Car Owners Beware – Seaside Atmosphere Decimates The Life Of Rubber Wiper Blades

For most of us it’s a longterm dream to go and live by the ocean. The attractions are abundant and powerful. Amongst them – fantastic views, fresh air & lots of social, cultural & outdoor amenities.

But, on the downside, there are also powerful salt laden winds which destroy turf, kill off many other garden plants, start corrosion on cars and anything else made of metal, abrade paintwork and generally give a fairly efficient, source of abrasive material which attacks any moving parts.

In addition there are the high levels of ozone which are great for purifying the air, but alas, they also attack any rubber seals around the house or vehicles.

And finally, because the sand, rocks and water at the ocean are much more reflective than almost all inland or city surfaces, they don’t absorb so much of the ultra violet light which is present naturally in daylight. Therefore, there’s a much higher level of ultra violet light by the ocean.

Now, ultra violet light in small regular amounts is actually helpful to our health, as with ozone, there’s nothing it appears to like better than attacking any natural rubber parts it can find.

All told this explains why rubber Wiper blades have an even shorter working life than usual when they are fitted to a car which lives at the ocean. The salt particles wear down the rubber and act as grinding particles between the wiper blade and the windscreen. The ozone assaults the rubber twenty-four hours a day, whether the Windscreen wiper blades are being used or not, indeed, whether the car is being used or not. This attack causes the rubber to turn weak, and its structure to break down. Additionally the higher levels of Ultra Violet light also attack the rubber and exacerbate its stiffening & break down.

Because of the above I invariably recommend Silicone Windscreen Wiper Blades to everyone living or regularly visiting the coast, particularly people with boats or other interests that take them into closer contact with salt water & ocean air. Silicone Wiper Blades are totally unaffected by salt, ultra violet and ozone, as well as atmospheric pollution and many solvents contained in cleaning products.

A silicone blade in a traditional wiper blade goes a long way towards overcoming the problems caused by life by the ocean. Nonetheless, classic Windscreen wiper blades have a metal frame with joints which are also liable to attack by the salt, causing rapid wear and corrosion of the joints. Therefore the best Windscreen wiper blades for use at the ocean would be silicone Flat Blade Wipers, which brings together a one piece jointless frame and a long life silicone blade.