do i have unrealistic aims here

[labrat]

before i slam like a ton of bricks on a store i need to ask if im being unrealistic

 

we brought a gazebo on monday

today we went outside to check only to find it upside down and half the poles snapped or bent

wind speed here is about 18mph overnight

 

the reason it flipped, the guy ropes had snapped in the middle of the ropes, to my mind that makes the rope unfit for the purpose they were designed - i just dont know if thats an unrealistic attitude

 

i need to wait until 7 to phone the store but im going to go with the not fit for purpose role, any other suggestions

[Argyll]

To be fair you shouldn't have left it out overnight as it's not classed as a permanent structure. 

 

I bought a cheap one from eBay and it crumpled like a cheap suit. I got my money back. 

 

That being said I don't think it's been particularly windy in the UK well it certainly hasn't been in Central Scotland where I am. 

 

I'd certainly question its quality but perhaps omit the fact you left it out overnight. 

[unclebulgaria67]

The wind gusts last night in many western parts of the country were more than 18mph.

 

bearing in mind a storm was forecast on weather reports and in the news, you might face a struggle with this.

 

Have a look through the user advertsement/instructions etc to see what it says about taking the Gazebo down if windy weather is expected.

 

if you look at adverts for tents as an example, they generally state what capability they have for usage in certain weather conditions. You would not expect a £20 tent where it said it was meant as a cover against moderate weather conditions, to still be standing, if there were strong wind gusts. But a £100 tent that stated it could be used in stormy weather, should be strong enough to stand up to conditions, if the tent was erected per user instructions.

 

So it depends on what weather you had. I live in the west country and had items blown around the garden.

 

 

[labrat]

It was about 70

 

The instructions that came with it said nothing about taking down overnight or even anything about windspeed and was simply a single side of A4

 

the wind speed was taken from met office and I took an image of it (we are also in a sheltered part of the country) 

 

Oddly enough the other gazebo (a £25 special) is still standing but the guy ropes on that are triple the thickness of these

 

Annoyingly I have more rope on order at the moment as well

 

Good new is so far the store has agreed to replace but that may change when we get there 

[unclebulgaria67]

Hopefully this will be resolved later then.

 

There is no harm in taking anything back, where the item has failed and stating your case. It might be worth taking pictures of damaged parts, so you have these before taking it back to the store. Just as a belt and braces approach.

[labrat]

I'll pop the damaged guy ropes on the top of the box when I take it back, looking closer it seems more like string than actual rope, the other gazebos rope is about twice as thick 

 

Annoyingly I usually replace guy ropes on anything I buy with my own cord which is 100kg breaking weight but I ran out ages ago and the other ones in the post

[brassnecked]

Give it a try, they can only say no,   the guy ropes may well not be fit for purpose;  where I live in North Wales we have had 60mph plus, with 82 mph at Aberdaron last night,  so any gazebo would have no chance

[labrat]

Well it's back and refunded as no more in stock well done to b and q

 

To be fair we took it in and the lady on returns just mentioned she knew about it, as did the manager and apparently anyone else the twitter team and executive team could get hold of. 

 

Not sure what to replace it with yet so the old one is back up, it only came down due to a tear in one of the panels 

[brassnecked]

Great result Labrat,

[ericsbrother]

I had one that I tied down well and a gust snapped the guy ropes AND the legs and lifted the remainder and threw it halfway across a field. that had a tubular frame  fo lightweight construction so I bought one with a bigger thicker steel frame but it still feels the strain when the wind gets up to 25mph an where I live that is a gentle breeze