Many people are not aware that acrylics can come in the form of sheets and also in the form of polishes. We know of at least one company which also provides acrylic polishes and calls it “liquid acrylic”.

Types of Acrylics

Acrylics as mentioned above are in two different types. Sheets and liquid form. The difference between them arises from the way they are manufactured.

Application of Acrylics Sheet Acrylics

Sheet acrylics are applied in a style very similar to laminates. The major difference is the usage of adhesive. For acrylics, normal rubber based adhesives like Fevicol Marine cannot be used. Several other adhesives are available in the market which are used for gluing acrylics to surfaces. This is because acrylics are “plastic” and if you have tried to stick a plastic, you will have realized how it slips off. A factory finish gives it a much better stability compared to on-site finish.

Acrylic Polishes

Acrylic polishes can be done on a surface like MDF, HDF or HDHMR. These surfaces have lesser pores which makes them better to work with and give a finer and smoother finish. Acrylic polishes need several rounds of sanding and polishing which is not just cumbersome and time consuming but also requires a lot of expertise to achieve. Hence most of the companies do not do this finish.

Benefits of Acrylics

Acrylics of both the kinds described above have some definite benefits compared to several other finishes like laminates.

1. Hardness: Acrylics are much more harder compared to laminates. In fact, apart from a couple of finishes like polyester, acrylics cannot be matched in hardness with any other finish. This does not mean that you can use nails and nothing will happen. They are a lot more resistant though.
2. Gloss: Most of the people who go for acrylics do not select them for their hardness but because of their shiny surface. Acrylics by nature are very high in gloss. In some industries, they are a replacement for mirrors as well.
3. In case of acrylic polish, the edges of shutters are also polished off giving a much cleaner finish compared to laminates and acrylic sheets in which case, PVC edge banding has to be fixed. These can also be applied on any surface.

Disadvantages of Acrylics

1. A big disadvantage of acrylic sheets in particular is the range available. Because of the way they are manufactured, making new designs is very expensive. Hence fewer companies make acrylic sheets and that too will possibly have a range of 20-30 designs to select from. This issue does not exist in case of acrylic polishes.
2. Price is also extremely high compared to laminates. This does not include the low quality “acrylics” which are basically high gloss laminates being called acrylics. This is unethical. Otherwise a good quality laminate could cost 3 to 4 times more compared to laminates.

Acrylics are beautiful and hard. Unfortunately, because few people understand what they are, many people fall for fake products being sold for acrylics at lower cost. Be careful of such deals.