New management at Mer-Kote, now Parex La Habra/Mer-Ko, has instituted many new changes at the company. Gone is Dave Krubinski, who seemed to be the kingpin while at Mer-Kote for many years. Now, there's new blood, a new feel and a whole new attitude that I like to see. Mer-Ko's website has their new draft copies of warranties up and they are a much better warranty, allowing the consumer to select their choice of companies to reseal their decks (only under the new warranty, the old warranty still ties you to the original installer).
The old warranty is still a bone of contention, as you are still tied to your original installer (technically). However, large customers with a lot of decks, or even just a few, should stomp your feet and insist on being able to contract with any listed applicator and keep your warranty. Call Mer-Kote and talk with them and explain your situation, especially if you feel that your installer was putting you over the barrel, sop to speak...
See Mer-Ko's website for a list of "listed applicators", those who are able to install and maintain Mer-Kote decks. I'm glad to see the new management and attitudes. In August of 2008, executives from Mer-Kote will be coming up to SLO to have some talks with me...stay posted!
Oh, Mer-Kote says their new sealers will outperform their old sealer, and what their competition has too! Stay tuned to see what their sealers do when I test them.
The old stuff, for your reading pleasure. Not really applicable anymore...
A while back, in 2004, I made an inquiry to Mer-Kote about their warranty, resealing schedule and required maintenance, acting as if I were a HOA manager. I forwarded the information/reply to a manufacturer I do business with, who had done some inquiries of their own. Read on through, then see our opinion on this.
----- Original Message -----
"david.merkote" < This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it > wrote:
Subject: RE: Maintenance and Weather Deck
Date: Wed, 13 Oct 2004 20:55:42 -0700
From: "david.merkote"
To: "Bill Leys"
Hi Bill,
Usually with a Mer-Kote system installed by an approved applicator the reseal schedule would be every three years. However this is subject to change and dependant upon the actual warranty issued. Some decks can go ten years without reseal and some that are exposed (sun, heat rain and ocean salt water) should be done every two or three years. Let me know the name of the HOA and the applicator and I will look up the warranty for the job (if one exist).
David
-----Original Message-----
From: Bill Leys [SMTP: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ]
Sent: Wednesday, October 13, 2004 5:14 PM
To: david.merkote
Subject: Re: Maintenance and Weather Deck
Hi David,
Thanks for your reply... The functional life will be put into our reserve study. It helps to determine when we'll have to replace the decks.
We have an applicator now, we just were looking for options and info on a resealingchedule as conflicting opinions abound. What would you suggest as a resealing schedule on decks that receive sun a good part of the day (rain I guess too in the winter)?
Thank you,
Bill
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it > wrote:
Hi Bill,
Thanks for inquiring about our deck systems.
Mer-Kote Weather Deck has a functional life of 25- 35 years, when maintained properly. As for the applicator not returning calls, can you tell me who installed the coating? Unfortunately people do come and go in business and waterproofing is no different. If the applicator is still in business, I will be happy to contact him and let him know you have tried to call him, with no success.
If you are in need of a qualified applicator, please let me know as I have a few that may be able to provide the service you require.
As far as the decks being maintained by someone other than the original applicator, this could cause problems with the warranty. This is where we would need to talk with the applicator or HOA to determine how to maintain the integrity of the warranty.
Sincerely,
David Krubinski
Here's a reply from a manufacturer's rep who was contacted by a Mer-Kote installer-
"I talked with XXXXX at XXXXX in San Diego last week, Mer-Ko's biggest applicator and have even more juicy info. XXXXX showed me Mer-Kos 10 year warranty and we talked about it at length. Bottom line is that they write a 10 year warranty for the applicator who does the original job only (so he gets the maintenance contract), and that the warranty says you must reseal the decks every three (3) years for it to remain in effect.
Also the job must have been designed according to Mer-Ko's published architectural details and substrate requirements for the warranty to be effective. This drives the architects to spec the product and design it for Mer-Ko so they can get the 10 year warranty. This program is great for new or recon jobs but makes it impossible for them to give a ten year warranty on rehab/repair jobs.
XXXXX says Mer-Ko hasmade a living off of this warranty for years. I have giventhe warranty to Matt for his informationand am trying to get XXXXX and Matt together to discuss the issue.
Another interesting point -XXXXX says the Mer-Ko topcoat must be resealed every three years because it completely burns up by then. This is the most damaging testimony you can get about their sealer. And why he is interested in ours. This is how they are playing the game now."
In my years as an estimator, I watched some of my competitors try to sell a job to a client by talking about their "10 year warranty", glossing over the fact (or never even bringing it up) that if you want that "10 year warranty", you are about to marry that installer. What do I mean by marry? Simple-in order to get anything out of the warranty, very often the installer (or manufacturer, some are to blame too) requires that you hire them every 3 years to reseal your decks. Mer-Kote is the perfect example of this.
Basically what you are buying is a 3-3-3 warranty. If at year 9 the deck fails and you don't have your proof of resealing at year 3 and at year 6 by the original installer, you are going to be out of luck.
What the warranty is designed to do is to give that installer "residual income" for years to come if they're savvy. Sell a job and then get paid to reseal the deck 3 times over the next 10 years. Not too bad if you're the installer!
Dissecting this further, lets look at the sealer and the deck system; "XXXXX says the Mer-Ko topcoat must be resealed every three years because it completely burns up by then."
The sealer is the first line of defense, blocking UV rays from damaging non-UV stable materials underneath. When the sealer has burned up, it does not provide further protection from UV (like sunblock, it needs to be reapplied for continued protection), the materials underneath are now subjected to UV, drying them out, shrinking and cracking, just like our skin does when it gets sunburned. If the coating goes to long without protection from UV, the system is destined to fail. I have seen countless decks with Mer-Kote on them, failing due to a lack of necessary maintenance, causing huge financial burdens to fall onto Associations in the form of replacement costs that were not anticipated.
