How do you protect machinery, motors, boats, buildings, vehicles, and electronics from corrosion? Have you heard about UltraTech’s elegant solution, the Ultra-Every Dry coating? It keeps water, ice, refined oils, acids, bases, and other destructive liquids from destroying your property, and it looks like magic when you see it at work.
Ultra-Ever Dry will grab your attention as soon as you see one of their demonstration videos. This oleophobic and superhydrophobic material repels chemicals so well they simply slide off a treated surface without leaving a trace of their presence. The coating itself is semi-translucent so you can barely see it’s there in the first place.
You can protect all sorts of equipment, clothing, and items by simply applying a type of paint. This “paint” forms a microscopic omniphobic surface that repels salt and fresh water, acids, wet concrete, and some bleaches and oils. The coating can handle a wide range of conditions, from -30F up to 300F so you can apply it just about anywhere.
To help it work at its best, you’ll need to apply both the base coat and the top coat. Let’s begin this review of UltraTech’s Ultra-Ever Dry with the all-important bottom layer.
UltraTech 4004 Ultra-Ever Dry Bottom Coat, Translucent White
UltraTech Internationals Ultra-Ever Dry Bottom Coat comes in just one color—translucent white. It adheres to practically any surface you can imagine. Here’s part of the list:
- Steel, aluminum, or other metals
- Plastics, except acrylic because it has a high solvent content
- Leather and fabrics like cotton, nylon, etc.
- Wood
- Concrete and other masonry
- Glass (except the coating makes glass less transparent)
- Paper and fibrous materials, even tissues (watch their demo video and see)
The purpose of the bottom coat is to prime the item you want to protect so the top coat adheres better and lasts longer. Even if the top coat wears off from abrasion or wets-out, the bottom coat can still repel water and oil, protect against rusting and corrosion, and maintain the item dry and free from ice. It’s easy to prepare a surface and apply the coating. Let’s go over their simple instructions:
Steps to apply the Ultra-Ever Dry 4004 Bottom Coat
1) Make sure the surface is clean, then rough up smooth areas with either a heavy-duty scrub sponge or sandpaper with 320 to 800 grit.
2) Use protective gear such as gloves, glasses, and a respirator like a P100 with an organic vapor cartridge.
3) Mix the coating well inside the container. UltraTech suggests using a mixer that doesn’t spark because the gas from the coating is flammable.
4) For best results, use a sprayer and spray it in a fine mist. UltraTech has their own Ultra-Power and Ultra-Mini Sprayers, or you can use an airbrush or an HVLP paint sprayer with air compressor. Make at least two passes to lay down sufficient material.
UltraTech says the ideal temperature for applying the 4004 bottom coat is between 50 and 90 degrees F. Each gallon of the base coat covers up to 240 square feet and takes 30 to 60 minutes to dry. Once that time has passed, you can apply the top coat. If you’re in a hurry, you can speed up the dry time with a heat gun or blow dryer set to low.
Now that the bottom coat is done, let’s take a look at the top coat.
UltraTech 4005 Ultra-Ever Dry Top Coat, Translucent White
The UltraTech 4005 top coat needs the bottom coat to function at its best. But once your equipment or property is primed with the 4004 base coat, the 4005 goes on easily over the top.
You’ll want to use a sprayer for the best results. Again, use protective equipment. Apply the top coat when it’s at least 50F and not more than 90F, if possible. Let it dry for at least 15 to 30 minutes before you expose it to water. After one hour, the coating is also oleophobic. Once it dries overnight, it’s cured. Pro tip—if you have the time to wait, let the bottom coat dry for an hour, apply the top coat, then let it sit overnight for maximum durability.
Properties, strengths, and weaknesses of Ultra-Ever Dry
When it dries, you’ll see that the Ultra-Ever Dry has a matte finish that’s semi-translucent. This may not be noticeable on some surfaces, but it could affect the color on others. If you’ve treating a surface that’s exposed to UV light, you’ll need to renew the coating in a year’s time.
While it’s more abrasion-resistant than many hydrophobic coatings (according to its tests with a Taber Abraser), its omniphobic ability won’t hold up for as long on surfaces that are handled a lot by human hands or where there is water in motion against it, like inside a pipe or on the bottom of a boat.
It’s a non-flammable coating, but it won’t protect against fires. You can use it indoors or outside. Some people have used it on cars, others on boots or clothing.
While soaps and detergents make the surface of Ultra-Ever Dry wet-out, or appear saturated, once you rinse them off, the coating will usually become super-hydrophobic again. But alcohols and solvents like acetone and xylene will dissolve Ultra-Ever Dry. Canned spray paint is solvent-based and will dissolve the coating, too.
But if you pour sulfuric, phosphoric, or hydrochloric acid on the coating, they will roll right off. Many bleaches and caustic liquids do the same. Check out the Ultra-Ever Dry MSDS sheet spec sheet, and User Guide for all the details.
Compare Ultra-Ever Dry’s surface to other materials
Consider this: you have a droplet of water. If you place it on a steel surface, it remains in a partial bubble shape because of its surface tension. If you put it on a waxed car, you can see a more rounded bubble shape. A windshield coated with water repellent causes the droplet to ball up even more. Ultra-Ever Dry’s geometric nano-surface makes the drop of water appear to be a complete ball, almost completely round in all directions.
How does UltraTech’s Ultra Ever Dry nanotechnology work?
UltraTech explains their coating like this: it creates a textured surface that exceeds 150 degrees of contact angle. Substances with a certain amount of surface tension can’t adhere and can’t interact with the coating, they simply form round beads and roll off without even wetting the surface.
Typical environments and places where UltraTech’s coatings are used
With properties like oleophobicity and super-hydrophobicity, you can imagine that there are many industrial places that need this kind of coating. UltraTech lists some of their usual customers as marinas, factories, the military, and paper mills.
Think of all the places where icicles form in the wintertime on the outside of your home or office. The weight of the ice can cause gutters to break apart or warp. Icicles can also fall without warning and cause a hazard for people and objects below. The solution is to coat the areas where ice forms with Ultra-Ever Dry. Then ice won’t form because water won’t stay put long enough in those spots.
Consider homes and businesses along the coast. Even galvanized steel has a hard time resisting salty seaside air. Think of how you could better protect your vehicle and other exposed surfaces from corrosion if they were coated.
Anywhere you have tools, machinery, electronics, and systems that function in harsh environments, you’ll need to protect them to last as long as possible without failing. The cost of coating essential equipment is potentially much lower than attending to repairs and replacing parts ruined by water, oils, bleaches, and acids.
How toxic is the coating?
The Ultra-Ever Dry top and bottom coats are surprisingly safe. The safety data sheet says inhaling the fumes can cause headaches and dizziness or nausea. Eye contact may cause irritation. Skin contact may cause frostbite. On the upside, the ingredients aren’t carcinogenic.
Tools for applying Ultra-Ever Dry 4000 series coatings
As we mentioned, it’s best to spray on the coating. It doesn’t matter if you’re only doing a small area with the Ultra-Ever Dry 4000 quart-size can, or covering an entire building with the 4009 50-gallon barrel.
UltraTech sells their own specialized sprayers for big and little jobs. The Ultra-Mini Sprayer doesn’t need a compressor to help you lay down smooth, even coats. It’s very portable and simple to use, plus it has interchangeable and disposable parts to make it easy to clean.
The Ultra-Power Sprayer has advanced features like a thumb-control paint-flow dial, a three pattern changing system and an angled tube for downward or overhead application. It holds up to a quart at at time in its paint container.
