Laminating Guide

How to laminate printed graphics

Lamination is a clear film you roll on top of a print. It is the cheapest insurance in the shop, and skipping it is the most common reason a graphic comes back as a warranty claim.

Here is what it actually does for you. It blocks the sun, so your colors do not fade. It takes the scuffing instead of your ink. It lets you clean the graphic without wiping the print off. And it makes the material stiffer, which makes it easier to install.

In a hurry? Go to laminating film or wide format laminators. Or call 903-462-7700.

Step 1: Work out whether this job needs it

Not every print does. Use this list.

Job Laminate? Why
Vehicle wrap or vehicle graphics Yes, always Sun, car washes, road grit, and you stretch the film during install
Any outdoor sign Yes The durability rating on your media assumes it
Floor graphics Yes, and it must be slip rated People walk on it. This is a safety issue.
Window graphics, outside glass Yes Weather and cleaning
Banners Usually not Banner media is already coated, and laminate makes it stiff and heavy
Interior wall graphics Depends Yes in a hallway people brush against. No in a boardroom.
Short term event signs No It will be in a dumpster before the ink fades
Anything a customer will handle Yes Fingers and fingernails take ink off an unlaminated print

The short rule. If it goes outside, gets touched, or gets walked on, laminate it. If it is indoors and temporary, do not.

Step 2: Know that cold is what you want

There are two kinds of laminating. The names describe how the film sticks.

Cold lamination uses pressure. The film has adhesive on it already, and rollers squeeze it onto your print. No heat.

Hot lamination melts an adhesive with heat.

For sign work, cold is the right answer, and cold is what we sell. Two reasons for that. First, heat can shrink and warp vinyl. That ruins your print and throws off your cut lines. Second, solvent ink needs time to finish drying. Heat on a fresh print can trap solvent under the film, and that film hazes over later.

Our laminators are all cold, in three sizes:

Browse EnduraLAM 3 and all wide format laminators.

Step 3: Size the laminator to your printer, not to your budget

This is a simple rule that people still get wrong.

Your laminator must be wider than your printer. If you print 54 inches wide, you need a 55 inch laminator. If you print 64 inches, you need a 65 inch one.

Buy a narrower laminator and you have to cut every full width print in half, laminate the halves, then join them. That seam shows, it costs you labor on every job, and it will not survive a wrap.

Printer and laminator packages price better than buying separately. See the Mutoh XpertJet 1641SR PRO with EnduraLAM 3 or the same printer with a Q64 cutter and EnduraLAM 3.

Step 4: Pick the finish

The finish changes how the graphic looks and how it behaves in the sun.

Finish Looks like Use it for Downside
Gloss Shiny. Colors look deepest and richest. Wraps, most outdoor signs, anything you want to pop Shows glare, and shows every fingerprint
Matte Flat, no shine Indoor signs, anything lit hard, anything read up close Colors look slightly softer
Luster or satin Between the two A safe middle when you are unsure Not as punchy as gloss

Two things that will save you a reprint.

Glare is a real problem on flat signs. A gloss sign in direct sun can be unreadable from the angle people actually stand at. For a wall sign or a menu board, go matte.

Always show the customer a sample. Gloss and matte look very different, and this is not a thing to settle over the phone.

Step 5: Pick the thickness

Laminate is measured in mils. One mil is a thousandth of an inch. Thicker film protects more and stiffens the graphic more.

  • Thin films stay flexible, which is what you want on a wrap that has to stretch into curves.
  • Thicker films give more protection and more stiffness, which suits flat panels, floor graphics and anything that gets handled.

The mistake to avoid: do not put a thick, stiff laminate on a vehicle wrap. It fights you in the curves and it lifts back out of recesses. Wraps need a film made for wrapping.

Tell us the job and we will tell you the mil. It depends on the film line, so a number quoted for one brand does not carry across to another.

Step 6: Match the laminate to the graphic underneath

The rule is simple. The laminate has to last at least as long as the print. A five year graphic under a two year laminate is a two year graphic.

Also match the type of film to the job:

  • Wraps need a cast, flexible wrap laminate. The ORAGUARD 293 Ultra Flexible is made for exactly this.
  • Flat signs can use a standard overlaminate.
  • Floor graphics need a laminate with a slip rating. Do not substitute here.

Our film lines: ORAGUARD, PrismJET, 3M overlaminates, and everything else.

Step 7: Let the print dry first

People skip this step when they are busy. It causes a fault that shows up weeks later.

Solvent and eco-solvent ink keeps giving off solvent after it leaves the printer. Laminate too early and you seal that solvent in. Weeks later it works its way out. You get haze, a silver look, or bubbles under the film. By then the job is on the wall and the customer is calling.

Give a fresh print time before you laminate it. How long depends on your ink, your media and how much ink went down, so ask us for the drying time on your setup. Heavy coverage takes longer than light lettering. When in doubt, wait longer.

Step 8: Run it properly

A laminator is a simple machine that punishes a rushed setup. Work through this list every time.

  1. Clean the print. Any speck of dust becomes a permanent bump under clear film.
  2. Set even roller pressure across the full width. Uneven pressure gives you wrinkles down one side.
  3. Line the film up square to the print before you start.
  4. Feed slowly and steadily. Speed is what causes bubbles. There is no prize for finishing fast.
  5. Watch the first few inches and stop if you see a wrinkle starting. It will not fix itself further down.
  6. Let it settle before you cut. The adhesive keeps grabbing for a while after it comes off the rollers.

What goes wrong

What you see Usual cause
Silvering or haze under the film Laminated before the ink finished drying
Bubbles Fed too fast, or dust on the print
Wrinkles down one edge Uneven roller pressure, or film loaded crooked
Specks locked under the film Print was not wiped down first
Laminate lifting at the edges of a wrap Film too thick or too stiff for a curved surface
Graphic faded anyway Laminate rated for fewer years than the print
Someone slipped on a floor graphic Laminate had no slip rating

The cost question

Shops skip lamination to win a quote. Run the numbers before you do.

Laminating adds film and a few minutes of labor to a job. Not laminating means the graphic fades or scuffs early, and then you eat a reprint, another install and the customer's opinion of you.

One reprint costs more than laminating a lot of jobs. And a wrap that fails costs more than the whole laminator. If a customer wants to skip it to save money, put it in writing that the graphic is unlaminated and the durability rating does not apply.

Ask these five questions

  1. Is my laminator wider than my printer?
  2. Does this laminate last as long as the media under it?
  3. Gloss, matte or luster, and has the customer seen a sample?
  4. Is this film flexible enough for the curves on this job?
  5. How long does my print need to dry before it goes through the rollers?

Related pages

Tell us your printer width and the kind of work you do, and we will tell you which laminator and which film. Call 903-462-7700, contact us, or ask for a quote.

Shop our brands

Back to top