Moisture build-up behind glass

Create a Post
S

SerenaW

Grumbler in Training
Joined
Sep 24, 2024
Posts
2
Loc
Auckland, New Zealand
Business
The Black and White Box
Hello
I have a customer who has had several frames from us over the last 6 months of ink jet prints, and recently they have started to show gassing and/or moisture build up on the prints (not the mat board) this has happened only when left in direct sunlight
Is this more of a temperature issue or just gassing from the ink?

Advice much appreciated!
 
Do you know where in their home they are hanging the artwork? We have had similar things happen when the artwork is hung on poorly insulated exterior walls. Moisture leaks in through the walls into the artwork and is released when the temperature changes. It could also be the air in the room is very humid and the backing on the frame needs to be sealed better.
 
Bruce Papier said:
Do you know where in their home they are hanging the artwork? We have had similar things happen when the artwork is hung on poorly insulated exterior walls. Moisture leaks in through the walls into the artwork and is released when the temperature changes. It could also be the air in the room is very humid and the backing on the frame needs to be sealed better.
Click to expand...
It's a house that gets a lot of sun/gets very warm
 
Check out the article on the frametekk website titled "Stop the dust pump". Tape sealing a glass-art-backing package before fitting will probably help a lot.
 
Nothing should ever be in direct sun light. There is not much you can do. The temperature changes in that frame package go through a lot of extremities; warmth from the sun, to colder at night (or A/C if they have that). Condensation is almost a given in those circumstances.

You could recommend plexiglass, but I think the problem itself is where it is hanging and there is only so much you can do.
It should never be near an extreme heat source or cooling source.
 
Ylva’s right — sunlight is the most damaging light on earth, due to its intensity and its wide spectrum of wavelengths.

Dew point is the issue that causes the condensation inside the frame, because radiation from the sunlight heats up the glass. The outside of the glass is exposed to open air, but with stagnant air and humidity inside the closed environment of the frame, condensation is inevitable (more humidity is worse).

To make sense of this, imagine a glass of ice-cold beverage on a picnic table in direct sun. Condensation forms on the outside of the cold glass almost immediately, but then evaporates after the beverage warms to air temperature in open air.

Two suggestions:
1. Provide shade to eliminate exposure to direct sunlight.
2. Dry all of the hygroscopic (porous) materials that go inside the frame to very low moisture content, and the fit the frame quickly and seal it with materials that provide a moisture barrier; metal (foil) or glass. One simple method is to use glass on the front and back of the frame and seal the perimeter using foil tape, such as rabbet-lining tape.
 
a detail not discussed: Were these recent inkjet print or are they "cured." They is a drying period prior to being encapsulated in a framing package.
Outgassing forms a hase inside the gas while the inks dry. With the sunlight (heat), this can compound the issues - such as they are experiencing
As AI says: "For long-term preservation, store and display inkjet prints in a climate controlled environment, avoiding direct sunlight, heat humidity, and pollutants."
 
I'm thinking it is off gassing from the ink in the print.

This will leave a ghost on the glass over the print.

By now it has gassed off enough that you can open them up and clean the glass.

If it were moisture condensing on the glass it would be on the mats as they are touching the glass and thus would be getting wet.
 
Create a Post
Back
Top