Wind Slits in Vinyl Banners

                                                          By Jim Hingst 

@hingst_jim

This story is an excerpt from an article which appeared in Sign Builder Illustrated magazine in 2006.

Opinions about wind slits in banners vary. The purpose of these semi-circular cuts in the vinyl banner material is to relieve the wind load that can shred a banner to pieces. Sign makers often use anything from soup cans to coffee cans as templates for cutting slits with an Xacto knife or utility knife.

To understand how damaging high winds can be, read my story: The Effect of Wind Loads on Vinyl Banners. Amazingly the pressure of a 75 mile per hour wind on a 3’ x 30’ banner spanning a city street is about 1890 lbs.

Concerned that high winds could send banner material, cables and anchoring mechanisms flying putting passers-by at risk of injury, some well-meaning communities have required wind slits in banners. To some extent, these wind slits do reduce wind loads by 6% to 15%, according to the estimates of experts.

Here’s the rub. In my example, that’s only a reduction of the wind pressure of 283 lbs., at best. The pressure of that 75 mph wind is still more than 1600 lbs. What’s more, the wind slits have weakened the banner material, making it easier for the wind to rip it apart.

When customers insist that you cut wind slits in their banners, you should explain that they are not that effective. In addition, they detract from the aesthetics of the banner. In short, they’re ugly!

Another consideration that you should bring to the attention of your customer is that most manufacturers will not warranty their banner material if it is cut with wind slits.

Instead of defacing a great looking banner with wind slits, you have an alternative: Use the right material for the application. If the banner is subjected to potentially damaging winds you could print the graphics on a 75/25 banner mesh. Mesh material is much more effective at reducing wind load than cutting wind slits in vinyl banner material. Using mesh material is a great option for banners strung across streets.

When printing graphics on both sides of pole banners or over the street banners, another option is to use 18 oz. vinyl blockout banner with a 1000 x 1000 denier scrim. This heavier material provides at least one year of durability for outdoor applications. Proper installation also improves the likelihood that a banner will survive damaging winds.

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How to Apply Vinyl Graphics to Banners
Design Basics for Banners
The Effect of Wind Loads on Banners
Buying Vinyl Banner Material
Fire Rating of Banner Materials

About Jim Hingst: After fourteen years as Business Development Manager at RTape, Jim Hingst retired. He was involved in many facets of the company’s business, including marketing, sales, product development and technical service.

Hingst began his career 42 years ago in the graphic arts field creating and producing advertising and promotional materials for a large test equipment manufacturer.  Working for offset printers, large format screen printers, vinyl film manufacturers, and application tape companies, his experience included estimating, production planning, purchasing and production art, as well as sales and marketing. In his capacity as a salesman, Hingst was recognized with numerous sales achievement awards.

Drawing on his experience in production and as graphics installation subcontractor, Hingst provided the industry with practical advice, publishing more than 150 articles for  publications, such as  Signs Canada, SignCraft,  Signs of the Times, Screen Printing, Sign and Digital Graphics and  Sign Builder Illustrated. He also posted more than 400 stories on his blog (hingstssignpost.blogspot.com). In 2007 Hingst’s book, Vinyl Sign Techniques, was published.  Vinyl Sign Techniques is available at sign supply distributors and at Amazon. 

Slides of Jim's Artwork

© 2016 Jim Hingst