Sprayhood Saudela vs Sunbrella ?

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Boo2

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Hi,

I'm thinking of having a new sprayhood and need to know whether there is much difference between the Saudela and the Sunbrella acrylic canvasses ? Anyone looked into this and have a firm view ?

Thanks,

Boo2
 
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[h=1]WeatherMax80[/h]Posted on February 14, 2012 by Editor
WeatherMax80 is twice as strong and six times more durable under abrasion and rubbing than acrylic. It is about half the weight, it is 100% solution dyed and very importantly for stackpacks and enclosures it is breathable.
WeatherMax80 is the ideal fabric for marine and many non-marine covers
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WeatherMax Colours (6.6 MiB, 515 hits)
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WeatherMax Info (254.7 KiB, 440 hits)
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WeatherMax Care (1.9 MiB, 361 hits)
 
sailorman said:
Dolphin now recommend

[h=1]WeatherMax80[/h]Posted on February 14, 2012 by Editor
WeatherMax80 is twice as strong and six times more durable under abrasion and rubbing than acrylic. It is about half the weight, it is 100% solution dyed and very importantly for stackpacks and enclosures it is breathable.
WeatherMax80 is the ideal fabric for marine and many non-marine covers
pdf.gif
WeatherMax Colours (6.6 MiB, 515 hits)
pdf.gif
WeatherMax Info (254.7 KiB, 440 hits)
pdf.gif
WeatherMax Care (1.9 MiB, 361 hits)
Click to expand...

Sunbrella carries a 10 year guarantee (I know)

Weathermax 80 a 5 year guarantee (I have read)
 
KellysEye said:
Sunbrella is the longest lastiting canvas but it isn't sold in the UK and some suppliers in the UK wrongly claim they have the equivalent but it isn't as good. It's available at www.sailrite.com
Click to expand...

Where do you get this complete misinformation from? Of course genuine Sunbrella is sold in the UK, I've bought some myself. Just a couple of random suppliers include...

http://www.solentsew.co.uk/categories/Fabric/Sunbrella-Plus/
http://www.toomerandhayter.co.uk/products/detail/?id=33&cat=79
 
I have worked with both Sunbrella and Saudela. I have made several items in Sunbrella, and most recently a replacement sprayhood in Sauleda. Until then, I was a bit of a Sunbrella snob, but I went for the Sauleda because it was both wider - which helped out with the larger panels I needed to achieve and it was also quite a bit cheaper. I must say they felt incredibly similar to work with, but I don’t have a long term wear/fade comparison yet.

Of course you can buy Sunbrella in the UK. In fact, one supplier will even import to your requirements from the factory in France – even in modest quantities. This is particularly useful if you are trying to colour match to a colour not available in the UK.

One thing to be mindful of is that each of these fabrics comes in more than one width, so it’s worth checking, carefully, when ordering. Just don’t ask how I know this, but a potentially expensive error all worked out just fine, in the end.

Kelly – May I ask how long your Sunbrella lasted, if it gave up before the thread? I’d also be interested to know where the Sunbrella gave up; if it was at the ends of seams or zippers or at a rubbing point?
 
I made our bimini, giant sun awning and lot of other canvaswork with Sauleda cloth, I was in Spain and it was very cheap.
I asked around and they use it a lot for restaurant sun awnings. I do not know if it was just my stockist, but they seemed to have less colours than all the Sunbrella shades one sees in catalogues.

I used the slightly thicker cloth, the one that when well tensioned and hit with a hand gives a drum-like sound.
After three years under (mostly) tropical sun, I saw no discoloration, no stretching, the sewn web straps have not teared the cloth.
We went through two rainy seasons (with raindrops like tea-cups for days on end), after that I had to use the waterproof liquid for the bimini. At the same time, I had to re-waterproof my earlier Sunbrella sprayhood which was three year old, so in the end I think they are both similar to that extent.

It's maybe different for industrial/commercial makers, but for diy-er, 9-10 euro a linear metre for Sauleda against >30 for Sunbrella (give or take something for width differences, etc) gives a big cushion in favour of the former even if it lasts only one half of the time -which I doubt.
 
I couldn’t challenge what you paid for your Sauleda in Spain, Roberto, but where I buy, in the UK, the current retail price is c£20 per linear metre for the PU coated version I imagine you used for your bimini and awning. Similarly, I can buy Sunbrella, retail, at £20 per linear metre. As I have an account with the supplier, I manage a bit of a discount on those prices, which all helps. :)
 
MiracleMaud said:
I couldn’t challenge what you paid for your Sauleda in Spain, Roberto, but where I buy, in the UK, the current retail price is c£20 per linear metre for the PU coated version I imagine you used for your bimini and awning. Similarly, I can buy Sunbrella, retail, at £20 per linear metre. As I have an account with the supplier, I manage a bit of a discount on those prices, which all helps. :)
Click to expand...

Yes price policies vary so much from country to country...
The Sauleda I found was in a shop where they had near-trade prices, even for people like me that comes out once in a while to buy at most 10-15m of cloth..

I used the softer Sauleda, the one whose weight and touch feels similar to Sunbrella, to make the internal cushions only, so I have no idea of its resistance to sunlight. Washing after kids' lunch and sometimes seasickness shows no visible harm though :D
It cost more, by memory 13-14 euro lm; to me it would still be one half of Sunbrella, on the other hand if you can get the two for roughly the same price then I suppose Sunbrella would seem the logical choice

regards
r
 
MiracleMaud said:
Of course you can buy Sunbrella in the UK. In fact, one supplier will even import to your requirements from the factory in France – even in modest quantities. This is particularly useful if you are trying to colour match to a colour not available in the UK.
Click to expand...
Who is this, may I ask ?

Boo2
 
I would go for Sunbrella for UK use - not because of better resistance to UV but for resistance to the dreaded green 'algae' (not sure of the botanical accuracy of this) and black mildew that seems to proliferate in our damp climate. My one and only Sauleda sprayhood started to go green after 3-4 years and once that green stuff is in the weave it is very persistent despite regular cleaning. My previous and present Sunbrella sprayhoods have been much better at resisting this horrible stuff.
 
>Kelly – May I ask how long your Sunbrella lasted, if it gave up before the thread? I’d also be interested to know where the Sunbrella gave up; if it was at the ends of seams or zippers or at a rubbing point?

Jane made the sprayhood in 2005 and the canvas failed in 2010 it let water through and rewaterproofing didn't work. Two things to bear in mind, we were long distance sailing so it had a lot of UV but the key thing it was being hit by vast quantaties of salt water when water was breaking over the bows, sometimes the spray was the height of the mizzen boom. It was the weight of the water that did the damage by stretching the fabric, the stretching was obvious. If you don't sail in those conditions my bet is you could double or more the life.

>Of course you can buy Sunbrella in the UK. In fact, one supplier will even import to your requirements from the factory in France

That must be new it wasn't available here at the time we bought it, also as an American company I'm very surprised they have a factory in France, given the Yanks don't like the French.
 
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