Most modern laminators are pouch laminators. These laminators work by pressing a laminating pouch onto the object that needs to be laminated. If you have never used laminating pouches before, follow these instructions to make sure you get it right first time.

Necessary Materials

• pouch laminator
• laminating pouches that are compatible with your laminator
• objects to laminate

When choosing laminating pouches, you need to consider not only compatibility with your laminator, but also the size and thickness of the pouch. The size of the pouch must be slightly larger than the dimensions you want to laminate. Thicker pouches provide more sturdy, protective lamination, whereas thinner pouches offer light protection to the object without changing its appearance very much. If you are laminating objects that will need to withstand a lot of wear and tear, such as ID cards, then choose thick laminating pouches. For objects that simply need to be splash-proof, such as paper notices or posters, chooser thinner pouches.

Instructionss

1. First, turn on your pouch laminator and wait for it to warm up. Some brands of laminator can take up to 20 minutes to warm up before they are ready to use, so remember to turn the machine on with plenty of time to spare.
2. While you are waiting for the laminator to warm up, select an appropriately sized pouch for each item you need to laminate. The laminating pouch needs to extend at least an inch beyond each edge of the object.
3. Open the first pouch and place the first item you want to laminate inside, positioning it close to the center of the pouch. Most laminating machines come with a protective pouch carrier, which protects the machine from melted laminating plastic. If your laminating machine has one of these carriers, then place your laminating pouch inside the carrier to keep your machine in good working order.
4. Check that the laminating machine is warmed up and ready to use by looking at the lights on the control panel. Some laminators will need you to turn on the motor at this point, while others turn on the motor automatically when you insert the laminating pouch. Refer to the instruction manual for your pouch laminator to find out exactly how it works, or follow the instruction messages shown on the control panel of the laminator.
5. Feed the laminating pouch into the laminating machine. If your object is much smaller than the laminator, position it in the center of the laminating region. It usually only takes a few seconds for a laminating pouch to travel through the machine.
6. The laminating pouch may be hot when it exits the laminating machine. Leave the object for a minute to cool, then pick it up and inspect it to see whether the lamination has been successful. The plastic should lie flat against the laminated object, making it easy to see all the details.
7. Repeat this process with all the objects that you want to laminate. You may need to use a different size of laminating pouches for each object.

Laminators are common pieces of office equipment. While using a laminator might seem confusing at first, it's relatively simple once you learn the right technique. First, choose the right laminating pouches for your items and laminating machine. Next, use the technique described here to prepare the pouches and feed them into the laminator. Following this method will ensure that your items are neatly laminated.