First issue… insolvencies and law suits. Dexx, Brite, CPI (Eon) are gone so if you have installed any of these products and offered a warranty if these decks have problems… you could have issues with your previous clients. Careful what you sell.
Trex has another potential law suit… it has been filed, just has to be affirmed by the court and this one has to do with their warranty excluding labor, false advertising and generally shirking their responsibility.
check here for the filing : http://www.hbsslaw.com/files/Filed%20SComplaint%200113091232131450027.pdf
You all need to choose your favorite product, whoever makes it and READ THE WARRANTY that they are inflicting on our customers.
We could all look like the bad guys if we don’t get our act together.
I am having every client sign a confirmation that they have read and understand that the composite decking company warranty excludes installation and disposal costs should there be warranty issues. Our warranty only covers our woodworking.
Keep your eyes open guys!
L
GardenStructure.com~Build for the Art of it! Decks Blog
Replies
worth another runthru.
bump
94969.19
In the beginning there was Breaktime...
94969.1 Photo Gallery Table of Contents
It's impossible to build without a potential lawsuit. Every product is suspect. Good insurance is critical in today's litigious society.
The contractor should have replaced the boards when they were offered by Trex. Allowing a dangerous deck to go un-repaired is an invitation to another lawsuit.
OB
Edited 1/27/2009 11:34 pm ET by klhoush
I wouldn't install any composite decking. There just isn't anything about it that makes me want to use it. No one is asking so I guess I'm lucky, and after all the problems I have heard of I hope it stays that way.
i did a large deck 2 years ago using a composite from H D
the ends on half the boards were delaminating by the next spring
in the mean time the manufacturer has gon bankrupt
the good news is the customer supplied the material after seeing my quote using Trex . he claimed he saved $ 3000 supplying the material he he
if i had supplied it i would have had to go good for it , so i lost the markup but got out of the warranty
What's the deal with Trex? I've done (as an employee) few decks with Trex (what they call "Origins" now) and they seem to have held up well. Bad batch?
You would need to revisit the sites with a camera to find out for sure. They seem to have some issues.
We've gotten enough information from folks before they sign a confidentiality that we simply won't offer any warranty on the installation--even on 10 " centers.
L
GardenStructure.com~Build for the Art of it! Decks Blog
Have you guys used anything you are happy to call one of your builds after 5 years... and if you haven't filled out your profile with enough for us to know you are legitimately a builder and you are pro-composite we will just assume you work for a composite or composite marketing company.
We are looking at Azek as a possible option, one of our guys really likes it. Has anyone got a 5+ year old job that is located near one of our regular posters to verify?
Has anyone had any warranty service claims against Azek.. did they spring for the labor?
Has any composite company paid for your labour to replace defective materials?
One of our guys did 2 jobs for Brite before they were put out of business last year--they paid for the labor on both.
L
GardenStructure.com~Build for the Art of it! Decks Blog
Lawrence. Don't do many decks in composite-hell, don't do many decks either.
But, the couple of Boardwalk from certainteed-8-10 yrs no problems whatsoever.
One Trex-6 yrs, no problems whatsoever. All in NW Ohio.
A Great Place for Information, Comraderie, and a Sucker Punch.
Remodeling Contractor just outside the Glass City.
http://www.quittintime.com/
jc21
We have hauled away several (15-20) decks made from Trex. Mostly in a sunny climate. So I don't know if it is UV or the cold weather they get in the Winter. It's a tough climate. 300 days of sunshine. Then brutal cold in the Wimnter. It was in single digits last week.
I believe the problem was delaminations. But, not real sure. Have not had too many tear outs (same company doing the work) on the "normal" side of the mountains
I did a large project several years ago using Correct Deck materials. The decking was fine but the handrails and posts split (hanrails looked like they were run thru a table saw they ere split so cleanly) and warped. They gave me replacement material after a protracted battle but nothing for my labor. I used to put down approx. 3-4 thousand square feet of their material every year but have not bought one sq. ft. since. In short, by not giving me any labor money thay have lost out on many thousands of feet up til now and much more in the future. These companies really don't think thru their warranty. In addition I never hesitate to "bad mouth" the product.
I'm one job and done with the stuff. I can't wait to rip it up off my front porch.
Blind fasten IPE is next.
Rob-- Look at Tigerdeck, it's nearly as durable as Ipe but kiln dried, so less cracks and distortion.
LGardenStructure.com~Build for the Art of it! Decks Blog
I'm not taking another chance on voodoo decking. I have a mahogany deck on one property that is just fine after 13 years on the saltwater and on the same property we just did an IPE deck with hidden fasteners. For what Correct Deck costs I'm not very happy.
Thanks anyway but like I said... I'm done
Lawrence,
Any update on this suit?
We've probably installed 3-5k SF of Trex in the past six years, no known problems to date. I hope it keeps up.
Jon Blakemore
RappahannockINC.com Fredericksburg, VA
Hi Jon--
I have heard that it has been confirmed as a class action... haven't had much time to research though.
Sleeping dogs Jon... I wouldn't be checking those decks.
I can tell you that CPI Plastics is being liquidated... (EON).
I am really having a hard time keeping up these days... thus, not much time for blogging or research.
Hope you are busy Jon--
L
GardenStructure.com~Build for the Art of it! Decks Blog