# Sunbrella fabric and 303 retreatment



## argofred (Nov 26, 2008)

I am attempting to renew my sailcover, bimini dodger etc sunbrella fabric with 303 protectant. Sunbrella recommends two lighter coats of 303 to renew and UV protection but reading the fine print on the bottle of 303 says 
" Not for use on.... fabrics(canvas)" So I tryed 303 on winch cover and it did not stain the fabric but did not improve it's ability to shed water (waterproof) with out becoming wet itself. Of course, because the sunbrella is 6 or 7 years old, I may be asking to much of old fabric. We all feel a little poorer these last months so for now I have to make do with the old canvas. Any comments on 303 or other ways to "renew" sunbrella out there? Thanks!


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## sailingdog (Mar 19, 2006)

There are two 303's out there. *One is meant to re-waterproof acrylic canvas and other cloth-like materials,* the other is meant to protect and condition plastics... *You probably have the wrong one.*  See this *website*.

BTW, a simple google search for 303 waterproofing would have brought the two products up...


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## trantor12020 (Mar 11, 2006)

My Sunbrella bimini is also 6-7 years old. I 've tried 303, Starbrite PFTE and Scotchgard. I find best results from Scotchgard Heavy Duty Water Repellent (Outdoor Fabrics) and the newer release Scotchgard Ultra Water Repellent with Mildew Block.
You should have the bimini machine washed first before applying the water repellent. Its good for 6 month. BTW, Scotchgard is alot cheaper than the other two. Unforunately for me, its getting harder to find these Scotchgard repellent in my neck of wood nowadays.


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## Maine Sail (Jan 6, 2003)

Please do not machine wash Sunbrella unless it is the furniture grade. While the web site says it's okay we've found significantly shorter life when machine washing "top" grade Sunbrella. If it's "cushion grade" we've seen no problems with machine washing but ALWAYS use a front loader. The "top" grade or the stuff used for dodgers, bimini's etc. is impregnated with a component that gives it it's waterprrof and stiffness. Machine washing can destroy this. If you need to wash it do it in a kiddy pool with luke warm water and Ivory Snow or Dreft non-detergent laundry soap. Let it soak for a couple of days and the fabric will release the dirt into the bottom of the pool..
*
You want this - 303 Fabric Guard*









*NOT THIS - 303 Aerospace Protectant*









Glen Raven Mills (Sunbrella) has tested a slew of products including Scotchbrite, and many others, and ONLY recommends 303 Fabric Guard for use on Sunbrella. They do not own or have any stake in 303 the company and Glen Raven makes zero money off this recommendation except to keep customers happy and the Sunbrella product lasting...


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## Quickstep192 (Jan 6, 2001)

MaineSail, I was considering washing one of my covers in my front loader using the super delicate cycle and woolite. Do you think that would be OK?


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## Maine Sail (Jan 6, 2003)

*I still don't*

Unless you are a year or two away from replacement I would not. If you still feel the need, pre-soak in luke warm for up to two days to fully "wet out" the fabric first.

Sunbrella has a unique way of coming out of a washing machine having never actually gotten wet and thus not clean. It takes a long time to fully wet out Sunbrealla if it's even the slightest bit in good condition..


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## sailingdog (Mar 19, 2006)

QS-

You're probably far better off washing it by hand in the bathtub.


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## trantor12020 (Mar 11, 2006)

As for mine, I figure is my Sunbrella is leaking like a sieve, machine washing it is not going harm anything since the original coatings are all gone. I once did hand wash and coat it with 303, that didn't last long or did much good. I reckon there're still alot of dirt on the fabric. When I machine wash it (front loader) I find lots of speckles of black dirt came off with the washed water. Thereafter, recoating with the repellent really works great.


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## ronbo1 (Feb 17, 2007)

Keep in mind that machine washing also takes a toll on stitching, particularly if it's polyester and not Goretex. Usually, UV weakened stitching breaks before the Sunbrella fabric needs replacing. 

Maine Sail's recommendation of soaking in a kiddies pool sounds like a good idea.

Ronbo


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## ohaavik (Sep 29, 2007)

*Home-made waterproofing agent*

Has anyone at all experience with the home-made remedy I came across; mixing soy bean oil with 50% turpentine and spraying on? 2 parts oil to 1 part turpentine... There seems to be a general understanding to avoid silicone-based waterproofing with Sunbrella and this would, at least, qualify in that department...

In these recessionary times I am happy to save quite a few $$ by making something, but not entirely sure how destructive this mix may be. I am asking a chemist friend and hope to figure out the science behind the mix and would love to hear if anyone have tried it before.


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## dacap06 (Feb 2, 2008)

*RE: Homemade waterproofing*

I'm a systems engineer, not a chemical engineer. I don't know the answer, but homemade stuff like this rarely works out the way we would like. If you really want to carry through with it then common sense tells me to test it with a similar piece of scrap cloth (e.g. from an old winch cover) to see what happens. If you don't happen to have an appropriate scrap of cloth, I'll bet a neighbor does. Offer to share the recipe if it actually works.

DaCAP



ohaavik said:


> Has anyone at all experience with the home-made remedy I came across; mixing soy bean oil with 50% turpentine and spraying on? 2 parts oil to 1 part turpentine... There seems to be a general understanding to avoid silicone-based waterproofing with Sunbrella and this would, at least, qualify in that department...
> 
> In these recessionary times I am happy to save quite a few $$ by making something, but not entirely sure how destructive this mix may be. I am asking a chemist friend and hope to figure out the science behind the mix and would love to hear if anyone have tried it before.


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## sailingdog (Mar 19, 2006)

Bad idea... the soybean oil and turpentine will attract a lot of dirt...and you'll have a pretty nasty mess on your hands. The turpentine may also damage the cloth or the sizing used in the sunbrella fabric. Also, if you rub up against it, it will likely stain your clothes, and it is going to smell.



ohaavik said:


> Has anyone at all experience with the home-made remedy I came across; mixing soy bean oil with 50% turpentine and spraying on? 2 parts oil to 1 part turpentine... There seems to be a general understanding to avoid silicone-based waterproofing with Sunbrella and this would, at least, qualify in that department...
> 
> In these recessionary times I am happy to save quite a few $$ by making something, but not entirely sure how destructive this mix may be. I am asking a chemist friend and hope to figure out the science behind the mix and would love to hear if anyone have tried it before.


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## badsanta (Oct 16, 2006)

I went to a class on sunbrella and they talked of a person who complained of mildew on the sail. They said no matter how many times they water proofed the sail cover the sail still mildewed. We were told the cause was the water proofed sail cover. That the sunbrella used for that is to keep the UV off the sail and that water proofing it only kept the moisture in causing the sail to stay wet. Just passing this along for info. I had no idea how many types and grades sunbrella made. An incredible array of uses


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## ohaavik (Sep 29, 2007)

Thanks all. My chemist friend also cautioned against possible oily residue that would trap dirt. Petroleum products appear in a lot of waterproofing media so it may be OK for stitches but I intend to find out.

I have some old sunbrella covers from having had the boat reupholstered a couple months ago. They are a bit worn and have lost water beading ability so I thought I may take one and apply this thing and see how it works. Could be a cheap remedy, or could be a mess.

Fortunately, it rains a lot during the monsoon, so once I get the stuff mixed and applied we should find out quickly how well (or if) it works


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## WanderingStar (Nov 12, 2008)

The oil shouldn't hurt the cloth, but it may darken over time. If it doesn't dry completely, it will hold dirt. Some natural oils also darken in the sun.


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## Maine Sail (Jan 6, 2003)

badsanta said:


> I went to a class on sunbrella and they talked of a person who complained of mildew on the sail. They said no matter how many times they water proofed the sail cover the sail still mildewed. We were told the cause was the water proofed sail cover. That the sunbrella used for that is to keep the UV off the sail and that water proofing it only kept the moisture in causing the sail to stay wet. Just passing this along for info. I had no idea how many types and grades sunbrella made. An incredible array of uses


This is from the application of an incorrect waterproofing treatment and, well, lack of use of his sail..

303 High Tech Fabric Guard does NOT change the breathability of the Sunbrella it only makes the fibers repel water and not absorb it. With no waterproofing or the wrong water proofing or if the fabric is allowed to "wet out" it takes LONGER to dry. When it takes longer to dry or does not breathe mold begins to grow.

303 High Tech Fabric Guard will no exacerbate mold growth beyond any natural occurrence and will actually lessen in on fabric that is wetting out.

I know our Glen Raven rep personally and have had at length discussions about the proper treatments for Sunbrella and 303 is it. Glen Raven has tested just about every product out there and they trust their reputation to 303 HTFG only. They get ZERO return on this other than a good reputation by recommending the right product for their fabric and that is 303 HTFG.

You can cut corners or try otehr products but they do not perform as well as 303 on Sunbrella.

A funny story,

A friend of mine, & fellow CS owner, is the sales manager for Ferrari Fabrics, the makers of Stamoid marine fabrics and the fabric that covers the Denver Airport and most of the sports stadiums in this country and throughout the world. He told me this story at the Maine Boat Builders show a month or so ago.

Ferrari actually makes their own Stamoid cleaner and treatment products. One day they happened to try two products made and sent to them by IMAR the makers of IMAR Strattaglass cleaner. The IMAR products performed so much better than Ferrari's own product they sent the product to the factory for thorough testing.

The bottom line is that Ferrari now has hundreds of cases of their own product, bought and paid for, collecting dust in a warehouse and they now recommend IMAR Staimoid products over their own!! This cost them not only the price of the cases upon cases of unused Staimoid cleaner but also a huge cost to re-print literature and a loss in proffit margin for products which they now make ZERO dollars on..

Sometimes companies recommend products because they are the BEST products for the treatment of it.

I know many will continue to doubt this, and recommend Pledge for dodger glass and Thompson's Water Proofing for Sunbrella, but it's true.

In the case of Staimoid (IMAR products), Strattaglass (IMAR products) and Sunbrella (303 HTFG) none of these manufacturers recommend products they make, own or have any vested of financial interest in.

They recommend them because it will give YOU the BEST performance from a product you paid BIG money for and it will leave them with a solid reputation as a long lasting & time tested product..


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## Bene505 (Jul 31, 2008)

Maine Sail said:


> Please do not machine wash Sunbrella unless it is the furniture grade. While the web site says it's okay we've found significantly shorter life when machine washing "top" grade Sunbrella. If it's "cushion grade" we've seen no problems with machine washing but ALWAYS use a front loader. The "top" grade or the stuff used for dodgers, bimini's etc. is impregnated with a component that gives it it's waterprrof and stiffness. Machine washing can destroy this. If you need to wash it do it in a kiddy pool with luke warm water and Ivory Snow or Dreft non-detergent laundry soap. Let it soak for a couple of days and the fabric will release the dirt into the bottom of the pool..
> *
> You want this - 303 Fabric Guard*
> 
> ...


Now there's a new variation of 303 Fabric Guard "with Water Repellant". Does anyone know if that's an improvement over the traditional 303 Fabric Guard?

Regards,
Brad


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## RichH (Jul 10, 2000)

For much better results when reapplying 303 Fabric Guard use 303 FABRIC CLEANER. The CLEANER is applied by hand left to soak, so it penetrates .... and then you 'softly scrub', then rinse by putting it a large tub filled with water and slowly agitate by hand. You use 'one cup' of cleaner per gallon of water. Such will clean the fabric and provide a better 'attachment' for later treatment with the 303 Fabric Guard. 
Amazon.com: 303 Products 30552 303 Fabric Cleaner 32 Oz: [email protected]@[email protected]@http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/[email protected]@[email protected]@519PDC1J6ZL


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## Multihullgirl (Dec 2, 2010)

Oh look... at the Sunbrella site, a pdf on feeding and care of Sunbrella...

http://www.sunbrella.com/en_us/pdf/cleaning-sunbrella-marine-tops-covers.pdf


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## bristol299bob (Apr 13, 2011)

I'll add that I use a sprayer like this when applying:






I buy the 303 fabric guard in gallon jugs and use that sprayer. I get more consistent application and no hand cramps.


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## Brent Swain (Jan 16, 2012)

I once tried 303 on sailcloth. It did absolutely nothing to protect it from UV.


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