Most beginner heat pressers make the same mistakes. That's not a knock — this stuff isn't always obvious until you've burned a shirt, shorted an order, or realized you're not actually making money on a job. Here are the seven we see most often, and what to do instead.
Not Verifying Actual Press Temperature
Your press dial says 350°F. Your actual platen temperature might be 310°F or 390°F. Budget presses especially are notorious for inaccurate temperature readings, but even quality presses drift over time. If you're getting inconsistent results — transfers not bonding, scorched garments — the temperature is usually the culprit.
Fix it: Get an infrared thermometer or heat strips and verify your platen temperature before every session. Press to actual temperature, not the dial reading.
Inconsistent Pressure
Too little pressure and your transfer won't bond fully. Too much and you can crush the fabric, distort the print, or damage delicate garments. Pressure varies by blank thickness, platens, and transfer type — and a lot of new pressers just set it once and never adjust.
Fix it: Test pressure on a scrap piece of the same blank before running a full order. The general rule is firm, even contact across the full transfer surface. When in doubt, follow the transfer supplier's recommended settings.
Overstocking the Wrong Blanks
It's easy to over-buy when you find a good price on a bulk blank deal. The problem is ending up with 200 shirts in a color or size that doesn't move — cash sitting in a bin instead of working for you. This is especially common early on when you don't yet know what your customers actually order.
Fix it: Start with a lean core inventory and reorder based on actual demand. Track what sells. Let your sales data tell you what to stock more of — not gut feel or sale prices.
Not Tracking Inventory at All
Running your inventory from memory works right up until it doesn't. You take an order for 12 shirts, then realize you only have 8 of the right blank in stock. Or you run out of a design mid-run and don't realize it until you're sorting finished goods. These aren't rare — they happen to almost every presser who isn't tracking.
Fix it: Use an inventory tracking tool — even a simple one — and update it in real time. Log blanks when they arrive, log transfers when they come in, and log press runs as you complete them. PressTrak was built specifically for this.
Underpricing Orders
This one quietly kills heat press businesses. The math looks fine on the surface — blank cost plus transfer cost plus some markup — until you account for your time, overhead, packaging, and the cost of redos. Many new pressers realize months in that they've been pricing at or near break-even.
Fix it: Calculate your true cost per shirt including labor, overhead, and consumables — then apply a real markup. See our pricing guide for a full breakdown.
Using the Wrong Transfer Type for the Fabric
Plastisol on a polyester blend. Sublimation on a dark fabric. DTF on a fabric with a heavy texture that prevents full adhesion. Mismatched transfer-to-fabric combinations produce poor results and wasted material — and frustrated customers if it makes it to them.
Fix it: Know the basics before you press. DTF works on almost anything. Plastisol bonds best to 100% cotton. Sublimation needs white or very light polyester. When in doubt, test on a scrap before running the full job.
Skipping the Test Press
You've pressed this design before. You know this press. You're in a rhythm. So you skip the test press and go straight into the run — and somewhere in the middle of it something's off. A new batch of blanks, a slightly different transfer supplier, a platen that drifted temperature. A single test press at the start of every run costs you one blank and saves you the run.
Fix it: Always do a test press at the start of a new run, especially when switching blanks, transfer suppliers, or designs. It's one of those habits that feels unnecessary until the one time it saves you.