How To Seal Vinyl On Tumblers

Did yous only utilize vinyl to an object or surface?

Then you probably want that vinyl to concluding equally long as possible.

Sealing your vinyl decals tin make them last longer.

In this post, y'all'll acquire if you should seal your vinyl and how to.

Should I seal my vinyl?

Anyone that has worked with vinyl knows that terrible feeling when you see 1 of your vinyls slowly coming off the surface.

Information technology starts with a tiny piece at the edge, and before you know it the entire design is ruined.

How long your vinyl lasts depends on the type/quality of the vinyl, the surface its on, and the weather information technology has to endure.

Permanent vinyl lasts longer than regular vinyl, vinyl on shine surfaces last longer than vinyl on rough surfaces, and vinyl that is exposed to the pelting exterior won't final as long equally vinyl in your living room.

In a lot of cases, vinyl will final a long time even if yous don't seal it.

Then if you put vinyl on a smooth canvas and put information technology in your bedroom, at that place is really no demand to use a sealant.

However, you might want to apply a sealant if you are going to make:

Anything that you place outdoors
Cups and plates that can get in the dishwasher
Vinyl on rough surfaces such equally forest or stainless steel

Moreover, besides making your vinyl last longer, some sealants can also requite a prissy finishing touch on also.

And so let's accept a look at how to seal vinyl on various surfaces

How to seal vinyl on metallic tumblers

How to seal vinyl on forest

How to seal vinyl on plastic cups?

How to seal vinyl on a mug

How to seal vinyl on acrylic keychains

How to seal vinyl on drinking glass?

How to seal vinyl on plastic water bottles?

How to seal vinyl on a Starbucks cup

Does vinyl demand to breathe?

There is a common misconception that vinyl needs to breath and that therefore you shouldn't apply any sealant.

However, this is false. You can seal vinyl without any trouble.

Sometimes the vinyl underneath sealant might shrink a little over time. This is a property of the (cheap) vinyl itself and isn't acquired by the sealing process.

So for the best upshot yous desire to use both a sealant and skillful quality vinyl.

All-time sealants for vinyl

There are several types of sealants you tin can utilise for your vinyl. Each of them have their own pros and cons.

For instance, some sealants might be better for a wooden sign that will need to withstand the rain outside, while others might exist better for a mug that you lot desire to be dishwasher-proof.

1 Mod Podge

One of the well-nigh pop options is mud podge. Information technology is cheap, pretty versatile, non-toxic, and you can discover it in a lot of fine art and craft stores in either large or small-scale bottles.

Yous use it over your vinyl decal with a brush. So information technology is but like working with pigment.

It works great on mugs or plates and you can choose from a diverseness of different finishes such equally matte, sleeky, or glitter.

The main downside is that you lot demand to cure it for at least 28 days after you apply it. And by that time you probably already forgot about information technology.

Mod podge also has a special dishwasher safe version. But to be honest, it's not the well-nigh reliable. The problem is that the 28 day drying time is for a very sparse coating. If you apply it too thick you lot will have to wait even longer.

Pro: cheap, choice of unlike finishes, readily available

Con: long curing time, not dishwasher safe

2 Triple thick

Triple thick is some other cheap sealant that you can utilise. It is pretty like to modernistic podge in that information technology's inexpensive, non-toxic, and you apply information technology directly with a brush.

As the name suggest triple thick has a very thick consistency and then the blanket volition also be thicker than mod podge.

If you are making a glitter mug, this means that you won't be able to feel the glitter any more. Moreover, yous don't ever desire such a thick glossy layer for some of your projects.

Although triple thick doesn't claim to be dishwasher prophylactic, information technology does seem to hold up pretty well well-nigh of the fourth dimension.

Pro: cheap, piece of cake to make fifty-fifty coatings

Con: thick layers

3 Epoxy resin

Epoxy resin is a type of sealant that can exist used for many things, including keeping your vinyl condom.

Yous prepare it past stirring two different liquid components together. This starts a chemical process in which the liquid slowly starts to harden.

There are different types of epoxy resins bachelor. They can differ for example in their viscosity or their curing time.

However, epoxy is a heavy-duty sealant and regardless of which ane you choose, your vinyl will last a long time and will be 100% dishwasher safety.

Of course there are some downsides also. Some epoxy resins need to be stirred for more than 10 minutes before applying. And trust me when I say that that is much harder than it sounds.

Besides, one time yous mix it y'all can't reuse it once again so you inevitably are going to wash a little every time you use it. And in comparison with the other options it is definitely more expensive.

Pro: 100% dishwasher condom, fast curing time, like shooting fish in a barrel to apply even layers

Con: expensive, not reusable once mixed, needs to be stirred before use

4 Polycrylic

Polycrylic is another all-purpose sealer. What really sets it autonomously is that yous can get it either as a spray or liquid. The spray makes information technology really easy to utilize it even on large surfaces, like to spray paint.

Still, you tin but apply a thin layer at a fourth dimension. And then if you want a thicker and more protective coating, you will accept to let information technology dry between layers. So if patience isn't your potent point, this might non be the best choice for you.

Note that you want to become for polycrylic and not for polyurethane. These two compounds might audio like to you, simply polyurethane tin actually crusade damage or xanthous staining to your vinyl. And so make certain that y'all are buying polycrylic sealant.

Pro: easy to employ spray

Con: tin merely make a sparse layer at a time

Which sealant to employ?

And then nosotros covered 4 different options to choose from, but which sealant should yous use?

Here are my recommendations:

Use modern podge if you are a beginner or if yous are on a low budget
Buy epoxy resin if you want the best protection or demand your projection to be 100% dishwasher proof
Go with polycrylic if you want a spray sealant

If y'all want to use epoxy resin but are worried that information technology is too expensive, yous can also combine two dissimilar sealants. For example, y'all can do 2 layers of mod podge and and so finish information technology with a unmarried layer of epoxy resin. This way you tin get the best of both worlds.

Source: https://www.thebeginningartist.com/sealing-vinyl/