How To Keep Dust Out Of Tonneau Cover [3 Easy Solutions]

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Written By Waylon Joe

Hey, It’s Waylon “Joe” Kite here. I am a West Virginia native and a die-hard pickup truck fan. My story with trucks started with my dad’s 1989 Ford F-150, and it's still going on. I'll share all my trucking experiences (both great and gross ones) with you. I have a garage full of tools to fix and renovate trucks and a freezer full of ales. Do you want to join me?

Tonneau covers are designed to protect the cargo on the truck bed. However, these covers can get dirty when they face all the little dust and debris while protecting your stuff. You simply cannot afford to start the engine before making things clean, fresh, and almost new. And to do that, you need to know how to keep dust out of tonneau cover.

You need to make tailgate seal and install the bed rug to keep the dust away. This means you will be working on tailgate seal and installing the bed rug. You can also apply some well-reviewed protectants to make the surface polished.

Using some handy techniques, you can easily create a good picture for an easy solution. This is to keep the dust away for as long as possible.

How To Keep Dust Out Of Tonneau Cover: 3 Best Dust Proofing Procedures

High-quality tonneau covers come with a smooth surface. Mostly, the shiny materials are easy to clean and maintain. You can effortlessly wipe the dust away after coming back from a ride.

However, the real problem arises when the dust goes inside the truck bed. Over time it starts to clog up around the frames that attach the cover. As there are gaps around, dirt would spread through between the lines.

For this reason, you should take a few suitable measures to keep the dust away. Let me help you out with three different scenarios.

Sealing The Tailgate

You can easily protect the exterior with good fiberglass lid hardcovers. And you need to focus on the edges of the truck bed and make tailgate seal.

Sealing the truck bed edges is the first and foremost thing to do.

Synthetic sealer

Some good sealing products, such as TruxSeal, are in the market that can help you. This product creates a tight seal around the side angles and the top and bottom end.

Here are a few things you can do:

  • Install strong UV-resistant rubber around the corners for the sealing process. 
  • Clean all the areas with the alcohol-based chemical solution. These specially made solutions clean deeply.
  • Attach the rubber side pieces uniformly and gently to ensure it sticks firmly.
  • You can also cover the surface with strips, an optional recommendation.

The process is going to seal the tailgate. This means that nothing can get into the truck bed. And It will keep all the dust away on dusty roads.

In addition just a thought: the robust materials do not fall short of any moisture formation. It has good external humidity resistance capabilities. 

How To Keep Dust Out Of Tonneau Cover
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Foamy strips

Foamy strips are another durable alternative you can use. Let me tell you how:

  • Buy a good-looking foamy strip from the market.
  • The soft foamy material is more flexible and does not accumulate hefty dirt. This is something that the harder materials do over time.
  • Soft strips are also easy to maintain and clean.
  • It stays sealed for a longer period.

The aim is to close down the tailgate gaps. You can do it by applying some other methods as well. I am going to help you with such alternatives. 

Oil-based sealer

There is also another alternative out there for you to explore. Oil sealing is also an excellent function that you can imply.

Sealing the steel and aluminum edges with oil can protect them from dirt piling up. The oil-bonded chemical adhesives do not also disturb the quality of the rubber seals.

You can add oil to any type of sealant to strengthen the protection. 

How To Keep Dust Out Of Tonneau Cover: Installing BedRug 

The tonneau cover hinges create gaps for any dust to get in. The good idea is to install the right-sized bed rugs or bed liners

There are plenty of bed liners and bed mats available in the market. They support almost all truck brands. You can get easy maintenance and higher durability from these rugs.

Here are a few benefits you can achieve:

  • Good quality carpeting alternatives do not allow the formation of dirt density
  • The cell foam padding system directly relates to the resistance factor
  • Waterproofed design that can hold any type of strong chemicals for cleaning
  • Zero mold growth from moisturization

The hinges create gaps, and the bed rug covers such areas. As the insulation is done, there will be no dirt inside the truck bed cover from dusty roads.

These products are usually made of full-on polypropylene material. Here are the benefits you are going to get from such outlining. 

  • Inexpensive materials that provide good value for money
  • The light biodegradable carbon footprint doesn’t leave behind any chemicals when cleaned. This means there will be no health hazards even if the residual smell is inhaled
  • Any kind of intruding dirt will stick out and not mix, which erodes the surface.
  • Can handle any type of external solid physical stress with no impact.

The bed linings are going to support the tailgate sealing sufficiently. When all the adequate measures are applied, you don’t need to work hard on the cleaning. 

How To Keep Dust Out Of Tonneau Cover
Image credit: ferrario.com

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How To Keep Dust Out Of Tonneau Cover: Using Truck Bed Cover Spray Protectants

Spray protectants can offer a suitable treatment procedure on all corners of the truck bed area. You can use it right after a thorough cleaning. 

Before heading out for a drive, you can apply for instantly-drying protection on the exterior of the truck bed. Wide varieties of spray protectants are available in the market to suit your needs.

Just a few minutes of spraying can do the job. Here are the benefits that you can get in no time.

  • Smoothens the tonneau covers to protect the surface from getting dirty. The chemical components will stay there long, preventing any external influences. 
  • If you spray around the inside corners, the arriving dust will move away. 
  • The chemicals do not hold on to a residue, so there are zero side effects.
  • You can apply the protectant to the rubber sealants as well. This will make the protection more durable. All the measures will work together to keep dirt out effectively. 

The tonneau cover will look dust free, fresh and new when you apply them more frequently. This further helps to clean and maintain the truck bed covers more efficiently. 

How To Keep Dust Out Of Tonneau Cover: Dusted Tonneau Cover Cleaning And Maintenance Guide

When there is too much dirt in the area, you must do more than just brush and spray.

This ensures that the truck bed and cover are entirely dirt-free. All three procedures I have just shared will be a great aid in keeping the covers clean.

A weekly maintenance process is essential for better working results.

These are the things you can do as your maintenance routine:

  • A vacuum cleaner is a quick solution to sweep off extra dust.
  • A car foam wash kit can help you clean all the tiny edges perfectly and easily.
  • You can use a cleaning brush to clean the corners that corrode faster.
  • Clean any strips with a simple and slightly water-soaked towel. Make sure that the towel is soft. 
  • Scrub out the bottom plastic or metal surfaces using a standard chemical solution.
  • You can clean any bad grease or heavy dirt with certain dish soap.
  • Let some time for the surfaces to dry.
  • As stated before, spray the protectants for a fine finish. This will keep the surfaces from attracting dirt and dust from gravel roads in the future.

As you can imagine, keeping the dust out involves proper cleaning. It simply complements the before and after effects of the cleaning. 

FAQs: How To Keep Dust Out Of Tonneau Cover

Should I roll up my tonneau cover during the car wash?

Rolling is unnecessary if the tonneau cover is made of hard plastic or fiberglass. There is no impact on the surface when the car is washed. If the cover is painted, roll it up to prevent any damage. 

What is the best cleaner for a tonneau cover?

A good cleaning effect happens with a simple chemical-induced warm water solution. A product such as TechCare Gentle Car Shampoo is quite popular. The chemical ingredient removes any dirt easily.  

Can you wax a tonneau cover?

It is not recommended to wax the cover. Alternatively, you can use a simple water-based solution to clean the tonneau cover. Only use the products that are specifically made to clean the cover. 

 

Conclusion: How To Keep Dust Out Of Tonneau Cover

Keeping dust away from the tonneau cover is not a difficult task. Only a few smart tactics can do the job. 

As mentioned all over the platform, an effective cleaning and protection process is required all over the platform. This is in the back end of the truck to make things work. A clean truck will make a clean cover. 

Hopefully, you got the right indication to follow.

See you next time, goodbye for now!

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