Vinyl fencing has become a highly popular option due to its durability and low maintenance. But what exactly is it about vinyl as a material that makes it so durable and reliable?
Here’s a quick overview of what you should know. Contact a local vinyl fencing company in Santa Clarita, CA to learn more.
Built to last
Vinyl is not exactly a new material in the world of building, but it has seen some big-time upgrades over the years to make it both more durable and more affordable. In today’s manufacturing processes, vinyl features titanium oxide on the outer layers, which provides sufficient protection against the elements. Older vinyl would feature titanium oxide all the way through, which was unnecessary and dramatically increased costs.
The way vinyl is manufactured also makes it incredibly strong. In fact, it has five times the tensile strength and four times the flexibility of wood, which makes it extremely difficult to tear apart, stretch or otherwise damage. While overheated vinyl fencing can stretch and come out of its brackets if poorly spaced, vinyl that is used in the proper environments and installed properly will last much longer than wood in most climates.
One of the ways this overheating risk is mitigated is by the color of vinyl. Titanium oxide itself is white, and as such, most vinyl fences are light colored. Because light colors do not hold heat like dark colors, this means lighter-colored vinyl is less likely to have issues with stretching or warping. That being said, if you’re interested in choosing a non-traditional color, there are a variety of vinyl fencing colors available on the market.
In general, it is extremely difficult to break materials made out of vinyl. However, there are some situations in which vinyl might not be an ideal solution for your needs. For example, it shouldn’t be used for fencing near parking areas, as it will break if a vehicle collides with it. You’ll also need to be very careful about using a weed eater near vinyl fencing, as the weed eater could rip off some of the material.
Why you should go with brand-new vinyl
You should be careful if you see a vinyl fencing product is made with recycled materials. While there are many types of construction in which using recycled materials can be highly beneficial, vinyl is one form of plastic that should be avoided for repurposing, unless it’s PVC that was recycled after being trimmed off during the extrusion process. Otherwise, recycled plastics might add too many variables into the PVC mixture that could create a product that lacks the durability and stability of what you would typically expect out of a new vinyl product. This is one of the reasons vinyl fencing is so durable—it’s always made with new, never-before-used plastic materials.
Interested in learning more about some of the properties of vinyl fencing that make it an attractive option for residential usage? We encourage you to contact local vinyl fencing companies like Vinyl Professionals, Inc. in Santa Clarita, CA with your questions.