Today’ we’re going to put the cherry on top of your interior. Conditioning and protecting your leather is essential to prolonging the life and appearance of the interior of your vehicle. But with all the many types of leather, whether faux leather, vinyl leather, or real leather, are you doing it correctly?
TABLE OF CONTENTS
What Options Are Available For Protecting Leather Surfaces
To start, there is there options for protecting your leather, varying on the kind of leather that is in your vehicle. You have leather conditioners, dressings, and interior leather coatings. (We'll touch on this later on)
A leather conditioner is intended to maintain hydration in a leather car seat and other interior parts. The conditioner soaks into the top layer of the hyde, which helps to reduce the potential of drying, cracking, and other damage caused by UV rays and excessive heat.
A leather dressing is applied to help protect the surface against exposure to UVA and UVB. Consider a leather dressing similar with sunscreen for your skin. However, it’s also used to help improve the shine of the leather surface.
These two products were initially created to work with traditional leather upholstery materials.
But then something happened in the automotive industry – cost cutting. The manufacturers were realizing that genuine leather became costly to include in their vehicles. This led to the creation of leatherette and synthetic leather used to create an upgraded vehicle seat. It also saw a large addition of perforated leather seats.
These materials are painted then coated with a urethane coating – like a clear coat for paint. Even genuine leather today in luxury vehicles receives this similar factory-applied treatment. We’ll dive into this new process and the professional-grade interior nano coatings that provide superior protection for leather surfaces.
Steps For Using Leather Conditioners and Dressings
If you’re a fan of hard work, using a leather conditioner and dressing is the way to go. Let me be clear – there is nothing wrong with this type of leather treatment – it’s just more time and labor-intensive vs using a professional leather nano ceramic coating. But again – we’ll get to that soon.
STEP 1 - Gather The Correct Supplies
To treat your vehicle’s interior pieces that are leather, you’ll need to collect the following:
A high-quality leather conditioner
A high-quality leather dressing
Multiple microfiber towels
A microfiber applicator pad
STEP 2 - How to Properly Condition and Dress Your Seats
Applying leather conditioners and dressings is a tricky process. It’s important to only apply these substances directly on leather materials. As such, there are a few tips we’ve gathered – that will help you avoid cross contamination or other issues.
First - Always Apply Liquids to Microfiber – Then Apply to Surface
A major mistake some inexperienced detailers make is spraying leather dressings directly on the surface. This results in having the substance stick to cloth, plastics, or worse – glass. Leather conditioners and dressings are comprised of many oils – which are extremely difficult to remove from materials not designed for their application.
Second - Use a Microfiber Applicator Pad
it’s a good idea to use a microfiber applicator block or pad. The key is to use two separate applicator pads – one for the dressing, and another for the conditioner. This will avoid cross contamination when treating leather seats.
Third – Apply – Then Buff Off
The final tip for using leather treatment products is knowing the process. It pretty much breaks down as such:
Apply the liquid product on the applicator pad, microfiber cloth, or microfiber towel. Follow the instructions for the specific product used to determine how much to use.
Spread the product evenly across the leather surfaces – again – making sure not to spread on other materials.
Buff the liquid conditioner off with a clean microfiber towel. It’s a good idea to use a high-fiber count microfiber towel – or one that is plush for the removal step.
Professional Interior Leather Coating Options
The simple truth is, that your expensive leather has been factory treated with a clear coat – which provides added protection and maintains the comfort of leather.
To provide further protection, Gyeon developed a customized line of leather nano ceramic coatings. Our Gyeon Leather Interior Coatings are specifically formulated for today’s leather surfaces. It bonds directly on top of the surface, increasing the hydrophobic properties, reducing the development and collection of dust and dirt, without negatively reducing comfort.
It’s designed for and been tested on all modern types of leather, providing great protection and no change of feel or color, leaving a fully matte finish. Q² LeatherShield does not stiffen the leather or make it more slippery, maintaining the regular comfort of use.
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