Monthly Archives: September 2013

How long should a painted sign last?

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How long should a painted sign last?

One method that can be used to increase the life of a sign is for the sign to be painted.

In order for the paint to last as long as possible – when referring to signs that means a period of five to seven years – there are three important factors that need to be present.

 1. The substrate – underlying material – must be well prepared

2. A good and appreciate primer must be used, and

3. A good quality paint must be used.

As with every paint job, proper preparation is essential if the paint is to adhere properly and last a long time. Proper preparation beings with cleaning the substrate, then sanding the substrate to ensure adhesion, then cleaning the substrate to ensure the surface is dust free before painting begins.

Once the substrate has been properly prepared the substrate must be primed with the correct primer. The correct primer is essential to ensure adhesion between the paint and the substrate. While not all substrates require primer – some modern paints have mixed in etching properties that work very well on certain substrates, removing the necessity for primer – most signage substrates still do require priming. If the primer is ‘left out’ of the process, there is a very good chance that within a short time of being exposed to the weather, the paint will most likely begin to chip and peal, as can be seen in this photo.

painted signs

Why preparing the sign before painting is essential

Different quality paints do exist, and while good quality paints do cost more than their ‘cheaper’ competitors, there is good reason for that. Generally the better quality paints use better quality pigments which last longer than, so the paint will not fade as quickly as a cheaper paint. The more costly paints also use better quality mixing agents, making them adhere better and they also spread better than cheaper paints.

At SignForce we ‘mostly’ use 2K automotive paint, because it is the most cost effective good paint that is easily accessible. Sometimes we use QD (short for Quick Dry) which is also a thinners based paint, but doesn’t tend to have the life of 2K. The benefit of QD is that, as the name says, it dries quickly – it is touch dry withing an hour versus almost eight hours for 2K.

Unfortunately 2K paint is not environmentally friendly, so newer, more expensive cars are now painted with more environmentally friendly, water soluble paints. At the time of writing this article the cost of the water soluble paints are still excessive when compared to 2K, but it looks that in time, the use of 2K will be replaced by the use of the environmentally friendlier water soluble paints.

While SignForce use 2K paint, ‘enamel’ paint can be used – as can a number of paints that fall between the two. The reason SignForce use 2K is because the pigments tend to last longer and the paint tends to adhere better to more substrates and the various primers. If the primer and paint are not fully compatible the paint may, at worst, bubble immediately, or at best, result in a reduced life of the paint.

While it is possible to get ‘long life’ (five to seven year) vinyl that can be cut, the range of colours is limited. Digital printing does an excellent job of overcoming the limitation of matching colours – as almost any colour can be printed, however, digital prints have a life expectancy of no more than three years. In some instances it is more cost effective to use a digital print and budget to renew the sign in 30 to 36 months, but this is not always the case, as there are times then the cost of refurbishing the sign is substantially more than simply replacing the face – be it because the sign is not easily accessible or because the sign is facing north in the harsh South African sun which burns the vinyl into the substrate so the entire substrate needs to be replaced or because the exchange rate is unfavorable so the print is simply much more three years later than it cost initially.

For cost effective signs that are made to fit your requirements, be that a tight budget or for the sign to last a long time, and sometimes the two at the same time, contact SignForce at either arnold@signforce.co.za or david @signforce.co.za

http://www.signforce.co.za          Telephone: +27 11 440 7525

How do I choose a sign supplier #2?

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Illuminated signs

The same sign during the day and at night

Choosing a sign supplier #2, or how do you know what you are getting when you decide on your sign supplier?

I recently saw this sign at night – there is a photo attached. Big deal. I see this sign often – during the day, BUT, during the day the sign is very different.

I must say up front that SignForce did not make this sign. I am not making that statement because the sign is poorly made or is an example of a poorly made sign, quite the contrary. On the number of occasions I have seen this sign I have generally been impressed by it’s size and the seemed quality of it’s manufacture.

Seeing the sign at night got me thinking (again) about the components that go into the manufacturing of a sign, and the resultant costs associated with the manufacture and sale of the sign.

With signage it is ‘sometimes’ possible to compare “apples” with “apples”, especially when the signs are simple – say a Chromadek sign decorated with cut vinyl, yet even then the quality and life expectancy of the cut vinyl decoration can vary from six months to five to seven years, with the longer life vinyl having a higher input cost than the short term vinyl. The same applies when looking at outdoor digital prints, as not all inks or full colour printers are created equal, with some inks having longer life expectancy than others. And all this is for ‘simple’ signs.

When signs get more complicated – be it because the sign is illuminated or fabricated or on pins or painted or has been through one or more of a number of processes that result in the final finished product that you see – the situation can get exceptionally murky when comparing one supplier to another.

In order to keep this article short(ish), this article I will only cover illumination. I will cover fabrication – materials and processes, letters on pins and bonding components, paints – the various types and processes, and any other elements in separate articles.

Looking at the attached photo’s you can see that during the day the sign looks great. It is big and bold and tells any potential clients where the store is. It projects a professional, clean image and fits the available space well.

Looking at the same sign at night, when the lights are on, a lot of the professionalism that the sign projects during the day is lost. This is because at night, when illuminated the sign looks dull and dirty, and for me personally, being able to count the tubes inside means that it is most likely I will not actually be looking at the sign or it’s intended message, but I am more likely to spend my time getting the subliminal message that the sign, and thus the business it represents, is ‘cheap’ and dirty, and very likely not going to make my visit pleasurable.

Now these messages are generally not conscious, but they are subliminal (unconscious), which possibly makes them even stronger than the conscious, intended messages that the sign was designed to project. Now it is very easy to say the sign company is at fault for the sign looking bad (and they should possibly carry a portion of the responsibility), or to say that the store staff and management are ‘obviously’ unaware or unobservant or uncaring so they should be responsible, but in reality the staff either see the sign daily and are not noticing the progressive deterioration and / or the sign was ‘like that’ when they started working there or they may leave work before the sign comes on. [All positive arguments why businesses should enter into sign maintenance contracts with businesses like SignForce where we will independently and objectively check on the sign at regular, predetermined intervals, with reports and photo’s been provided.]

While it is easy to ‘blame’ all and sundry for the deterioration of the sign, the truth is that the sign will deteriorate over time, and it is a combination of ALL the factors mentioned above – as well as a number of other possible factors – that will lead to the sign looking as it does at night.

Now getting back to the issue at hand, deciding on a sign supplier, some of the ‘obvious’, visible (to sign suppliers) issues are that there are not enough florescent tubes and, as importantly, especially over a period of time, the placement of the said tubes.

In order for a sign to illuminate evenly so that the tubes cannot be seen three factors need to be considered. 1. The proximity of the tubes to the face of the sign. Tubes that are less than 70 mm have a great possibility of being visible, unless 2. The number of tubes is high. If there are tubes right next to the face, and the tubes are all almost touching each other, the light will be great, but the cost will be VERY high. 3. The third factor is the placement of the tubes. While it may be possible to use less tubes if the tubes are placed vertically, and there are times when there is no alternative but to place the tubes vertically, the reality is that the tubes run off gas, and when not in use, the gas will fall to the bottom of the tube. Over time, as the tube gets older, the gas no longer ignites as efficiently or brightly as when new. While this will happen to al tubes, it happens to vertical tubes noticeably faster.

It seems obvious to me, and I will thus assume all, that the number of tubes has a direct impact on the final cost of the sign. Since most businesses are cost sensitive, it is very likely that a supplier like SignForce, who as a matter of course, use more electronic over magnetic ballasts and place all tubes horizontally, will come in more costly than a supplier that uses magnetic ballasts and places the tubes vertically. As a rule SignForce also place tubes no more than 150 mm apart.

While electronic ballasts may cost more initially, over the five year expected life of a sign, there is a far greater possibility that a magnetic ballast failing, and an even greater possibility of the manual ‘starter’ failing, so in reality the additional cost of replacing and maintaining the electrics at least once over the life of the ‘cheaper’ sign should be costed into the initial costs, but this is seldom done, if ever.

As mentioned earlier, placing the tubes vertically may mean that the initial outlay for sign will be lower, but once again, the cost of maintenance, and almost unmeasurable reputation cost also need to be factored in.

Also as mentioned earlier, SignForce did not manufacture or install this sign, so without any knowledge of the client’s budget, or the size of the sign, I can only assume that SignForce may have used somewhere around the same number of tubes as have been used, but simply placing them horizontally should have resulted in a longer life of the tubes and thus better night visibility of the sign.

If you are in the market for professional looking illuminated signs that can be considered an investment in marketing, contact SignForce now on info@signforce for advice and / or an obligation free quote