Acrylic is Easily Damaged yet it is Durable – What is that?
Traditional Acrylic shower walls are promoted as being “Durable” however they are ALSO soft and easily scratched – what gives?
That sounds like (and is) a contradiction. How can something be promoted as being “Durable” while also being easily damaged?
When companies promote traditional acrylic panels as “Durable” what that actually means is that the walls are structurally sound and will withstand impact without chipping and they won’t easily crack on their own. However, the material itself is actually soft and WILL SCRATCH. It can be easily scuffed, scratched inadvertently with your finger nail, and sustain deep scratches.
If you accidentally poke the back of your elbow into the shower wall (blunt force) it will not dent or chip or poke a hole in it because it is structurally durable. It would be the act of turning around and having your fingernail accidently scrape the wall that would scratch the wall, or accidentally creating scratches by having a ring on your finger and as you turn around in the shower, that ring accidentally grazes the wall.
Often the scratches and dulling of the shine occur because the homeowner or the person they have clean do not understanding how soft acrylic is and how strict they have to be with the type of cleaning products and the types of materials that they use.
Examples include using a standard hand scrub brush with a handle, or the green or white plastic side of a standard kitchen sponge. These will scratch your acrylic shower walls and also create large visible patches that look uneven and odd because the shine that you see on the panels when they are new will be blotches with visible contrasting dullnet in the areas that you have cleaned with brushes or sponges. Cleaners with ammonia, bleach, or other solvents will chemically etch the surface, causing it to cloud, craze (create a network of fine cracks) and degrade.
Advice from authoritative sources on how to repair scratches on your acrylic shower walls include:.
Minor Scuffs: For superficial marks, gently buff with a Magic Eraser and water. You can also use a paste of baking soda and water.
Light Scratches: If the scratch catches your fingernail, buff the area with automotive rubbing compounds, or specialized polishes like Novus Plastic Polish.
Deeper Scratches: For more severe scratches, repair kits for acrylic use progressive wet/dry sandpaper (e.g., grits 320, 600, and 2000) followed by a polish to restore the glossy finish
https://americanacrylics.com/how-to-clean-acrylic-without-scratching/
