Q. Does this stuff really work?
A. YES! This product has been designed and tested to provide stain protection, and to weatherproof and sunscreen fabric. It does exactly what we say it does. We have had chemists and chemical engineers working on this product for over 6 years from concept to development. Solar Shield Protection® is so unique that it has a United States Patent.
Q. How long will it last?
A. For maximum protection, Solar Shield Protection® should be re-applied once a year. We feel confident that if you apply it properly, it will significantly extend the life of your car upholstery, boat interior or patio furniture fabrics while maintaining its original color.
Q. Ok. So what does "significantly" really mean?
A. There are thousand of types of fabric that are for indoor / outdoors use and everyday companies come out with new ones. There is no way anyone could test them all. So, what we did was take the worst ones we could find, the ones that fade like crazy, stain like crazy and don't last, the ones that everybody gets mad at because the bought them, and treated them with Solar Shield Protection®. Then we did extensive testing on these samples. Guess what? The treated fabrics now had stain protection and a weatherproof barrier. The treatment acts to sunscreen fabric providing complete protection. It made a not so great fabric into something worth having.
Q. Ok. So what does "apply it properly" mean.
A. It means that you spread the fabric out as flat as possible, put Solar Shield Protection® in an (this is important) ALL PLASTIC SPRAYER preferably a pump-up garden type, adjust the nozzle to a really fine spray, and spray the fabric as lightly, evenly and as quickly as possible. Than you let it air dry for 4 to 24 hours and do the same thing over again. 2 light coats work better than one heavy coat. Now if you are in a big hurry, 1 medium coat will also work but 2 light coats are better. 1 gallon of Solar Shield Protection® will provide stain protection and weatherproof approximately 1500 Square Feet (Length x Width) of medium weight fabric.
Q. So how much is 1500 square feet?
A. A piece of fabric that measures 12 inches on one side and 12 inches on the adjacent side is 1 square foot. 1 gallon of Solar Shield Protection® will cover 4 car upholstery interiors including the trunk and floor mats. Or it will cover 2 sofas, 4 chairs, 2 ottomans and several pillows on a standard patio furniture set. Or it will cover all of or most of 1 house boat interior including the carpet. It will provide superior stain protection, create a weatherproof barrier and act to sunscreen fabric when completely dry.
Q. What else should I know?
A. 1) Always test Solar Shield Protection® on in inconspicuous place on the item you are planning to treat before you spray the whole thing. You do this by wetting the corner of a white towel with the product and gently wiping it on the fabric. Remember, there are a lot of not so great fabrics out there and you want to make sure the fabric is color fast before you treat it. If no color comes off or if just a little color comes off on the towel, it should be fine to treat. If a whole lot of color comes off, then you probably should not spray it or you should spray it really lightly.
2) Be Smart. This is a real, professional chemical. Don't drink it! Don't play with it! Don't spray it near an open flame or fire! Wear rubber gloves when you handle it. Only apply it in a well ventilated area! If you get it on your hands or in your eyes, wash it off with a mild soap and warm water before it dries! We went to great pains to make Solar Shield Protection® as safe as possible so don't make us look bad.
3) Don't spray Solar Shield Protection® on anything other than fabric. Look, we know that you are going to get some "over spray" on other things. WIPE IT OFF BEFORE IT DRIES. If you do that you will be fine. We also know that you are going to find a spot that you missed wiping off later after it dries. Here is what you do. Go to the hardware store and buy a small bottle of odorless mineral spirits, put some on a white towel and gently wipe the area with it. This will remove the excess. Now if you let it dry on glass, do the same thing and follow it up with some Windex or other type of glass cleaner.
Q. Any helpful hints?
A. Yes. Only apply Solar Shield Protection® when the fabric is reasonably dry and the temperature is above 60 degrees and is going to stay that way for 4 hours. Empty the un-used portion back into the original container. Don't leave it in the sprayer. Wash the sprayer out with warm, soapy water when you are finished. Make sure that the sprayer is totally dry before you put the product back in it to spray something else. While it only takes about 4 hours to dry to the touch, it may take up to 48 hours for the product to fully cure and bond to the fabric. This means that the maximum stain protection, weatherproof characteristics and sunscreen fabric protection may take 2 days.
Q. What can go wrong?
A. 1) You "over spray" it and don't wipe it off before it dries. Now you have to wipe the areas with mineral sprits. Sorry, but no permanent damage.
2) You "over spray" it on your grass. Solar Shield Protection® is designed to seal porous materials but it won't "seal in the green". Chances are, depending on how heavy you sprayed it, your grass will die. Sorry, but no permanent damage to the ground. You will need to re-seed.
3) You "over spray" it on your shrubs or trees. Just hose them off. They may loose a few leave but they should be o.k.
4) You accidentally spray your dog, cat or kid. Give them a bath before it dries. They should be fine.
5) Someone drinks it. GET IMMEDIATE MEDICAL ATTENTION NOW!
Q. I have a question that is not on this list, what should I do?
A. Go to the "contact us" part of this web site and e-mail or call us. We will get the answer for you as fast as possible. If it's a really good question, we'll add it to this page for everyone else.
Thank you for your order. We'll try hard to make you happy!
Q. Can I spray it on my boat cover, tent, tarp or golf bag?
A. You can but it is not made for that. Solar Shield Protection® is too gentle for those types of fabric. For a waterproofing product with sun fade protection, go to www.RayAndRain.com for that type of fabric protection.