Boating Tip 001: Acrylic Windshield Care & Maintenance | via Acrylico

*Article pertaining more towards Seahunt owners and those with acrylic windshields.

With proper due care and attention, your AcryliCo windshields and windows should afford you many
years of trouble-free service, can keep your boat transparencies looking and performing like new.
Through a basic understanding of acrylic and its properties, and by using the proper care products
and techniques your AcryliCo products should afford you trouble-free service.

First, most windshields are acrylic plastic, as opposed to “Lexan” or polycarbonate, and therefore
regardless of hardening treatments and protection, acrylic is a scratch-able material. Therefore proper
care involves avoiding scratches which are preventable by taking due care and attention with those
which are not. Thus when cleaning a window, always remove as much (abrasive) dirt as possible without
touching the surface. Ideally this would involve flushing the surface with clean water and allowing the
accumulated residue to soak. You may find by adding a little dish washing liquid to the water, the soaking
process is improved. If a little rubbing is required, do this lightly with your bare hand. After a final flushing
with clean water, carefully dry with a clean lint-free soft cloth. This should be followed by the use a good
grade cleaner/polish specifically intended for acrylic windows, following the manufacturers directions.

There are many different brands for cleaners and polishes, and everybody seems to have a favorite; from
the most adequate offering excellent results, to those which are very poor or even dangerous. The best
ones, which are specifically designed and formulated to be safely used on acrylic plastics, tend to be
the commercial ones, and will always not only offer the best results, but more importantly be free from
solvents, abrasives or other chemicals which could affect the longevity of your windshield and windows.

MICRO ABRASIONS TREATMENT:

Good and safe care products vary in their properties and ease of use, so if you are not satisfied with
the results of one, try a different brand. We recommend you talk with other boaters about what they are
using, or check boating blogs on-line. Whatever your choice, the safest route is to choose a product
intended for use acrylic windows.

Other products we recommend you never use, include any aromatic solvent, such as MEK, acetone,
lacquer thinner, gasoline — a minor fuel spill should do no harm — and, least of all paint stripper. For
the removal of masking tape residue or other sticky or greasy stuff, the safest solvents are 100% mineral
spirits or kerosene. Some alcohols are safe, such as isopropyl alcohol, but not all, so please check the
labels for warnings.

Concerning polishing cloths, we recommend use the softest cotton cloth available. One hundred percent
cotton flannel is ideal and available in good hardware stores. Old washed-out 100% cotton T-shirts are
an excellent alternative. We at AcryliCo have never found a paper product which did not scratch or cause
swirl marks; even those as advertised for cleaning plastics. Besides, one additional benefit of cotton
cloth is that it can be washed, thereby effectively recycling the material. Recently micro-fiber cloths have
become a popular alternative to cotton and we have found them to be safe and achieving a good result.

Your choice of cleaner/polish should also be based upon what is required. In essence, determine what
type of care is needed, and then pick the best products to do the job. Before commencing treatment, it
is best to understand what types of products are available, and they can be loosely grouped into these
three categories:
1. Non-abrasive liquid sprays, in pumps or aerosols, with or without scratch filling properties.
2. Non-abrasive creams with scratch filling properties.
3. Mildly-abrasive creams with scratch removing properties.

Since over time all windows accumulate minute scratches as part of everyday wear and tear, cleaning and
maintenance will be required. So, for those types of micro scratches which cannot be felt with a fingernail
but can visibly be seen when flying into the sun, we recommend use of those products which can fill ultrafine
scratches, and importantly, are safe for regular use. However, if after such treatment, their presence
can still be seen when flying towards the sun, then the abrasive variety with some elbow grease will be
called for. However, it is very important this type of cleaner should be used only occasionally as and when
required. Most manufacturers of abrasive cleaners will usually recommend a follow-up treatment with a
scratch filling product as a second step.

DEEP VISIBLE SCRATCH TREATMENT:

In the event and misfortune of a deeper scratch affecting the finish of your windshield, which cannot be
remedied using the previous method, then a more aggressive treatment will be called for, but great care
must be taken so as not to ruin the finish of the windshield. The danger, here is to be gentle and not
getting carried away with an overly assertive initial treatment. Practically speaking, the only way to remove
a scratch from clear acrylic is to remove the material from around the scratch down to the greatest depth
of the scratch, then polishing the window back to clarity.

However, there are two problems with this process. Firstly, polishing back to clarity can become a difficult
process, especially if a coarser than necessary abrasive has been used to wear down the surrounding
area. Second, it is very easy to introduce an annoying and possibly deceptively dangerous optical
distortion if a large enough area has not been prepared, in other words, reducing the surrounding area in
a very mild gradient so distortion is kept to a bare minimum.

It is important to keep in mind some scratches are best left alone because sometimes the cure can
be worse than the ailment. Should the course of remedy be taken, elementary to success is time and
patience. Working with only the finest abrasive, it is important to wear down the surrounding area very
gradually, working a large enough area to prevent optical distortions. As a measure of caution, we would
highly recommend you practice on a scrap piece of acrylic first, to ensure the correct result can be
achieved first before tackling your windshield or window.

The 3M Company, Meguiars, Micro-Surface (Micro-Mesh), and other brands all supply kits capable of
completing such an undertaking — with the aid of patience and time. The kits usually consist of multiple
elements and progressively finer abrasive sheets or creams used sequentially thus removing the defect
and ultimately polishing the transparency back to clarity. Our personal favorite product is the Satinal pad
made by Transelco. This one-time-use pad is dipped in water which then creates a 5-micron slurry and
will remove fine scratches and polish back to clarity in one step. When used in conjunction with 600,
1500, or 2000 grit wet sandpaper, it is capable of removing deeper scratches, but once again we believe
it would be best to practice on scrap material first to ensure the correct result can be achieved.

In conclusion, we can say there is no fast and easy way to polish your windshield to perfection, and
hence any treatment will require much care, attention to detail, and above all, patience and time. Finally, if
your windshield in made from polycarbonate, or “Lexan,” then regrettably there is no good way to remove
scratches. Polycarbonate is so soft that any attempt to remove material by abrasion will do more harm
that good. Even for the hard coated varieties of polycarbonate which are less vulnerable to scratches,
trying to repair a scratch in these will only remove the hard coating. In such instances, your only option
will be to fill minor scratches with a scratch-filling polish or replace the window.