Restore vinyl upholstery

[DocPit]

In May, I took delivery of a Bennington 20 SLL. I have not been using the mooring cover because I use the boat almost every day. I did apply 303 Aerospace Protectant to the vinyl upholstery as soon as I got the boat, believing that if I applied protectant once a month that would greatly reduce any sun damage to the upholstery. I live in SC, where the sun is strong and hot. Although the boat is not yet 3 months old, I am already seeing what appears to be fading or oxidation on the vinyl upholstery. (See pic.) Applying 303 Aerospace Cleaner will not remove it. Yes, I do plan to get seat covers immediately. Meanwhile, is there is any restorative solution that might restore the faded color?

Also, I believe Puffin makes the seat covers for Bennington. $1750 for my 20SLL. Is Puffin my best bet?

Thanks.

[rbtnt]

I have the Puffin seat covers for my new Bennington. They did not have cut outs for the bimini uprights. The cover goes around them. My playpen and seat covers use the plastic clips that snap into the 2nd rail down. My Puffin seat covers just go down past the top rail and use straps with the plastic clips to reach the the second rail. The playpen cover goes all the way down to the second rail.

A friend had his seat covers made by a local canvas shop and the covers go down to the second rail with the clips attached to the seat cover itself. Im having my Puffin seat covers modified by a local canvas shop to go around the bimini uprights and to add a couple straps with clips.

[rickdb1]

If you've only had the boat since May, I'd be calling Bennington. The seats should not be fading that quickly, even uncovered . I see Pontoons setting out for display on dealers lots all the time for much longer periods than that with no covers at all and they are fine. Something does not look right with that seat, sun or no sun..

[belercous]

The fading/oxidation you're getting may be from the protectant. (If you want to ruin something, use Armor-All) Marine vinyl is made to be fade-proof (or very close to it) & doesn't need UV protection. You shouldn't need to put anything on the seats to protect them from the sun. Covering them will make them last longer, but often that's not practical. Those seats should remain good in the weather, untreated & uncovered everyday, for 10 years or more.

Marine vinyl is some good stuff & I couldn't imagine Bennington cheaping out & using an inferior material which is why I suspect the problem is caused by protectant you used. 303 was designed to be used as an interior, not exterior, protectant on aircraft so perhaps the sunlight is causing it to crystallize. You don't need the stuff.

[jgruberman]

In May, I took delivery of a Bennington 20 SLL. I have not been using the mooring cover because I use the boat almost every day. I did apply 303 Aerospace Protectant to the vinyl upholstery as soon as I got the boat, believing that if I applied protectant once a month that would greatly reduce any sun damage to the upholstery. I live in SC, where the sun is strong and hot. Although the boat is not yet 3 months old, I am already seeing what appears to be fading or oxidation on the vinyl upholstery. (See pic.) Applying 303 Aerospace Cleaner will not remove it. Yes, I do plan to get seat covers immediately. Meanwhile, is there is any restorative solution that might restore the faded color?

Also, I believe Puffin makes the seat covers for Bennington. $1750 for my 20SLL. Is Puffin my best bet?

Thanks.
Attachment 1552

Aside from any issues caused to the seats by protectant, my reply is strictly from a repair perspective having just undergone a similar issue.

I had a "vinyl/leather/upholstry" repair guy(https://www.fibrenew.com/) come to fix a few tears/patches in one of my seats and he ended up dying the entire vinyl seat again so it was color matched to the patches. I'm sure someone can do the same for you without the patchwork and just re-dye it to match again? The entire job(3 patches and full seat dye) cost me about $250 to give you an idea of what to expect if you end up going this route. Seems like they're franchised and maybe there's one near you? Also, worth noting, he gave me a quote over email just by looking at pictures of the damages.

*I don't work for this company or have any interest in them financially, just speaking strictly as a happy customer*