How to coat a mesh with emulsion

To achieve a successful print, it’s important to prepare the screen correctly. One of the steps in the preparation process is coating the mesh with photo emulsion. Here’s how to do it.

How to do it

First, you need to coat the screen with a thin layer of photo emulsion. Start at the bottom of the screen and using a scoop coater, move the coater from bottom to top in a continuous motion. Make sure you keep the scoop coater level and press it firmly against the screen. Do this until the entire screen is coated with a thin layer of photo emulsion.

Next, you’ll need to let the photo emulsion dry. Place the screen in a dark dust free room and allow it to dry. Warm Air helps in speeding up this process. But be aware it should be not too hot and no direct airflow to the emulsion, as we do not want to get dust in the emulsion.

Establish a coating technic, as each mesh will be coated differently, see the image on coating technics. As your goal is the proper amount of EOM (Emulsion Over Mesh)

And please read what tools are needed in your Darkroom, as this is important too.

A Video on How to coat a MESH

This short video will explain how it is done incl. a tip on how to set standards.