Why You Want a Truck Bed Liner

For many people, their pickup truck is their livelihood. Whether you use your vehicle for a personal business, like contract work, on the job for a construction site, or to drag your gear and family out of the city for some much needed respite, your truck has your back. It gets you where you're going safely, it secures and carries all your cargo, and it may sometimes even be a bed.

Whether your truck bed is full of gear, people, or the ingredients for a tailgater, you want to make sure your investment is protected. Because in the end, that's what a truck is, a large investment in your lifestyle.

A standard truck bed is often quite bare. The painted steel is exposed to all kinds of strain from moisture, mud, and your cargo. Sliding heavy objects with sharp edges along the flooring and climbing in and out can cause the paint to chip and peel. Once that peeling happens, your vehicle's steel is exposed to the elements, and thus corrosion. Unless you can get the bed repainted quickly, rust is going to start popping up, damaging the structural integrity of your truck bed. Stop the rust problem before it even starts, and get a bedliner for your truck. 

Bedliners don't just protect against rust. They also help limit how much your cargo shifts in your bed by providing a higher friction surface, They also add a more professional, sharp style to your vehicle, and they make cleaning your bed much easier too.

There are a wide range of styles, each with their own pros and cons. I'll give you a brief overview of each style and offer you some suggestions on which we think are the best.

Bed Mats

This style of bed protection is the least expensive, and also the least intrusive. Simply lay it out on the floor of your truck bed, and your paint and steel are protected from potential damage. Like all bed liners, Bed Mats, like the TrailFX Rubber Bed Mat, offer protection for your bed floor and help prevent cargo sliding around. They also help keep your cargo from getting scratched or damaged by the metal of your truck bed.

They are easy to install, simply drop the mat into your bed, and they can be taken out easily for cleaning. The biggest down side to a mat is that it only protects the floor of your bed, leaving your sides open and exposed. They also don't protect as well against rain, snow, and mud.

All in all, Bed Mats are an affordable, quick and easy solution to guarding your bed, but if you're going to be doing a lot of heavy hauling we recommend going up a step.

Drop In Bedliners

Drop In Bedliners are the perfect middle ground if you want affordable, durable truck bed protection and ease of use. Pendaliner is one of our best selling bed liners, on both Auto Truck Depot and Tonno Cover Depot. Pendaliner makes two styles of bed liner, an Over-Rail and an Under-Rail.

The Over-Rail liner provides better all around protection for your truck bed if you don't have rail caps. It drops straight into your bed, and the high density polyethylene curves over to cover the top of your rail. For those not planning to use their stake pocket holes for accessory mounting, you should consider this version, as it provides better coverage. 

Under Rail Bedliners are more versatile if you're someone who uses accessories like tonneau covers or truck racks, or if you have bed rails installed already. These covers are built from all the same durable polyethylene materials as the over rail, they give you increased friction in your truck bed to stop cargo from shifting, and provide complete protection for the inside of your truck bed. Plus, they can be taken out and sprayed down, making your vehicle cleaning much easier.

Spray Liners

If you are looking for a more permanent solution to truck bed maintenance, Spray Liners may be the way to go. Line-X offers a Premium and Econo polyurethane spray which have been engineered to fill every nook, cranny, and orifice of your truck bed to leave an even, weather and water tight seal with no drips or sagging. This style of liner tends to be more durable and long lasting than drop-in liners and mats. Of course, you loose the ability to remove it, but if your truck is always hauling rough cargo or you spend a lot of time out in harsher weather, these may be the liners for you.

The Others

There are some other options available as well. BedRug makes a series of truck bed liners that look and feel like carpet. They are constructed from a 3/4" closed cell foam floor that won't absorb moisture. It's shock absorbent, soft to the touch, and provides better protection for your cargo against scratches and other damage. They're perfect if you find yourself hauling a lot of furniture or other cargo that could be damaged by a hard liner.

If you're looking for something with a little more rugged style, we also carry Wood Truck Bed Liners. These liners are custom built from plywood for your truck, and coated in a heavy duty weather resistant stain that is designed to last for a long time and keep your bed liner looking great.

Whether you choose a Bed Mat, Bedliners, or a Spray Liner, you will be doing your truck bed a favour. Each have their own benefits and limitations, and I hope I've outlined them clearly for you.

To ask more questions, or to inquire about an order, feel free to get in touch!

Auto Truck Depot

107, 42 Ave SW, Calgary, Alberta

Toll Free: 1-855-253-4330

Local: 1-403-253-4330

info@autotruckdepot.ca

www.autotruckdepot.ca