There are many types and makes of hot pouch laminators in use, some have flat heated plates and others have heated rollers. Some require a card carrier to be used every time that you laminate an item. Other, usually economy machines, do not have either adjustable speed or adjustable heat settings, meaning that perfect lamination is hard to achieve. Due to these and many other factors, our trouble shooting guide and tips are by no means exhaustive and may not be accurate for every machine. Please consult the manufacturers guidelines or contact your supplier for specific information concerning your machine.
Trouble Shooting Guide
| Problem/Causes |
Remedy |
| Pouch looks blistered or wrinkled
Causes:
Temperature too high or speed too low
|
Increase speed or decrease temperature |
| Pouch looks lined or wrinkled
Causes:
Film not straight when fed into machine
Dirt / objects on rollers
|
Ensure pouch is fed squarely into the machine
Contact supplier
|
Pouch looks cloudy / adhesion is weak
Causes:
Temperature too low or speed too high
Pouch too thick for the machines capabilities |
Decrease speed or increase temperature
Use a thinner pouch
|
| Pouch is curled
Causes:
Temperature too high or speed too low
Pressure on rear roller too great
|
Increase speed or decrease temperature
Contact supplier
|
Film wrapped around rollers / jammed in the machine
Causes:
Temperature too high or speed too low
Unsuitable pouch used for item to be laminated |
If pouch is still visible, reverse rollers, remove the film. If pouch is not visible contact supplier. Remove any adhesive from the rollers by heating the machine to normal laminating temperature and then passing a non glossy piece of card through the machine as if laminating. Adjust temperature/speed before trying again
If pouch is still visible, reverse rollers, remove the film. If pouch is not visible contact supplier. Remove any adhesive from the rollers as detailed above. Use suitable pouch when laminating again
|
| Pouch not sealing properly
Causes:
Item requires laminating at higher temperature
|
Decrease speed or increase temperature |
| Rollers are not running
Causes:
Required temperature of rollers has not been reached
No power
|
Wait
Turn on the power switch. Check and plug in correctly
|
Tips for trouble free laminating
- Ensure that you have the right type and weight of pouch for the item to be laminated. Refer to the manufacturer's guidelines
- Ensure that the heat and speed settings are correct. Refer to the manufacturer's guidelines
- Use a card carrier if appropriate. Refer to the manufacturer's guidelines
- Ensure that the item to be laminated is right up to sealed edge of pouch, allowing a 2mm (minimum) border around the rest of the document to avoid jamming
- Do not use 'self-made' chopped up pouches
- Ensure that the pouch to be used is the correct size for the job e.g. an A4 pouch for an A4 sheet. Where an incorrect pouch size is used, poor lamination and trapped pouches will result
- Do not fill the pouch with more than one item. Doing this will affect the overall strength and will disrupt the safe passage through the machine, resulting in crumpled and trapped pouches. See also item above
- If you need to laminate an oversized pouch, documents under 150 micron, film under 80 micron or a pouch containing more than one item, refer to the manufacturer's guidelines as a card carrier might be necessary
- When laminating irregular surfaces such as embossed or textured originals, laminate at maximum speed first, then laminate again at regular speed to avoid wrinkling
- Make sure that all pouches are fed in sealed end first
- Ensure that the rollers / plate are cleaned regularly as this prevents the build up of sticky residue which can also cause pouches to jam. Heat the machine to normal laminating temperature and then pass a non glossy piece of card through the machine as if laminating
- If a pouch is trapped, do not feed anything into the machine to push it out, contact the manufacturer / supplier
- Do not attempt to carry out repairs before consulting the manufacturer / supplier as you may inadvertently cause more damage.
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