What is Vinyl Fencing Made of? Let’s Find Out Here

If you walk through your neighborhood, you will find many homeowners installing vinyl fences around their property. Truth be told, it can contrast well with the landscape and your home’s architecture as well. You will be flabbergasted to know that vinyl fences are made from plastic. This raises the definite question of what a reputed vinyl fence manufacturer uses to manufacture vinyl fences to stand the test of time.

The key ingredient for manufacturing vinyl fences is PVC, which is expanded as polyvinyl chloride. There are mainly two dually boosted layers co-extruded with additives like impact-resistant polymers, UV inhibitors, and strengthening acrylic modifiers that make for an extremely durable material that can hold out against harsh outdoor exposure while being UV-resistant as well.

The outcome is that you get a vinyl fence that sports exceptional durability, is impervious to decay and rot, is UV-resistant, fade-resistant, and five times stronger than wooden fences. Premium-quality vinyl fences can last for decades. The most reputed vinyl fence manufacturers even offer a limited lifetime warranty on all their products.

Here, we will delve deep into the construction and composition of vinyl fences, which will give you a clear idea as to why vinyl fences are the go-to material for fencing requirements, privacy, or decorative purposes. So, let’s start.

The Manufacturing Process

Numerous additives are added to vinyl fences during fabrication to make them more resilient and durable. There are two methods of reinforcing PVC resin: one is through mono-extrusion, in which the PVC resin is injected into a single solid layer of different combined materials, and the other is co-extrusion, in which an outer layer, a.k.a. cap stock and inner layer, a.k.a substrate is created. This design helps fortify ingredients in places where they are most needed.

What is meant by Vinyl Fence Co-Extrusion?

Most of the vinyl fence materials that are there are co-extruded. In this method, both the cap stock and substrate resins are melded together under extremely high temperatures.

While the cap stock is concentrated with pigments, impact-resistant polymers, acrylic modifiers, and UV inhibitors, the substrate comprises PVC filler and other compounds that make vinyl fences that much sturdier.

The Secret Ingredients of Vinyl Fences

Polyvinyl Chloride

Polyvinyl Chloride, a.k.a PVC, is one of the most sought-after building materials employed in construction. PVC is widely used in flooring, windows, fencing, outdoor irrigation, indoor plumbing, and exterior siding.

Vinyl chloride monomer, or VCM, is produced by pyrolysis, i.e., the heating of organic materials and the chlorination of a naturally occurring hydrocarbon known as ethylene.

UV Inhibitors

The photons of unfortified photons can get excited on exposure to UV radiation. This results in the creation of free radicals, which can crack, split, or break down the fence material.

Vinyl fence manufacturers add UV inhibitor polymers to prevent the entry of UV radiation into the vinyl material and thus prevent its degradation.

It must be pointed out here that different types of UV inhibitors are incorporated in the vinyl fence manufacturing process, namely:

• Quenchers: This sends back the UV-induced excited particles to their ground state.
• Absorbers: These absorb UV light and then disseminate it as harmless UV radiation or heat.
• Hindered Amine Light Stabilizers: HALS act as a roadblock to photodegradation by confining free radicals caused by photooxidation.

TiO2 is the Most Effective UV Inhibitor for Vinyl Fences

Titanium Dioxide, or TiO2, is a titanium-based pigment powder used in the outer cap stock of vinyl panels, pickets, rails, and fence posts. TiO2 functions by filtering and scattering UV rays from the Sun and reflecting the non-UV light. This UV repulsion capability of vinyl fences helps them retain their bright color, thereby preventing fading and yellowing.

Impact Modifiers

Vinyl fences are often subjected to the thwarting of occasional hammering winds and other similar outdoor assailants. This is why impact modifiers like polymers and rubberized particles are mixed with the PVC resin, preventing fencing chipping and cracking.

The impact polymer modifiers offer flexibility to vinyl fences and help them absorb impact as well.

Acrylic Modifiers

Acrylic modifier is the next important additive to supercharge vinyl fencing material. They are great for increasing strength, minimizing outdoor weathering, and preventing damage from heat in extremely hot regions and cold in low-temperature regions. Some examples of acrylic modifiers used by professional vinyl fence manufacturers include Acrylate Polymethacrylate copolymer and Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene polymer (ABS).

Acrylic modifiers find wide applications in painting for lowering the chances of cracking and brittleness.

Final Take

So, this was all about the manufacturing process of vinyl fences. If you, too, want to buy premium quality vinyl fences for your property, check out the internet for a reputed vinyl fence manufacturer in the US. Visit their website to check a wide range of vinyl fences on offer, and choose one that fits your purposes perfectly.