6 December, 2021

Why Is A Decal Better Than Standard Mug Printing

There are two main ways to print a mug. Low fire pad print or screen print and high fire decal. So, what is the difference and which is better? Hopefully, we can help you with this in explaining both the processes and pros and cons of both methods.

Firstly, let’s start with the low fire options and what they mean. Most mugs are printed by either a pad print (if just printing one side) or a screen print (if you are doing a wrap print around the entire mug). Once the ink has been put on the mug, it is then put into an oven to cure. Due to the inks used, this is done on what we call low fire. The temperature is usually somewhere around 300 to 350 degrees. The reason for curing is that the ink adheres to the ceramic. If the mug is not kiln-fired after printing, the ink would just rub off. So what are the pros and cons for this style of printing?

The pros are that it is a much more economical method of printing. The negative is that the print is usually not dishwasher safe. Due to the veracity of dishwasher machines nowadays, low fired coffee mugs are all best hand washed. The other negative is the amount of print colours available. You need special inks to print onto ceramic, and the range is not as large as printing onto other types of material.

The second option is a high fired decal. For want of a better description, a decal is like a transfer. It is applied to the mug's outer surface and is then kiln fired so it will adhere to the surface, but the big difference is the heat used. For decals, the oven reaches temperatures of up to 800 degrees. At 400 degrees the cover coat evaporates, leaving the decal on the surface and as the oven hits up to 800 degrees, the enamels are fused into the surface. What this means is it is permanent and dishwasher safe. If you are a café or restaurant, this is the type of print you want. So the obvious pro with this type of printing is the print permanency. Also, as the decal is digitally printed, it means you can attain any colour print. The main con with this style of printing on mugs is the cost. For pad printing and screenprinting, a lot of the process is done by machines, whereas with a decal print, the decals are applied by hand.

So why is the decal better than standard mug printing? It is the print permanency where you know the design will never come off the mug or fade, plus you have a much larger range of colours to choose from for the printing. Decals look great and you’ll never have the worry of them coming off. Yes, they do cost a bit more, but if you are looking to give your mugs away as a promotion, wouldn't you want your clients to put them in the dishwasher whenever they want and you know your company will always be advertised to them.

If you want help in deciding which mug would work best for your promotion, give us a call or an email, and we’d be happy to guide you through the process and help you make the right choice for your promotion.

The Mugs Only Team