Small but mighty, workhorse, silent hero—these are just a few ways to describe the grommet. This tiny, commonly metal ring helps hang vinyl banners and other signage. It secures a space for something like a rope or pole to pass through and hold up the banner. It’s easy to confuse grommets with eyelets or other fasteners. That’s why we put together this quick guide to help you understand the question—what are grommets for banners?
Important disclaimer: If you stumbled upon this blog looking for a solution for your child’s ear glue or infection, you’d need to find another resource. Today, we’re talking about signage.
Grommets for Banners: The Purpose
If you take a moment to observe your surroundings, you’ll likely see grommets all around you. If you’re Del Griffith, you get ultra creative and think past the grommet, like in his hilarious Planes, Trains, and Automobiles scene. Griffith, played by John Candy, sells shower curtain rings. The hole those rings go in is the grommet. Those grommets support the shower curtain and prevent tearing, ripping, or integrity issues as the hooks hold the curtain to the pole.
Vinyl banners are similar to shower curtains because we wouldn’t want to put a device for holding the material up directly through the vinyl or curtain. It would easily sag or rip.
Grommets are essential for good looking banners. Without reinforcements of the whole, there’s nothing to keep the banner hole from getting torn. Banner grommets keep holes in material from ripping.
Standard Placement for Banner Grommets
We find that the printing industry standard is placing grommets centered at .75 inches from each side. Uniform placement ensuresthat the banner has a clean, symmetrical look when it’s on full display.
Using an automatic grommet machine is a high-tech professional way for your grommets to be installed easily with no work on your part.
Standard Sizes of Grommets for Banners The interior diameter of the hole determines a grommet’s size. In almost all cases, the common 3/8″ of an inch grommet that comes standard with our banners is perfect for your signage. It is worth noting that a 3/8″ grommet measures 13/16″ in circumference. As noted below, this is still small enough that it won’t negatively affect your sign’s visual impact.
Standard grommet sizes are:
- 3/16 inch
- 3/8 inch
- ½ inch
- 1 7/16 inches
- 3 inches
Adding Grommets to a Vinyl Banner
Now that you understand the basics let’s breakdown how to install grommets to vinyl banners. There are a few ways to insert grommets.
The first is a DIY approach, using a grommet gun. It requires some physical strength with a hand tool to push the grommets together from the front and back sides of the vinyl material. It punches a hole and binds the grommets together so you can hang your sign. Think of it like a bigger hole puncher.
When you work with a professional printer, they will use an industrial grommet machine. These machines are operated by a worker who uses a hand or foot lever to compress the grommets and punch the hole. The power and force of the machine deliver a clean, professional-looking result. It’s the way to go with vinyl banners.
Request your free quote today »Grommets vs. Pole Pockets: Understanding the Difference
Grommets and pole pockets are two of the most common ways to hang your signs and banners. That’s why it’s important to under-stand the difference.
Grommets, as you now know, are small holes supported with metal (sometimes other materials like rubber or plastic). You put arope or other material through the holes to hang the sign.
What are Pole Pockets?
Pole pockets are different from grommets. Pole pockets consist of two to three inches of material wrapped around the sides on the banner’s top or bottom. The vinyl banner material folds over the banner’s backside, providing room for a pole or rod to go through the pocket.
If you’re hanging your banner with poles, pole pockets are likely the way to go. If you’re unsure how you’ll need to support your
banner, we can give you some guidance.
We hope this guide helps you understand the importance of grommets, which are one of the fundamental pieces of your vinyl
banner. Are you ready to print your banner? Please send us your information to get a free quote or give us a call to discuss your
project with our team.
