You wear a lot of hats throughout your day, so your to-do list can be all over the board. Sometimes those to-dos can include laminating. You just drop an item into the pouch, feed it into your laminator and “Voila!” Right? Almost.
There are two kinds of lamination: hot (also called thermal) and cold. Knowing when to use cold lamination is essential. It can make the difference between protecting your project and possibly damaging it.
How Hot & Cold Lamination Differ
Most pouch laminators use a thermal process. As your document feeds through the machine, heated rollers “activate” the adhesive in the film and seal the lamination pouch to your document. Some laminator settings can reach temperatures over 300 degrees.
You may have noticed a button on your laminator with the word “cold” or a little snowflake on it. That button stands for cold lamination. When you select that function, your laminator rollers compress and seal the pouch film using direct pressure instead of heat. The pouches are often referred to as self-sealing because no heat is required.
Choosing Between Hot & Cold Lamination
Now that you know the difference between hot and cold lamination, how do you know what’s right for your project?
If your work includes laminating everyday documents, flyers, educational materials or signs, thermal lamination will do the job. Thermal laminating pouches offer a variety of finishes, too, like gloss, ultra clear and matte.
Be sure to hit that cold lamination button if you’re laminating items that could be damaged by heat. Photos (especially older ones), an irreplaceable ultrasound image, sentimental handwritten letters or recipe cards, and artwork are all perfect candidates for self-sealing lamination pouches. You get the protection of lamination without the risk of heat damage. Self-sealing lamination pouches are typically matte finish, so you also reduce any glare.
Take a few moments to think about what you’re laminating. You don’t want to risk losing something precious. When in doubt, press that cold button.