Has the white background paint been peeling off your sign since about the 2nd or 3rd year after getting it ?
If you’d like to know Why your sign is like that - read on .
Back in the 70’s, when my Dad was teaching me the trade, A newish plywood was marketed which partly revolutionised the sign industry - “Crezon” Smooth reliable paintable plywood surface. In the 80’s they started to sell a lower grade that was also already painted white - A big time and money saving from having to paint boards before they were lettered. Suddenly a shop could finish a sign in One Day with these prepainted panels. Unfortunately within a couple or so years, we started to notice the surface only had one very thin coat on a economy primer, and Durability was no longer a word that could honestly describe the product. With inflation, and booming industry cycles, sign shops didn’t want to go back to the old ways of painting boards white. Framing a sign used to be standard when you wanted a nice looking, long lasting sign. Now often the edges aren’t even given more than one coat ! With modern mass marketing and tough times for the small business , “Frivolous” details were dropped. These inferior panels are still used today ! And that’s okay if the sign isn’t wanted for long use. And too often the client has only budgeted so much, but might reconsider it if they were convinced their sign would last substantially longer.
But it’s also the weather and pollution that are enemies of the outdoor sign. And a thin coat of paint won’t do it. Also, signs need maintenance. Like a car - if you hope to get good milage out of it - A sign should be looked at closely once a year to inspect for the first signs of wear ( and correct it), Update anything that needs changing and to wash, rinse and polish it - yes, like your car. Sometimes even a clear - coat to protect it for another couple or few years. Your business image looks regularly fresh, and it will certainly help make it last longer.
I have been making signs for almost 30 years. I like to give clients the option of a cheap and cheerful or a quality sign built to last. When durability is wanted, I use only Premium plywood, woods, paints and Vinyls, and I continue to hand-paint them with 3 coats, treating the edges the same, framed or not. And I use a UV sunscreen coat to finish. And plywood signs I make will last 8 - 12 years still looking good. If that’s what you want to pay for.
Back in the 70’s, when my Dad was teaching me the trade, A newish plywood was marketed which partly revolutionised the sign industry - “Crezon” Smooth reliable paintable plywood surface. In the 80’s they started to sell a lower grade that was also already painted white - A big time and money saving from having to paint boards before they were lettered. Suddenly a shop could finish a sign in One Day with these prepainted panels. Unfortunately within a couple or so years, we started to notice the surface only had one very thin coat on a economy primer, and Durability was no longer a word that could honestly describe the product. With inflation, and booming industry cycles, sign shops didn’t want to go back to the old ways of painting boards white. Framing a sign used to be standard when you wanted a nice looking, long lasting sign. Now often the edges aren’t even given more than one coat ! With modern mass marketing and tough times for the small business , “Frivolous” details were dropped. These inferior panels are still used today ! And that’s okay if the sign isn’t wanted for long use. And too often the client has only budgeted so much, but might reconsider it if they were convinced their sign would last substantially longer.
But it’s also the weather and pollution that are enemies of the outdoor sign. And a thin coat of paint won’t do it. Also, signs need maintenance. Like a car - if you hope to get good milage out of it - A sign should be looked at closely once a year to inspect for the first signs of wear ( and correct it), Update anything that needs changing and to wash, rinse and polish it - yes, like your car. Sometimes even a clear - coat to protect it for another couple or few years. Your business image looks regularly fresh, and it will certainly help make it last longer.
I have been making signs for almost 30 years. I like to give clients the option of a cheap and cheerful or a quality sign built to last. When durability is wanted, I use only Premium plywood, woods, paints and Vinyls, and I continue to hand-paint them with 3 coats, treating the edges the same, framed or not. And I use a UV sunscreen coat to finish. And plywood signs I make will last 8 - 12 years still looking good. If that’s what you want to pay for.
posted by Cliff Perry at 23:25
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