Whether you're in the urban heart of Brisbane or beach side on the Sunshine Coast or Gold Coast, your outdoor blinds and awnings will face the common denominators of dust and dirt, and require some simple, basic maintenance to keep them in top shape. But that doesn’t necessarily mean that maintenance has to be a chore!
In fact, with just a little routine care, you can ensure your outdoor blinds stay looking great for years to come.
Cleaning Fabric Outdoor Awnings And Blinds
1. General Awnings maintenance
There’s no need for an extensive weekly scrub of your fabric outdoor blinds or awnings, but periodically attending to obvious foreign matter - bird droppings, sand, wet leaves, etc - will make the task a lot easier when it does come time to clean. Plus the quicker you remove it, the less likely it is to leave permanent damage or discolouration.
2. The Awnings cleaning process
· Remove any particles on the fabric using a very soft bristle brush (a toothbrush is ideal), so you don’t spread debris or cause damaging scratches.
· Create a solution made up of 10 parts warm water and 1 part mild detergent, and apply this gently using a soft fabric cloth. It’s important you don’t use soap, bleach, abrasive cleaning fluids, alcohol, or solvents, and that you don’t scrub too harshly.
· Rinse the solution off with fresh water and wipe dry with a soft cloth or sponge.
· Allow your awning or blind to completely dry before retracting - this is incredibly important as failing to do so can cause permanent damage.
3. Tough stains on Awnings
If the regular cleaning process isn’t working, resist the urge to apply some elbow grease. Instead, create a weaker solution of warm water and detergent (20:1), soak a clean cloth or sponge in it, and leave it on the area for a short period of time. Once the patch is thoroughly moistened, gently try and wipe away the dirt as you would in the steps outlined above.
Cleaning PVC Blinds
Maintaining the pristine look of your PVC blinds is a different task and requires specific maintenance from time to time to ensure high visibility. The best way to do so is by using VuPlex, a cleaner specifically designed for cleaning PVC products.
1. For brand new PVC Blinds
· Using a soft, fluffy microfiber cloth, apply VuPlex sparingly on both sides of the blinds. This will create a barrier against water damage and abrasion, plus boosts the PVC’s clarity from the offset.
2. Cleaning older PVC Blinds
· Hose off your PVC blinds to remove any large debris or foreign matter and then let air dry, or use a clean, soft chamois to speed the process along.
· Using a clean, soft cotton cloth, liberally apply VuPlex to both sides of your PVC blinds, working in one metre square patches at a time. As you do so, you’ll find the cloth becomes more slippery, indicating the polishing process is almost complete.
· After finishing, give your PVC blinds a quick once-over with a clean, soft fluffy microfibre cloth to remove any leftover residue.
· If your PVC blinds have particularly tough stains that won’t budge you can repeat this process, but the strength of VuPlex ensures that’s rarely the case.
For more information, check out our full range of outdoor awnings and blinds or give the friendly Factory Direct Shutters, Awnings & Blinds team a call on 1300 on 077 125 today.
