August 6th, 2010 10:54 pm
Most automobiles provide an everyday means of travelling to where you where you what to go. These everyday automobiles are typically four-door saloons or 4X4 for moving people around, but for transporting goods you might need something substantial, such as a mini van, and then you might need something even substantial like a wagon. These automobiles make up the most of vehicles that you will find on the roads today, and they all have wiper blades that are used to clear water and grime, as well as bugs that can build up on the wind screen. If the water and grime is not removed from an automobiles wind screen, it can make it impossible to drive safely. The majority of these wiper blades are made from rubber, which is the established material to make wiper blades from.
The wiper blades made from rubber work relatively well but when compared to other newer materials that are now used to make replacement wiper blades, they have flaws. The main reason for rubber being used for wiper blades is it is uncostly material to make them from, and as a result, automobile producers fit them to all new cars. This is also the reason people choose replacement wiper blades made of rubber, but this is a false economy because of the flaws in rubber wiper blades.
We have said that rubber replacement wiper blades have their flaws compared to other materials, making them a false economy for people, but what are these better materials and what are the flaws in rubber wiper blades? Rubber wiper blades normally last 1000 wipes, but this number is rarely achieved as grime and other things damage the wiper blade. Some of the things that harm them are cold, UV radiation, ozone, pollution and chemicals. The main cause of damage to rubber wiper blades is the cold, this causes the rubber to harden and then fracture and crack when in use. If water gets into these fracture and crack and then freezes it can cause serious damage to the rubber wiper blades, and this can then cause the wiper blades to split when in use, making it useless at its job. To a lesser extent, UV radiation, ozone, pollution and chemicals harm the rubber wiper blades which slowly cause them to rot and crack, degrading their ability to clear the wind screen of water and grime.
There are materials that when used to create replacement wiper blades are very resistant to this type of attack, and the best of these is extruded pure silicon resin, as this is resistant to UV radiation, ozone, pollution and chemicals and it is also much more resistant to the cold. Generally, they can work in temperatures as low as -60° and as high as 200° C. Also, silicon is harder wearing than rubber and with all these factors together, you can get a wiper blade that life is opterational life is 3 to 5 times longer than a traditional rubber wiper blade. Silicon wiper blades are a little more costly than rubber wiper blades, but coupled with the fact that they last longer, you soon make the money back by having to buy wiper blades less often. It is recommended by most rubber blade manufacturers to replace your wiper blades twice a year, whereas quality replacement wiper blades made of silicon comes with a one year guarantee.
Some of the other enhancements in wiper blades over the years have been the invention of flat wiper blades. flat wiper blades are frameless wiper blades, and as a result of their frameless design, the wiper blade gives an constant pressure along the blade, allowing for a smooth streak free operation. flat wiper blades also look stylish and sleek due to their frameless design; they also have advantages in aerodynamic efficiency making them useful in maximising economy of automobiles.
Tags: Automotive, Car, motoring, wiper blades, wipers