Truck owners make up a surprising amount of car owners in the United States, with many people choosing to combine the practical with the appealing through pickup trucks. In fact, pickup trucks are extremely popular — probably more popular than you even know. 2012 alone saw 1.6 million pickup trucks being sold in the U.S. In 2013, it was revealed that for every eight pickup trucks sold in the U.S., one was a full-sized pickup truck. Of those trucks, 90% were built by Chrysler, Ford, and General Motors. Why do people love pickup trucks so much? Well, a lot of it has to do with truck beds. Truck beds are one of the main reasons why people buy trucks in the first place. It gives extra space for transporting various types of cargo. It adds to the overall convenience of trucks, and frankly adds to the value of the vehicle, particularly if you plan on selling the vehicle in the future. But the fact is that truck beds need to be protected — preferably by truck bedliners. Where once truck bedliners were temporary, now spray on bedliners have become popular, especially when used in conjunction with wire tape. The combination of spray bedliners and wire tape can make a big difference for the longevity and appearance of your truck bed for a number of reasons. Let’s look into some of the things you might not know about spray bedliners, and how it can help you get the most out of your truck.
Polyurethane: A Brief History Of What Led To Spray Bedliners
Spray bedliners are typically based on polyurethane — a substance that you’ve probably heard before, due to its versatile nature. Originally, polyurethane was developed during World War II was an alternative to rubber. It would eventually be used for other purposes as time went on. By the 1950s, people’s understanding of this substance had changed entirely. At that point, it was used for coatings and adhesives, as well as elastomers and rigid foams. Only by the late 1950s would flexible and cushioning foams be available. Nowadays, 30% of the North American polyurethane market is taken up by flexible polyurethane foam. It’s largely used for bedding, furniture, and automotive purposes. As you’ll see below, there are plenty of reasons why polyurethane spray bedliners are now so popular, even overtaking the temporary bedliners people once used to rely upon.
Spray On Bedliners: Why People Use Them
So: with temporary bedliners on the market, what has led people to use spray bedliners so often? There are a number of reasons involved. One of the many reasons why people prefer spray on bedliners is the clean, smooth look achieved — especially when wire tape is used alongside spray on bedliners. The use of wire tape allows for clean lines, and in general a more precise look. In general, bedliners in general are “musts” for those who have pickup trucks, and spray bedliners are the best options. The fact is that truck beds take quite a beating. We use truck beds to transport heavy cargo, often with rough surfaces involved. Although it’s not advised, some people even let pets or even people take a quick ride in their truck beds. As mentioned above, truck beds are a big aspect of the value of your truck overall. If you want to maintain the value of your truck, you should be conscious both of the aesthetic and performance level of your truck bed. That means caring for your truck bedliners. Spray bedliners are often preferred due to the fact that you can control the amount of bedliner applied with the spray gun. It can be sprayed from 1/16th inch to four inches, depending in your needs. While a thinner application can make it easier for the bedliner to crack or chip, an application that is too thick can warp the shape of your truck. If you’re careful, however, you’ll have a bedliner that both looks good and performs beautifully.