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Dryer Log

Purpose: Track consistency of dryer operation to ensure proper curing of shirts

File Name: DRYERLOG

Format: Single Page, 1 Part

If your dryer gets too hot, you'll scorch the garments you are printing. If the dryer gets too cool, prints may appear cured, but will crack, fade, peel and degrade long before their time, which does not please customers. Obtaining a proper cure on garments is often compared to walking a tightrope, as optimum temperatures are difficult to maintain without going over or under the target temperature and air circulation.

The dryer log gives the printer a method of maintaining quality control over this difficult stage of controlling the printing process. Each line of the log contains spaces for recording the date and time that the dryer's parameters are measured, as well as the dryer's temperature setting and belt speed. Spaces are provided to place a check mark as to whether a temperature strip test has passed or failed, as well as the maximum temperature reading when a probe is sent through the tunnel. Check mark areas are provided for marking whether sampled garments pass or fail a simple crock test (stretch test) as well as the current relative humidity of the room in which the dryer is operating. The final space provides a place for the operator to take responsibility for performing these tests.

Printers will perform a dryer test each time a new job is started, and a minimum of once each hour during the job. By combining wash-tests with log readings, printers can get a feeling for how each element of the "dryer equation" affects the total wash-fastness of a print, and begin to develop a procedure to "zero in" on perfect dryer settings.

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