Shade Sails is famous for protecting children from the sun’s rays while playing on playgrounds and play areas. These sturdy fabric tension structures provide shade and shelter, allowing children to enjoy the outdoors without worrying about excessive sun exposure. In this article, we will discuss the essential materials and features that shade sails for playgrounds should have.
Fabrics
Shade cloth is the main component of a shade sail and must be resistant to water, weathering, and solar degradation. For a Shade Sail to last over time, the fabric of its canvases must be of the highest quality, such as TensArch, a fabric structure made to last, manufactured in Canada with materials and construction methods that guarantee its resistance and durability. The fabric used is called Monotec 370 and is made from 100% round monofilament yarn with no tape or oval yarn filler.
Monotec 370 fabric is the world leader in burst and tensile strength testing, making it highly safe for Shade Sail. It is widely regarded as the best shade cloth on the market, with unmatched strength. Additionally, Monotec 370 is maintenance-free, dirt and debris-resistant, has a 15-year UV warranty, and comes in a wide range of colors.
Waterproof options
Depending on the user’s needs, there are other fabrics, such as Dri-Z, which is highly resistant and lightweight, used for smaller seasonal structures, or Ferrari 502/802 and Mehler, which are fabrics for large-scale, all-season applications. These fabrics are fully waterproof, have UV protection, and are available in various colors.
Finishes and corners
For the sewing and manufacturing of the shades, threads with UV protection are used to prevent deterioration from the sun, as is often the case with inexpensive, low-quality threads. The fabric used is double stitched and triple layered to increase the lifespan of the Shade Sail and, above all, to guarantee the integrity of the construction of the corners and finials. The cables are made of 316 steel, and all the metallic elements used are marine-grade stainless steel to ensure durability and prevent deterioration due to climatic factors.
Posts, fasteners, and hardware
Poles are also a fundamental part of any shade structure; proper foundations and poles are necessary for the fabric to be tensioned to the required safety specifications. They can be made of different materials, such as metal, wood, or plastic, with metal structures being the most durable, resistant, and easier to maintain. With TensArch’s technology, you can design and manufacture custom attachment points and brackets according to the characteristics of the place where you want to place the Shade Sail so that the loads are distributed evenly among the attachment points. The highest quality 316 stainless steel is also used to provide a higher level of safety and to ensure that the shade structure maintains its appearance without the rust and deterioration associated with lower-quality metals.
Importance of Materials
Selecting a supplier that uses quality materials for your Shade Sail projects is vitally important as these elements must fulfill certain specific functions; for example, sun protection is the primary function of a Shade Sail, so its canvas must be dense enough to block the sun’s rays and protect children from ultraviolet radiation. Wind resistance is also a vital feature of a Shade Sail for playgrounds because it must withstand strong winds and turbulence and not be easily damaged or dismantled. Therefore, the importance of its anchorages, fixings, and other safety elements will allow these structures to be maintained over time despite the conditions.
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