Tarps are meant for protection. With tarps, you can protect your rooftop from rain or insulate them so they keep warm during wintertime. It would be a shame if after all the time spent securing tarps to stay out in the elements and give it their best years of service, tarps will just become unusable.
The good news is tarps need only some attention and care to push through many more years of use. Here’s how:
1) Store tarps inside when not in use instead of leaving them outside exposed to harsh elements such as wind and sunlight. By storing tarps inside, you prolong its life because it cannot absorb moisture on the surfaces which could cause mildewing and rotting that eventually cause tarps to fall apart.
2) When storing tarps inside, remember that tarps are mainly composed of cotton and nylon so does not keep them in places where humidity is high such as laundry rooms and near water heaters. Heat could also damage tarps so keeping heavy duty tarps near vents or radiators should be avoided. Also avoid keeping tarps with rubber, plastic and vinyl items because tarps will retain the musty smell from these materials if stored together.
3) If your tarp does not have a grommet, it’s advisable to sew grommets onto the corners before using it again especially when the tarp gets worn out from its use. Just measure from corner to corner diagonally then add 4 inches to make an even square. With this size, you can use a leather punch to make holes for the grommet or you can simply iron on grommets with no hassle.
4) If tarps need repair work done, it’s advisable to use polyurethane tarp repair kits. These repair kits are not expensive and they give tarps longer lives before having to replace them again with new tarps.
5) Do not use tarps with holes or tears because tarps are meant to protect the materials underneath it. Tarps must be in good condition all around so repairs should be done immediately if there are already visible cracks and holes on tarps.
6) When tarps have been used for a long time, they usually get dirty especially tarps that have been used outside. If you decide to wash tarps yourself, avoid using bleach or chlorine because these chemicals will destroy tarps’ protective coatings. Also do not dry tarps in machines because tumbled dry tarps may shrink which makes further damage more likely to happen along the way. The best way is to simply hang them up to air dry then fold neatly when completely dried out.
7) Repair tarps by sewing many new tarps together to make one large tarp. Just use heavy duty thread and sew tarps together on the material’s edges first then do it again using a reinforced seam at least 1/4 inch wide. Sew tarps together along the tarps’ longitudinal edges first before joining tarps end to end. Once you’re done with joining tarps, hem tarps’ open ends so that rain cannot easily enter into joined tarp sections.
8) Do regular inspections of tarps for any unseen tears or cracks that might have developed after months of use. Also, avoid applying too much pressure on tarps because this could cause further damage if tarps are not strong enough to stand intense pressures.
9) When tarps are not being used, store tarps under tarps that have already been set up. This will protect tarps from sunlight and moisture that could speed up their deterioration.
10) Enjoy the use of tarps for many more years to come by simply maintaining tarps so tarps can be used outdoors again after wintertime storage inside your house during colder months of the year. Just remember how important tarps are in protecting your rooftop or even materials underneath them so it would be a shame if you fail to give tarps some care especially when there are simple steps you can take to keep tarps usable for many years ahead.
Conclusion:
If you follow this article, tarps will last longer. So tarps are important to us. It protects our car and roof from damage. Tarps also help me a lot when I was camping. By using tarps, we can easily make a tent. There are many tarps size that we can use for various purposes of us. Bigger tarps can be used as a tent while smaller tarps can be used as rain covers or sun shades or table cloths or wind/sand screens etc.
