Here is the link she sent to me:
http://www.mydoorsign.com/Safety-Signs/Emergency-Fire-Door-Closed-Sign/SAF-SKU-S-1582.aspx
It says 5 year outdoor durability, chemical resistance, and 140F.
Fred, I'm not familiar with the Tedlar overlaminate. We have the UV foil for the Edge. Will that help it?
Thank you!
Seems like those signs are standard indoor/outdoor signs and are likely screen printed. I'm not at all sure, however, what the concerns are with the exception of chemical resistance. The durability is more than attainable with Edge prints and UV overprint foil. The temperature service range exceeds the example substantially ... in fact a tinted glass vehicle window in afternoon summer sunlight gets much hotter and still holds vinyl. So all we're talking about is chemical resistance.
The clear overprints are designed to provide UV protection and some abrasion resistance. They are not, however, chemical resistant any more than the foils used to print the image. Hit it with denatured alcohol and you will start to get color coming off in about 45 seconds. Hit it with a high end solvent and it wipes off immediately.
The clear Tedlar is arguably the most durable film generally available. It has a ten year plus rating. It is what products like SignGold use to carry their gold leaf. When you buy an anti-graffiti laminate, you are usually buying clear Tedlar. It has an extremely high resistance to chemicals and also adds excellent UV and abrasion protection.
It is also fairly pricey. $294.52 for a 15" x 50 yard roll or about $1.96 per usable square foot. With normal markups, waste and application time, you are adding typically $6 to $7 per square foot to the selling price of your labels or signs. Those 3.5" x 5" decals will yield around 7 per square foot so the question becomes: How much is your customer willing to pay for chemical resistance? 90¢ to $1.00 extra per decal? I doubt that the example provided you indicates any real need for much in that department.
