing for 3x the initial exposure time (essentially replicating what adding diazo does). You can also place your screen in direct sunlight. 
8. Reclaiming Baselayr Complete is easy and works with most stencil removers or reclaimers that are available in concentrate and ready-to-use formulas. Follow proper instructions for reclaiming.

EXPOSURE VARIABLES

Exposure variables depend on mesh count, mesh color, stencil thickness and moisture level in the coated screen. Keep humidity levels below 40% at all times. Use a dehumidifier to ensure proper darkroom humidity levels.

• Lower mesh = slower exposure / Higher mesh = faster exposure
• Thicker stencil = slower exposure / Thinner stencil = faster exposure
• More moisture = Under Exposed and difficult to rinse out 
• Less moisture = proper exposure and maximum detail resolution.
• Yellow mesh = slower exposure and more detail resolution 
• White mesh = faster exposure

SUGGESTED EXPOSURE TIMES

• Mesh: 156 standard mesh color: White, X-Vactor LED Unit: 25-35s
• Mesh: 230 standard mesh color: Yellow, X-Vactor LED Unit: 25-35s
• Mesh: 156 standard mesh color: White ,FX LED Unit: 7-8s
• Mesh: 230 standard cmesh color: Yellow, FX LED Unit: 8-9s
• Mesh: 156 Hi-Dro / Thin Thread mesh color: Yellow, FX LED Unit: 10-11s
• Mesh: 230 Hi-Dro / Thin Thread mesh color: Yellow, FX LED Unit: 9-10s

To further dial in your exposure time, run the Step Wedge test with a Step Wedge Calculator.

HELPFUL HINTS TO ENSURE YOUR EMULSION LASTS LONGER

• Store in a cool area. The emulsion will break down much faster in heat. Storing emulsion in a fridge can slightly extend the shelf life; however, emulsion that has gotten to the point of freezing will no longer work properly and must be replaced.
• Keep the emulsion lid on tight to preserve air and light leaks.
• Gently mix the emulsion each time before use to help extend the life.
• To ensure best results, date the emulsion if mixed with diazo and keep an extra container on hand once the emulsion is about to expire. Environmental factors such as temperature and humidity can cause the emulsion to expire quicker.

FREEZE WARNING: When ordering emulsion during the winter, please note that it's possible for emulsion to freeze during transit. Frozen emulsion is unusable. We recommend to plan accordingly when ordering so shipping is uninterrupted and to pull all delivery packages inside the building and store in a warm place immediately.