Determining How You’re Using Your Tonneau Cover
Knowing how you use your truck and what features you need from your tonneau cover will point you in the right direction for choosing the right cover! Think about your day-to-day, or any special needs you may want to solve with your truck bed cover. The weather in your area may determine if you need a soft or hard cover. Keep in mind the durability and security of different designs and brands. All of these options can be narrowed down by your budget, too. While there are endless styles and designs and tons of features to choose from, the best truck cover is the one that is right for you. Read below to learn about soft and hard truck bed covers, security options, weatherproofing, and other great options.
Do You Need to Secure Your Truck Bed?
Folding tonneau covers offer a wider range of benefits, making them a great choice for someone with specific needs. The folding design results in greater durability and strength, which directly translates to additional security. While there are hard and soft covers in the folding style, the hard folding covers provide the most security of the two. Folding tonneau covers are easy to remove from your truck, meaning they offer increased security without being cumbersome. Using a hard folding cover with a locking mechanism will keep your vehicle safe from prying eyes and potential theft.
Other types of hard tonneau covers also provide adequate security; they are all typically made of durable materials like fiberglass, aluminum, and composite materials. While soft covers don’t have as many security benefits, they still can deter thieves from attempting to access your truck bed. For anyone who frequently stores expensive items in their truck bed, we recommend you choose from our hard covers. A hard bed cover will make your tools and equipment significantly more secure than any other style.
Choosing a Bed Cover Based on Budget
Like with many 4×4 accessories, tonneau covers come in many different price points. You can get simple, soft, roll-up covers that are held down with velcro and snaps, or automated covers that open and close with motors, prevent leaking, and can withstand high winds.
With the wide range of options for your truck, it’s important to consider your budget and practical needs. Some may opt for the cheapest option, not realizing that the design isn’t meant for long road trips at high speed, and others may be overzealous and purchase a cover that has extravagant features that will never be used. Generally speaking, soft tonneau covers are more budget-friendly and offered by many brands. While they won’t offer as robust a protection as other higher-priced options, they are perfect for some truck owners. When you’re looking at hard tonneau covers, the price can jump more than 4 times compared to soft covers. This is because they have professional features, retract, are custom-designed, offer more security, and are typically more durable. No cover is perfect unless it’s perfect for your needs. To find out about how we can customize a bed cover for your truck, contact Trails West today.
Keeping Your Truck Storage Dry
Different types of tonneau covers hold up in different climates better, so consider where you’ll be using your vehicle when trying to choose which model cover to install. The more intense the climate, the more protection your truck bed will need. UV rays, snow, and rain can all cause problems if your bed cover isn’t suitable for the climate. Soft bed covers and soft roll-up covers will likely let in some water during more intense weather. These soft, rolling, and snap-on retractable bed covers are designed for quick access. With the frequent rainfall and heavy snowstorms that Central Ohio typically gets, a hard bed cover is more likely to protect your truck bed. To select a design that keeps your truck bed dry, consider a hard cover with features meant to withstand heavy rainfall. Installing a hard tonneau cover with strong rubber gaskets and built-in drainage minimizes the chance of water leaking into the truck bed. Not every bed cover needs to be fully sealed. A soft rolling bed cover may work perfectly for some, and it all comes down to your individual needs.
Accessing the Bed of Your Truck
While security, durability, design, and weather resistance are all important aspects of bed covers, it’s also important to consider accessibility. The weight of a tonneau cover, removability, size, and stowability all impact how you interact with your truck. Hard folding conneau covers are heavier, but with a few quick movements, can provide nearly full access to the truck bed. One of the downsides is that you can’t fully open up the truck bed because the hard pieces are resting at the front of the bed. If you want to easily access all of your cargo and every part of the truck bed, a rolling cover is likely a better fit. Hard covers are significantly more secure and may need to be removed if you have large cargo. If you plan on accessing your truck bed frequently, a soft tonneau cover allows you to easily access your tools and equipment. Some cover styles are very easy to remove and store. They won’t require significant labor just to remove a soft cover and set it in the garage. A retractable cover is perfect for people with mobility issues or who can’t reach into the truck bed. A cover that is retractable can easily be rolled out with the push of a button. To learn more about your options, contact Trails West, where we can customize and install your tonneau covers today!
Benefits of Soft-Roll Up Covers
Roll-up covers are typically the cheaper options, especially if you opt out of models with premium features. For a low price, a soft cover will increase the fuel efficiency of your truck by reducing drag, allowing the wind to smoothly pass over and around the vehicle. Soft covers are lightweight, easy to access, and can be easily removed and reinstalled.
Top Truck Bed Cover Brands We Install
Trails West believes in providing our customers with quality products that we trust. We work with a variety of top brands to ensure we can offer the product that fits your needs the most. Trails West sells and installs BAK Truck Bed Covers, UndeCover, Leer, TrailFX, Tonno Pro, LUND, Pace Edwards, Extang Tonneau Covers, Rugged Liner, Retrax Retractable Bed Covers, Truxport, Access Original Roll-up Covers, and more.
Trails West: Custom Truck Covers
Trails West is one of the largest 4×4 and truck shops in the Midwest. We have a massive inventory on hand at our 36,000 square foot showroom, and can custom-order parts and accessories. Find the right tonneau cover for your 4×4 truck today and schedule a quick installation through our in-house team of technicians.