A Brief Explanation About Marine Upholstery Supplies

By Debra Cooley


For many people owning a boat is a dream come true, as many yearn to spend as much time on the water as possible. Over time things start to look a bit tired and worn out. Or maybe you just fancy a change of style and colour. Whatever the reason you need to be careful when selecting which fabrics and trims you decide to use. It really does pay to spend a bit of time over selecting your marine upholstery supplies.

There are many areas where boats are used and found. Almost all such areas will be sunny, and the surrounding water seems to magnify the sun's strength. In turn this added strength will cause fabrics to fade. Which gives a graphic indication about why care should be taken when looking for suppliers.

The fabric itself ought to be waterproof, or splash-proof at the very least. There will be plenty of spray about, it could be wind driven from the tops of waves or even from your own bow wave. In an ocean setting the spray will be heavy with salt. The spray could settle on your boat's fabrics, and in time this will dry leaving a salt stain behind. Salt crystals can be abrasive to normal everyday fabrics.

Even the fittings that are used on these cushions and seat coverings need to be able to withstand the salt laden environment. You might think that you could get something that would fit the bill from your hardware supply store for less money. You can, however this would be of a much lower grade and so will corrode faster. The proper fittings will also have a protective coating and so will last for much longer.

As you would expect it is the external areas that will have the most wear and tear, although the interior will also need attention. Despite being protected from the elements over time they will show their age, although not as much or as quickly. They will even end up getting salt deposits from the clothes that you wear when topside brushing against the internal furnishings.

Many people seem to think that there would not be much on a boat that could need replacing. When the boat is not in use there are often covers that are fitted. These could be fitted over the cockpit area and also over the fore deck. Even with the boat tied up alongside these covers will be subjected to strong sunshine and salt laden spray.

Even when your boat is in use and the covers have been stowed there are various seats and cushions to consider. How many will depend largely on the size of your boat. You might even have a fore deck cushion. Your passengers go swimming and when they decide that they want to catch some more sun they recline on the fore deck cushion.

So now it should be obvious why such care needs to be taken with marine upholstery supplies. They have to meet stringent requirements to attain their high specification. They need to survive in all weather conditions, both good and bad. Just something else to consider when it comes time to carry out repairs.




About the Author:



No comments:

Post a Comment