I have a problem here. There are a lot of factors, which is why i'm not sure what's wrong, so let me explain.
Factors
When my 12 screens (200/230 mesh) first arrived I accidentally used the Franmar Strip-e-doo emulsion remover bottle to degrease them. I didn't know at the time, so I went ahead and coated them with emulsion.
The emultion is Ulano's QX-1 Pre-Sensitized Dual-Cure Emulsion. It is about or almost 1 year old.
I use two regular 120 watt light bulbs in two adjustable lamps (a foot above screen) to expose the image. I've done this before and if they are exposed for 14-15 minutes, the design washes out fine and the emulsion holds perfectly everywhere where it is supposed to.
Problems
After exposing the screens, parts of the emulsion degraded and washed out on nearly every screen, but the image still took a lot of time/pressure to wash out where it was supposed to. Also, the part that washed out didn't just completely wash, it seems to almost thin and erode partly.
Also, the backs of the screens which were completely dry before and after being exposed would turn a brighter blue like the unexposed emulsion and get all gooey when they were washed out after exposure.
The screens that had the least washout, in places where it could be taped over, I used a hair dryer to harden any details that were still gooey.
When reclaiming the failed screens a week or so later, large amounts of emulsion will not wash out. It is a lighter color than a fully coated and working screen but it will not come out no matter how many times I try.
I am really unsure as to what I should even do in order to get screens that work. I'm not sure if having emulsion remover remnants on the screens before they were coated could have screwed up the bonding, or if using low watt light bulbs could have not been enough to expose all the way through (though it had worked fine before). Or if the emulsion is too old? Or possibly if the hair dryer could have hardened the emulsion too much to remove.
One other confusing thing is that when I tried to reclaim the first, smaller screens that I had originally got a year ago, the same thing happened. Most emulsion washed out but there is still a good amount stuck in there at 50-75% of its original opacity in certain parts of the image.
This is a really big problem. What would you do if you were me?
Oh boy. You may try strong haze paste remover. You may be stuck. Also the one year old emulsion pre-sensitized will definitely not work- it has a short shelf life. Dont give up yet though, I'm sure someone on here may have some suggestions as for stripping the frames completely clean and starting over.
Well, on the Ulano website for the QX-1 under shelf life it says "18 months in cool dry storage". Mine was stored in a basement refridgerator, so I don't know if it should still be good or not.
Luckily, I noticed what was happening after only exposing 4-5 screens, so I still have 7-8 which I just reclaimed without exposing and they look brand new.
The problem is that I don't what is going wrong. I can buy more screens, even though $25 each is kind of a pain. But most importantly, I need to know that I will be able to reclaim them without this happening if I need to, and that the image will burn and hold correctly.
Oh Ok, I was thinking that QX-1 was diazo dual cure. It must be photopolymer- that stuff lasts a long time. If you degrease your screens properly the next time and the emulsin is good, you should be ok. 2-120 watt bulbs to expose though... sounds sketchy. Have you tried flourecent tubes or better yet a halogen or metal halide lamp?
Oh Ok, I was thinking that QX-1 was diazo dual cure. It must be photopolymer- that stuff lasts a long time. If you degrease your screens properly the next time and the emulsin is good, you should be ok. 2-120 watt bulbs to expose though... sounds sketchy. Have you tried flourecent tubes or better yet a halogen or metal halide lamp?
Can you recommend any sort of cheap set up for exposure? I don't have a couple hundred bucks to allot to that right now if at all possible. The best thing i've found was a 250 watt heat lamp which I have also tried using, but it curled my emulsion away from the screen even with taped edges.
Also, I saw someone say in another thread that this dehazing paste is the best way to remove difficult emulsion from screens: HO-500 Haze Remover Paste
I thought that dehazer is just for removing ink that has been stained onto the screen. When I use liquid d-haze it removes ink but leaves the emulsion intact. Would something like that paste really be able to remove the emulsion if it was left on for 4-5 minutes?
What did you use to clean ink out of the screen?? QX1 is true photopolymer-LONG shelflife- but underexposed (which is why gooeyness on back on screen) will pose a big problem during reclaim-especially if you use a hot solvent-acetone or anything like that for ink removal. Be sure to degrease VERY well with new frames b4 coating. I have had pretty good luck with haze removers for "stuck" emulsion. Be sure that you dont let the stencil remover dry on the screens-you'll never get that off, unless you use a razor blade.
I agree Solmu! really NASY stuff though-wear gloves to protect your FLESH try not to get it on the glue of the frame if you use pre-stretched-dont breath it either. icky
i'd have to agree with De-Hazing the screens. and then definitely degrease the screens before you try to coat them again
Is there any specific dehazer that I should use? The reason I was confused is that I was using this d-haze Franmar Chemical - Environmentally Friendly Cleaners and Removers
which is not extremely strong or potent. It says on the bottle to use gloves if you have sensitive hands. What should I use to be sure to remove the stencil?
I think right now i'm using ImageStar dehazer (purchased through Nazdar).
but it definitely is not enviromentally friendy.
I wear long sleeves, gloves, goggles, and a smog/respirator deally. Its pretty harsh stuff, which is why i guess it works so well
Reclaiming won't work - What would you do? 
