Carbonless paper is a particular type of paper that in not need to be written on with ink. Instead, available pens and pencils can be used! This makes it great for places like doctor’s offices or schools to fill out forms but doesn’t want the hassle of using carbon paper to make duplicates. It is also excellent for people who don’t have access to copying machines but only need a few copies. One sheet of carbonless paper can make multiple copies without the use of an extra machine!
HOW TO MAKE CARBONLESS PAPER
Carbonless paper is an excellent invention for people who often need to make copies of documents but don’t want to deal with carbon paper. The carbonless paper will allow you to make copies without needing the extra carbon paper that can easily rip or smear your document. Read on to find out how to make carbonless paper at home, step by step.
Materials – Two microwave-safe bowls or cups (one that fits inside the other) – Microwaveable plate or paper towel – Coarse salt – Water
STEP 1
Place cup inside of larger bowl or cup. Add about 2 cups of water into the larger bowl or cup. You need enough water to completely cover the smaller cup in the bottom when it is placed inside. Place plastic wrap over the top of the smaller cup and secure tightly with a rubber band. This will prevent your smaller cup from moving around and possibly cracking.
STEP 2
Place bowl/cup setup into the microwave and cook on high for 5 minutes. You may need to adjust cooking time depending on how powerful your microwave is. Remove carefully with oven mitts as water will be hot! Let cool completely before removing a smaller cup from the larger bowl.
STEP 3
Once completely cooled, remove a smaller cup from water and dry with a paper towel. Remove plastic wrap, and you should have a perfect carbon copy of your document! You can use this carbonless form as many times as you need to by simply reprinting the front of the form again. The backside is still usable, and you can copy it again by repeating steps 1-3.
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Types of Carbonless Paper:
The carbonless paper you purchase at an office supply store is sometimes called NCR paper. The letter “NCR” stands for No Carbon Required. It’s made of thick, coated paper with chemicals added to help the papers turn dark when heated.
What does Carbonless Paper Look Like?
The carbonless paper looks much different than standard paper. It is thicker and printed with very dark ink so that when the paper gets hot, the writing turns completely black. Some types of carbonless paper will turn black without any heat at all! When using this type, you can see where you wrote because the area won’t get black as other kids do.
Types of Carbonless Paper:
NCR paper is the most common type of carbonless paper. It has special chemicals added to it so that when heat is applied, the writing turns completely dark. The letter “NCR” stands for No Carbon Required. There are three types of NCR paper: NCR books, NCR forms, and NCR pads.
What Are NCR Books?
NCR books are small, wire-bound books with carbonless paper tucked inside. You can make as many copies as you like and tear the pages out without destroying the binding.
How is Carbonless Paper Made?
Before it can be printed, carbonless paper is coated with a dielectric-fluorocarbon chemical. This chemical is the secret behind carbonless paper’s magic! When this type of paper is heated, it makes a copy of what was written on it without needing a second sheet of paper underneath for support.
What Are NCR Forms?
NCR forms are single sheets made of carbonless paper that will make multiple copies when heated. These are the types of forms you would typically find at a cash register or in a doctor’s office.
What are NCR Pads?
NCR pads are small pads of carbonless paper, typically used for writing quick notes. They typically have 50 or 100 sheets per pad. Because these pads contain so many sheets, people often write on both sides of the pages to make sure they don’t run out of room too quickly. There are bound pads that are made in the same way as NCR books. Un-bound pads typically come with large sheets of paper that you fold into fourths, sixths or eighths to make smaller pads.