Handling

It is always the first step to degrease the plate carefully. Otherwise the acrylic grounds won't stick to the surface perfectly.
One way to degrease the plate is to polish it with clean steel wool.
It also can be cleaned with chalk and water. The degreased surface shouldn't be touched after that.

While etching the residues of the copper settle in the etched gaps. Because of this, applied acrylic grounds don't stick perfectly, and so the plate has to be deoxidised after being etched.

You mix a deoxidiser by stirring 3 spoons of salt into 1 l of vinegar.

The deoxidiser is poured on the plate over a tray and then painted on the plate with a soft brush. Afterwards the de-oxidizer can be poured back and used again. The plate has to be rinsed under running water and dried.

For stop-out we use an acrylic (water-based) ground. Because of this it's recommended not to use oily brushes. After etching the plate has to be deoxidised.

Drying cabinet

Drying plates is an often repeated working step. So a drying cabinet is a very useful piece of equipment. A simple kitchen cabinet can be used as a drying cabinet by installing a hairdryer.

After work the plates and tools can be cleaned with salad oil. After that they can be easily degreased using a solution mixed from water with a drop of rinsing liquid.

To save the etch and to keep the back of the plate for later use the back of the plate should be covered before etching. This can be done by using tape. It is recommended to find a tape which can be removed easily.

All the acrylic grounds and also the photopolymer film can be removed in a soda solution.
For that approx. 4 teaspoonfuls of soda ash are dissolved in 1 l of hot water. The plate has to be soaked in this for awhile depending on the thickness of the applied grounds and the temperature of the water. The grounds can then be removed with a sponge. Persistent grounds can be removed in a more highly concentrated solution.
Soda is irritating. You always should protect your eyes and skin from contact with soda. The stripping solutions can be used a long time. The liquid or dried remains of grounds or the photopolymer film should be collected and be given away to the right authorities.

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Copyright 2006 Eva Pietzcker and Miriam Zegrer