Screen Printing Forum

Hey everybody, first of all this board is great and jampacked with helpful tips. Thanks!

I am starting up a small operation, only to self produce my art collective's own shirts and stickers, etc. We will be running it out of my garage. My main concern is waste disposal. We are on a septic system and I don't want to mess anything up or piss off any bacterias, so I looked into getting a filtration system and using soy based cleaners. Can anybody recommend a good cost efficient filter for my washout sink? We won't have a heavy job load so it doesn't need to be super powered or anything but I'm definitely dedicated to doing things right.

Other than that, I was planning to get this starter kit:
http://www.silkscreeningsupplies.com/si ... oduct/1008

Does anyone have any advice against or in addition to this setup? I really appreciate it.

Thanks,
Johnny

If you are looking for soy chemicals... check out http://www.franmar.com/
I use some of their stuff and I really like it.

As for a filtration system... Its prolly gonna cost ya more then the screen printing equipment.

When we started our shop we had the same concerns. The plumber suggested a underground chemical containment system. ((CHA CHING))

I have a Blackline washout sink. I went to my local big warehouse-type home improvement store (ie. Home Depot, Lowes, etc.) and bought a very small "plastic" pond that is rectangular and my washout sink just sets inside of. It's aprox 3'x2' and about 1' tall. I use this as a "backup" or secondary catch basin in case of spills. My PRIMARY system uses a 5 gallon bucket with a sump pump set in it that has an automatic "float switch". On top of the bucket I placed a milking funnel (you can find them on eBay, etc). The funnel is stainless steel and aprox 18" in diameter and has a disposable filter in the bottom. You can also get the filters on eBay, etc. They are circular and about 8" in diameter. I find that when I reclaim a screen, I have to replace the filter, so.....1 screen, 1 filter. But they are dirt cheap. If you don't want to use a bucket, you might find an aquarium somewhere that's serviceable. For filter material, you could try some cut-away backing (used in the embroidery industry). If you were ambitious enough, you could also mount a cannister-type house water filter on the output side of the sump pump to ensure clear water going into the sewer system.