Using a roll laminator to mount documents to foam core, sintra or gator boards is really not that hard. However, with all of the different options available for mounting it is easy to get lost and not know where to begin. This article is designed to help you understand the basics of mounting documents with your roll laminator (either hot or cold).

The first thing to do when preparing to mount documents with your roll laminator is to make sure that you have a roll laminator that can do mounting. Most low end school laminators do not have the ability to handle mounting boards. If your laminator has the ability to do mounting there should be a handle or setting on the side that will allow you to "gap" the rollers for the correct thickness of mounting board that you intend on using. Once you find this setting, make sure that you gap your rollers appropriately and you will be ready to begin.

There are three primary methods for mounting documents using a roll laminator. Here they are…

1. You can use pretreated mounting boards that already have the adhesive applied to them. These boards will come direct from the manufacturer with a peel off release liner that will allow you to stick your documents to the board. This is probably the simplest way to do mounting. However, if your documents are archival or you want more control of the adhesive or overlaminate this may not be the best option for you. Additionally, not all boards are available pre coated so you will have to check and see if you can get the size, color and thickness of board that you need before choosing this method.

2. You can pretreat or pre coat the mounting boards yourself using your roll laminator. With this method you will use a mounting adhesive (either hot or cold) on the top roll of your laminator with nothing on the bottom roll. You will then feed the board through being careful to always butt the boards up to each other and to not allow the mounting adhesive to hang over the edges of the boards. Be careful if you choose this method. If the mounting adhesive comes in contact with the bottom roller you will have a big mess on your hands.

3. You can choose to turn your document that you want to mount into a giant sticker using a mounting adhesive on the bottom roller and a hot or cold overlaminate on the top roller. This is one of the easiest methods for mounting but can be a little bit tricky. With this method if the tensions of the top and bottom films do not match it is possible to end up with curling in your finished product. It is also important to choose two films with similar melting temperatures to prevent problems with the laminated output.

After you have either your coated board or your coated print you are ready to complete the mounting process. At this point all you need to do is to peel back about an inch of the release liner from the top of your document and stick your printed item to the board or the board to the printed item. Then, feed the laminated item into the roll laminator at a low temperature (even cold mounting works better at about 100 degrees Farenheit). Make sure that you are holding onto the release liner as the item feeds into the machine. The laminator will smooth out your print and the release liner will slowly pull away from the document as the print is fed through the machine. Your mounted board will come out of the back of your laminator and you will be left holding the release liner in your hands. Then all you need to do is trim the board and you are finished.