Outdoor banners come in many shapes and sizes. For the purposes of this blog, we’re going to focus on the strength of vinyl banner fabric used in pole and street banners.
For starters, we need to consider that the most durable fabric for pole/street banners is based on the strength of the material. Typically, an 18 ounce vinyl laminated media is used in the production of these types of banner signs. Often the desired strength is achieved by using the correct thread count and yard denier in the base fabric. Let’s break down what that means:
- The ounce refers to the weight of a square yard of that fabric
- Weight has nothing to do with the strength
- The thread count is the number of threads in a square inch of the fabric
- Thread count has nothing to do with the strength
- Denier is equal to weight in grams of 9,000 meters of yarn
- Denier count has nothing to do with the strength
All of the descriptive terms and names of outdoor banner fabrics have nothing to do with the strength of the product!
So what is the best indicator for your street or pole banner fabric’s strength?
Scrim is the woven material at the core of your fabric. It gives the fabric dimensional stability and strength. The strength of your banner fabric is measured by its Tear and Tensile qualities. Tear and Tensile are the strength measurements in the warp and fill directions of the fabric scrim. Warp and fill are directions of the yarns used to weave the scrim. Warp yarns run the length of the roll and fill yarns run crosswise.
Tear measures the growth of any cuts or tears in the fabric when under tension. Tensile measures the strength need to initiate a tear in the fabric.
What you will want is as high a number as you can get – preferably at least over 100 lbs. – when it comes to tear measurement. This is what keeps your fabric strong in the wind and rain.
So how do get these measurements? Ask your distributor, manufacturer or source of your banner fabric. These measurements can be in Newtons or pounds; make sure all comparisons are done in the same units.
So what’s an example of a good pole banner fabric? Herculite Inc.’s Bantex 18oz banner material is an example of a 112/113 tear strength product with an expected outdoor life of 18 months.
In fact, the Bantex 18 oz. product can be printed on both sides, offers superior strength, is ideal for demanding outdoor graphic fabric applications and is great for pole banners and over-the-street banners. Bantex also offers a very low cold crack, excellent resistance to wind whip, and exceptional long life when fabricated according to the Bantex Banner Fabrication process. Here’s a quick rundown of Bantex’s qualities:
- Available in 37.5”, 54”, 75” and 80” widths
- Sizes: 25 and 50 yard defect free boxes and 100 yard Kraft paper rolls, other lengths are available
- Two-sided; 100% opaque
- Flame retardant
- Matte Finish
- Super strong reinforcement
- Free 5 yard samples rolls
Now that you know a little more about pole and street sign banner fabric, let us know how we can help you with your next project. For more information about Herculite’s banner fabrics visit us at http://www.herculite.com. Or feel free to call us if you would like more information about our products and services at 800-772-0036.
