Reading faded receipts can be a frustratingly difficult task. Whether you’re a retail worker or a college student, it might seem impossible to read a faded receipt at times. Fortunately, there are several methods to read old, faded, and torn paper. Let’s learn about ‘How To Read A Faded Receipt?’.
How To Read A Faded Receipt?
The first thing to do is look at the receipt from an angle, which may help you to read what’s on it.
With the help of this article, you will discover new methods to easily read faded receipts.
What is a Receipt?
A receipt is a written or digital document that attests to the fact that the buyer paid the vendor. The date and description of the item the buyer purchased are often included on the receipt. It also gives details on the thing the buyer bought.
Receipts include details about the payment method and the buyer when a transaction involves two businesses.
It is a declaration made by the seller to the customer that they have been paid for a commodity or service. The term “good” here refers to a “product.”
Ways to Read Faded Receipts
Here are some non-technical methods for reviving faded text on thermal-paper receipts:
- Use photo editing software to create a digital photo or scan the receipt. To read the receipt, adjust the image’s density (‘darkness’). If the fading is too severe, it is not feasible.
- Hold the receipt at arm’s length with a blow dryer. Begin by using the lowest heat setting. The dry heat may cause the thermal image to slowly reappear. Although this might not work if the fading is too severe.
- Run the receipt through a heat laminator in a paper ‘pouch’ if you have one. Use the quickest pass-through and lowest heat settings. This might not be feasible if the fading is absolute.
- Iron a thin towel with a hot iron. Place on top of the receipt Use the lowest heat setting possible. The towel should be of the non-fluffy variety. If the fading is too advanced, this method may not work.
- Use a magnifying glass to read the fine print.
- Use light to read the faded writing.
The chemical methods might end up further ruining the receipt and are not advisable to try out.
What Causes Receipts to Fade?
Nowadays, most receipts are printed on thermal paper. The text or images on this chemically coated paper are created by the heat action of the printer head. Thermal paper degrades when exposed to heat, UV light, and general oxidation for an extended period, resulting in fading of thermal images or text.
Thermal paper is used for printing receipts. When heat is applied to the surface of this type of paper, characters and images are produced. Characters and images will fade over time if the paper is exposed to UV light and heat for an extended time.
As a result, both the human eye and the receipt scanning API have trouble reading the characters and images on receipts. You can see distinct images and character discolouration on receipts after just a brief period of exposure to the sun.
Furthermore, humidity has a significant impact on how the contents of receipts are presented. Imagine for a moment that you’ve had the receipt in your pocket for days or even weeks. The likelihood that the characters will still be understandable is very low.
How to Prevent Fading of Receipts?
The following are ways to prevent the fading of receipt;
- Keep the receipts out of the way of the light, like in a cardboard box.
- In this modern era, you can scan receipts and store them in a digital album.
- Retain them via an app on your phone. You can download a ton of “receipt tracking” apps for both iPhone and Android.
- Avoid touching the receipt frequently as the oils in your hands will remove the ink from it. Therefore, it would be best to handle the receipt with a glove and store it in a plastic bag.
- Keep the receipts in a location with minimal exposure to heat, moisture, or temperature changes.
- Each store receipt should be put inside a prepared envelope. Each envelope should only contain one receipt. Create a similar envelope for every receipt you want to keep. Make file folders for the acid-free envelopes. File folders should contain similar receipt envelopes together. Put the folders in an acid-free box and sore in a cool dark place.
- Photocopy the receipt and store the copy appropriately.
Conclusion
Reading through a faded receipt isn’t all it is hyped to be which admittedly isn’t much however there are ways to circumvent that somewhat and in some cases even prevent the fading from occurring in the first place.
Hopefully, this article has helped you work towards that and will allow you to save your receipts. Happy reading.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Are all receipts printed with thermal paper?
No, they are not but a good number of them are.
- Can I use chemicals to save my receipt?
In theory but this might not work out too well and could ruin said receipt.
- Do photocopied receipts fade?
Not as quickly as those printed with thermal paper.
