Salon owners already know to recondition their acrylics a few times a year, but the average home tanning bed owner probably doesn’t realize how important this is, so I wanted to create an article that covers the basics.

Remember that your acrylics are made of acrylic, not plexiglas. That is one the biggest misconceptions in the industry. Plexiglas blocks about 97% of all UV that hits it, so it would be very unacceptable as a sheild for your lamps in a tanning bed.

Acrylic is a great but one of the problems with acrylic is that it breaks down when it is exposed to UV. Yes, the same material that transmits UV will slowly begin to develop an invisible film that blocks UV. Your acrylics LOOKS clear, but in the UV range, they begin getting “foggy” from the first time you use them. To remedy this, you have to recondition them from time to time.

The most commonly used product for reconditioning acrylic material is Novus. This isn’t limited to acrylic material used in the tanning industry either. Actually, it isn’t made just for the tanning industry, it just so happens that it is the best product anyway.

Persons who own home tanning beds need to use Novus #2 on BOTH sides of BOTH acrylics about once per year. Remember, the UV causes a breakdown of the acrylic, so the back side is just as important as the front side. Novus #2 is pretty cheap, well under $10 for an 8oz. bottle, and you can often find it in kit form (ie: tanning bed rebuilt kit) that has other products you need for daily maintenance as well.

Novus #2 is slightly gritty, and the idea is to strip a micro layer off your acrylics. You just use a damp cloth and run it into the acrylic like you would car wax, then clean off with tanning bed disinfectant or water. (NEVER use window cleaner or household chemicals on the acrylic, you WILL mess it up over time!)

What are the results? About 20%-40% more UV output, which is huge! This is like getting an extra 4 to 8 minutes worth of tan in every 20 minute session. Remember, even if the acrylics look perfectly clear, you can’t see in the UV range, so you don’t see what is actually being blocked.

When should you do recondition your acrylics? Every time you change your lamps, and at least once every two years. Salon owners, obviously much more. Be sure to also clean the entire inside of the tanning bed, including the lamps, when you do this for maximum results.

Where can you buy Novus #2? From just about any larger tanning supply company. Try one of the sponsors if you don’t have a regular company you buy from. Look for a “tanning bed rebuild kit” if they have one, which will usually save you some money since it has other products you will need.