Screen Printing Technique
Water-Based & Discharge Screen Printing
The softest screen prints you can buy: ink that becomes part of the shirt instead of sitting on top of it. Printed in-house in Santa Fe Springs for brands, bands, and businesses across Los Angeles and Orange County.
French Press Custom prints water-based and discharge screen printing in-house in Santa Fe Springs, from 24 pieces per design, on the same quantity tiers as standard screen printing (about $8.00 per piece at 24 pieces for a 1-color print, blank garment additional). Discharge ink adds $0.25 per piece and is the go-to for soft, bright prints on dark 100% cotton and garment-dyed shirts.
The Technique
What Is the Difference Between Water-Based and Discharge Printing?
Both are screen printing, run on the same presses and screens as plastisol. The difference is what the ink does when it hits the shirt.
Water-based ink
Water-based ink dyes the fibers rather than coating them, so the finished print has almost no hand. It is the retail standard for soft vintage-style graphics and works beautifully on light and mid-tone 100% cotton. On dark shirts it needs a discharge base or an underbase to stay bright, which is where the second technique comes in.
Discharge ink
Discharge printing deactivates the garment dye where the print lands and re-dyes those fibers in your print color. The result is a bright print on a black or garment-dyed shirt that feels like nothing at all, with no heavy white underbase. It only works on 100% cotton with dischargeable dye, so blank selection matters more than with any other technique.
| Ink | Hand feel | Best garments | Pricing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plastisol (standard) | Sits on top; bold, opaque | Any fabric, any color | Standard tiers below |
| Water-based | Soaks in; very soft | Light and mid-tone 100% cotton | Standard tiers below |
| Discharge | Re-dyes the fibers; softest on darks | Dark and garment-dyed 100% cotton | Standard tiers + $0.25/pc additive |
Pricing
How Much Does Water-Based or Discharge Printing Cost?
Same engine, same tiers as every screen print job we quote. The table below is decoration only and reads live pricing, so what you see here matches the instant quote calculator.
| Quantity | Per piece (1 color to 3 colors) |
|---|---|
| 24-47 pieces | $8.00 - $9.00/pc |
| 48-99 pieces | $6.40 - $7.20/pc |
| 100-199 pieces | $3.20 - $3.60/pc |
| 200-449 pieces | $2.40 - $2.70/pc |
| 450-999 pieces | $1.92 - $2.16/pc |
| 1000+ pieces | $1.28 - $1.44/pc |
| Under 24 pieces | $15.00 - $25.00/pc DTG (no minimum, no setup fee) |
Minimum 24 pieces. Prices are per piece, decoration only. Blank garment is additional and priced from live wholesale catalogs.
One-time screen setup: $25.00 per screen (one per ink color) plus film and press setup, billed on runs of 24 pieces or fewer ($65.00 for 1 color, $145.00 for 3 colors) and waived on larger runs. Reorders reuse your screens.
Range shown is a 1-color to 3-color print, one location. Each additional location is priced separately.
Discharge ink adds $0.25 per piece on top of these rates. Water-based printing runs at the standard rates shown.
Prices exclude CA sales tax (10.5%), which applies to the blank garment only.
Full cost breakdown, including screens and multi-location jobs, lives in our screen printing cost guide.
Blank Selection
Which Shirts Work Best for Discharge and Water-Based Printing?
Great candidates
- Garment-dyed 100% cotton, like the Comfort Colors 1717, the classic discharge blank
- Ring-spun cotton tees such as the Bella+Canvas 3001 for soft water-based graphics
- Standard heavyweight cotton, like the Gildan 5000, for budget-friendly soft prints
What to avoid
Polyester and most cotton/poly blends do not discharge, and water-based ink on dark blends needs an underbase that costs you some of the softness. Certain dye colors (royal blue is notorious) resist discharging even on 100% cotton.
Not sure what your shirt is? Send us the brand and style number with your quote and we will confirm dischargeability, or test a piece from your run before printing the whole order.
Recent Work
Recent Screen Printing From Our Floor
Real customer jobs, printed in-house in Santa Fe Springs.
Go Deeper
Guides & Related Services
From the blog
Questions
Water-Based & Discharge FAQ
What is the difference between water-based and discharge screen printing?+
How much does water-based or discharge printing cost?+
Which shirts work best for discharge printing?+
Is there a minimum order for water-based or discharge printing?+
Want That Soft-Hand Print?
Tell us the shirt, the colors, and the quantity. We will confirm the right ink system and send a free digital proof before anything prints.