Discharge is a specialty ink used in screen printing. It results in very soft hand, it shows the shirt's natural fiber instead of laying a thick layer of ink on top of the shirt, and can be printed as pure discharge or with pigments added so that the result is a colored discharge print. By itself, discharge ink removes the dye of the cotton fiber when it hits a certain temperature. It works with a variety of different brands and styles of t-shirts or other garments, with some styles and colors having stronger results than others.

Discharge printing can have various results in bleaching eficacy. In our experience, darker colors of Gildan and American Apparel shirts discharge well, while lighter colors do not. Gildan colors that we have tried that discharge well include navy blue, black, olive, charcoal, chestnut, indigo, leaf, forest green, blue dusk and brown, as well as brown, slate and black in American Apparel. Other brands discharge but not as well, so that the resulting discharge color isn't as bright but rather a light to dark tan. See some pictures of discharged shirts in our Gallery.

Discharge ink qualities

• Soft "hand" - virtually no feeling of the design on the shirt
• Discharge by itself shows the shirt's natural color
• Pigmented or straight discharge allows the shirt's fabric to be seen
• Can be used as an underbase that other colors are printed on top of, for the softest results