I am a painting contractor and have a customer that had white Alcoa vinyl shutters installed 7 years ago by another contractor. Five years ago we painted the trim but NOT the new shutters.
The shutters have begun to peel and chalk onto the brick. The customer is SURE I painted these shutters by mistake and it is my fault. Contractor that installed shutters insists they are not painted by him or the factory, so it must be my fault. Since I have worked for these people several times over the last 15 years i agreed to replace them even though I am sure we did not paint them.
Upon receiving the new Alcoa shutters i noticed that the instructions state that they are painted at the factory. Customer believes that Alcoa would not use a paint that would peel or run, so once again it must be my fault.
Has anybody else seen factory painted alcoa vinyl shutters peel and chalk?
Replies
Don't know the brands, but as a home inspector, I see chaulking form vinyl shutters frequently.
Bob,
Thank you for your time. I will be passing any info I get to the customer.
I have replaced my mom's Alcoa vinyl (plastic supposedly maintenance free) shutters on the southwest side of the house. They were put on about 10-12 years ago. We hadn't paid much attention to them because we thought they were maintenance free. They were in such bad shape they weren't worth painting. After looking into it the Alcoa vinyl windows come with a coat of paint on them and they will need repainting after so many years depending on the sun exposure.
The same can be said of the aluminum trim on soffits and eaves and the metal roofs. Eventuallly they will look crappy( or in the case of aluminum trim fall off the house ) and eventually need painting. By the way the box that the vinyl shutters come in read abjout a limited lifetime warranty but at $25 a window I just bought the two pair I needed and went on.
Tony
Thanks Tony. The customer has spoken with Alcoa amd has decided to file a claim with Alcoa.
I think she finally believes that we did not paint them five years ago, so it must be factory paint peeling.
I've installed Alcoa roof shingles intended to look like shakes (You've seen red ones on Pizza Huts) that do fade and peel occasionally.Excellence is its own reward!