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We were contracted to clean a stone coated steel type roof here locally. No pressure washing was used to clean this roof, because we all know what pressure can do to a roof. Besides, we don't even own a pressure washer! 

The cleaning solution for this was the cleaning solution we have used on hundreds of Gerard, Decra, and other stone coated steel roofs. We have never had a problem like this.

In fact, our cleaning solution is the same as the suggested solution on the companies own website! 

We came along, and did our job, but it revealed this, pre existing damage that was hiddden to us by the black algae that covered this roof.

 

The homeowner seemed happy when we left, and wrote us a 1200 dollar check for our services. He then stopped payment on it.

 

I contacted the company that bought out Dura Lock, and was informed that these Dura Lock Stone Coated Steel roofs were a big problem. He informed me that there are plenty of lawsuits and class action lawsuits against Dura Lock.

 

Guys, as a teacher of roof cleaning, i tell you to BEWARE of any Dura Lock roof! Modern Stone Coated Steel Roofs seem to be holding up fine, but if a customer tells you they have a Dura Lock Stone Coated Steel Roof, think again before you clean it!!

 

You might get blamed like we just did for a roof that has been proven to fail. The black algae might cover the loss of granules, and when you come along and clean it, you will become "the bad guy"!

 

You can see in these pictures sent to us by the homeowner of this Dura Lock Roof that there is granule loss, and you can see it (the red granules) in the grass.

 

This damage was pre existing, and Dura Lock roofs it turns out were well known for this! 

 

You can also see this granule loss, on the roof itself.

 

You can also see we did not cause this, or the entire roof would be losing granules, since our cleaning solution touched every tile on this roof! 

 

Even though this homeowner stopped payment to us, he still demanded to know who our Insurance Company was, and has already contacted them.

 

Here are the pictures guys

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Chris, This same issue happened to us a few years ago!! Made my a** pucker!!! Luckily the homeowner was understanding when I had the Florida Gerard Roof rep call him and explain that the roofs are chit!!! We always ask to see paperwork or talk to Gerard rep before touching a stone coated roof. Iv spoke about this on FB to a number of guys lately. FYI the Florida rep for Gerard ( who use to work for Dura Lock) is Derrick Chalk +1 (813) 417-5571

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Chris, This same issue happened to us a few years ago!! Made my a** pucker!!! Luckily the homeowner was understanding when I had the Florida Gerard Roof rep call him and explain that the roofs are chit!!! We always ask to see paperwork or talk to Gerard rep before touching a stone coated roof. Iv spoke about this on FB to a number of guys lately. FYI the Florida rep for Gerard ( who use to work for Dura Lock) is Derrick Chalk +1 (813) 417-5571

Thanks Ryan! We did contact Gerard Stone Coated Roofs here in Florida, and were directed to Derrick, who we talked to for quite awhile. Strangely enough, when this homeowner was told we had contacted Gerard, who bought out Dura Lock, he became quite angry!  I can't understand why, unless he plans on suing both us and Dura Lock ?

 

Derrick was a great guy to talk with, and he assured me that Dura Lock Roofs used a cheap glue and construction methods, one reason they ain't around anymore!

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I take it the granules weren't in the grass when you got there to do the job and maybe you didn't notice the accumulation of them as you were cleaning. I think I would have used my leaf blower to make them disappear before the HO saw it.

 

Hopefully the HO comes to his senses and honors the check. I hate it when things go other then expected.

 

Thanks for the warning though

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I take it the granules weren't in the grass when you got there to do the job and maybe you didn't notice the accumulation of them as you were cleaning. I think I would have used my leaf blower to make them disappear before the HO saw it.

 

Hopefully the HO comes to his senses and honors the check. I hate it when things go other then expected.

 

Thanks for the warning though

My Son did not look to see if the granules were already there, or not.  But my Son noticed no granules coming off the roof as he cleaned it, or he would have stopped cleaning the Dura Lock Roof right away.

It rained the very afternoon we finished cleaning this Dura Lock roof, and that is when the homeowner said he noticed the "white spots" in his roof, and all the granules on the ground.

 

The homeowner was happy with the cleaning, or he would not have paid us. It was only after it rained that he stopped payment on the check for 1200.00.

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Here is a lawsuit filed by a Florida Condo Association I found in a Google Search-

 

Dura-Loc Facing Suit Filed By Condo Association

While Dura-Loc has not yet faced a class action lawsuit from consumers, the company was recently named in a lawsuit filed by Cross Creek of Fort Myers Florida Single Family Condominium Association, Inc. In the lawsuit, the condominium association alleges it hired a company known as H20 Cleaning & Restoring, LLC to clean the roofs of buildings fitted with Dura-Loc shingles. Shortly after the cleaning company applied a foaming agent to the shingles, the association noticed widespread damage, including discoloration, on the treated roofs and surrounding areas (i.e. sidewalks, gutters). 

The association first sued the cleaning service for allegedly cleaning the roofs with the wrong cleaning solution; however, the case was later amended to include Dura-Loc as a defendant. This is because lawyers for the association had reason to believe the shingles were defective and could weaken even when fitted and maintained properly. The suit alleges that Dura-Loc’s Signature series shingles suffered granule loss (i.e., had begun to deteriorate and shed their protective layer), which resulted in property damage and other problems.

What’s Wrong with the Shingles?

Dura-Loc’s Signature shingles are coated in granules –  fine, sand-like grains often made from minerals or ceramic material fixed in place with adhesive or asphalt. The granules provide strength and durability to the shingles, and protect homes and businesses from moisture intrusion and other damage. It has been alleged, however, that these shingles were defectively designed. According to these allegations, the granules can dislodge, washing off the shingles and weakening the entire product. This alleged granule erosion may lead to discoloring, streaking, and exposure of the roof underlayment. If underlayment is exposed to natural elements it can easily be damaged, leading to further complications and requiring repair and/or replacement of the shingles, according to the suit.

Dura-Loc has been accused of manufacturing a sub-par product and failing to honor warranties that guaranteed the surface coating of the shingles would not deteriorate. If you have suffered property damage or related problems with Dura-Loc’s Signature Series shingles, attorneys working with ClassAction.org would like to hear from you concerning a possible class action lawsuit. 

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It is for this reason that I am registered as an LLC and carry a very large Liability policy. Never seen a Dura Lock roof in our area but will keep an eye open for it.

All Stone Coated Steel Roofing Products are not defective, and not all Dura Lock, or Dura Loc, however they are spelled were defective.

I get very confused when the names Allmet, Gerard, Dura Lock, and Decra are discussed, but I do know we have personally cleaned 100's of these stone coated steel type roofs, and never anything but very happy customers, as a result.

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Hello,

 

I popped on to share some info about the coating problem associated with Dura Loc roofing and to post what I found via goolge on the web.  This info only relates to the Dura Loc products that had the Colorquartz granules and current Dura Loc products do not use that and are fine.

 

As an installer of Dura Loc (Dura Loc is the correct spelling) roofing throughout the 90's (1000's of roofs installed with this particular product) in So Cal I still get calls about the coating issue each month. This has been a regular conversation between me and my old customers looking for a repair / replacement under warranty.  As you will  read, Dura Loc made it virtually impossible to get anything covered under warranty.  I can attest to this because I, the contractor, would get the calls from the homeowners constantly telling me they get no response, for weeks, to months to years of being ignored. I think to protect yourself from damage to these roofs you should arm your self with some background regarding the Dura Loc coating issue. The reality is you should probably not even clean these roofs, it will only make it look worse and open you up to getting blamed.  If you must clean them, do what the termite / tenting companies do here in So Cal, they make the HO sign a damage waiver. Let them know in advance about the coating issue and that power washing will make it worse.

 

 

This basically is the same file I send my homeonwers so they can see that I am not just trying to point the finger at Dura Loc, this court doc backs up what I tell my old customers, that I am not responsible for the coating issue and that it infact is a known manufacturing defect.

 

Here you go:

 

...its not allowing me to copy / past the 6 pages of court docs hence the attachment. 

 

I hope this sheds a bit more light on the issue and provides you with some back up if your getting blamed for damage to one of these roofs. 

WILSON v. Metals US inc Aug 27 2013.doc

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Thanks so very much Andy, for sharing your experience with these defective Dura Loc Roofs! 

The homeowner who's Dura Loc roof we cleaned has told us he is planning to sue our Insurance Company, if something is not done.

He also says he plans to sue Girard, who took over Dura Loc, I think by buying Almet maybe ?

 

I get so confused Andy, with all these names for stone coated steel metal roofs. As a roof cleaner, and teacher of my trade, usually cleaning any type of Stone Coated Steel Roof is never a problem, as long as pressure isn't used, and proper care is taken.

My company alone has cleaned well over 100 of these roofs, with never any problems, before this.

 

From now on, just the name Dura Loc will strike a big red flag in my mind, and a hold harmless will be signed by the customer, before we do any more cleaning of these older Dura Loc Roofs. We have done plenty of the newer Dura Loc roofs w/o incident, except for very happy customers.

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That's Terrible!

I have cleaned a bunch of these [ Not Dura Lock ] in Punta Gorda Isles.

Looks like some salesman went through and sold a bunch!

I feared trouble from the very 1st one!

These are the only roofs I do from a ladder.

By the pool cage, we have to go up on both sides a few steps, but that's it.

It may be fine to walk on them? I don't know, but I'm afraid the granules will pop off in chucks.

What you had is different. It's just granules that didn't adhere properly when manufactured.

I'm so sorry you got cheated out of your pay! Any of us who clean roofs with non-pressure, know full well, our cleaning method CAN NOT CAUSE THIS TYPE OF DAMAGE.

Only a pressure washing job could blow the granules off-or just the rain, if they are already disconnected, due to improper manufacturing.

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That's Terrible!

I have cleaned a bunch of these [ Not Dura Lock ] in Punta Gorda Isles.

Looks like some salesman went through and sold a bunch!

I feared trouble from the very 1st one!

These are the only roofs I do from a ladder.

By the pool cage, we have to go up on both sides a few steps, but that's it.

It may be fine to walk on them? I don't know, but I'm afraid the granules will pop off in chucks.

What you had is different. It's just granules that didn't adhere properly when manufactured.

I'm so sorry you got cheated out of your pay! Any of us who clean roofs with non-pressure, know full well, our cleaning method CAN NOT CAUSE THIS TYPE OF DAMAGE.

Only a pressure washing job could blow the granules off-or just the rain, if they are already disconnected, due to improper manufacturing.

Guess what Chuck ? The customer called up, after he stopped payment on his check for 1200.00, and suggested we settle.

He offered us 400.00, and that's better then zero. This happened way over in Lakeland, so I would have went way over to Polk County to attend court at 8.30 in the morning, etc, etc.

I decided it was best we settle.

 

Gerard, who took over Dura Loc said they will replace his defective roof under warranty, but parts only, no installation included.

I have not heard back from our insurance company, and this customer did say he planned to sue our Insurance company, for the cost of the roof installation.

 

The newer Dura Loc Stone Coated Steel Roofs are safe to clean, it is just the older, defective ones we have to be careful with.

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I think you made the right choice, take the $400 and be done with it.   

 

In the pic you posted of the roof you can clearly see a ridge cap is missing. Not to mention the fascia wrap is also missing a piece and you can see a dented seam in the roof tiles...which can leak.  

 

I would be quite surprised and this would be big news if Gerard is actually honoring the warranty.  The warranty only covers replacement panels and not installation of the panels though.  They will still have to find a qualified roofer to do the installation and pay for that service.  Last few times I called Gerard I was directed to call Dura Loc, Gerard was not taking any responsibility at that time.  

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I think you made the right choice, take the $400 and be done with it.   

 

In the pic you posted of the roof you can clearly see a ridge cap is missing. Not to mention the fascia wrap is also missing a piece and you can see a dented seam in the roof tiles...which can leak.  

 

I would be quite surprised and this would be big news if Gerard is actually honoring the warranty.  The warranty only covers replacement panels and not installation of the panels though.  They will still have to find a qualified roofer to do the installation and pay for that service.  Last few times I called Gerard I was directed to call Dura Loc, Gerard was not taking any responsibility at that time.  

This customer actually did the roof install himself!  He went through a Dura Loc certified installer course, to save money, and do it himself Andy.

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Never heard of that before, metal roofing like this is not a DIY project nor something you can grasp in a weekend of training.  I think he may be a bit more upset than a regular customer, afterall he did all that installation work and now he has a roof that needs replacing...even though it is incomplete.

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Andy, this customer more or less built his own house. I was told by Gerard (who took over Dura Loc) that this guy actually went through a certified installers course. But, like you said, a weekend course does not a roofer make.

His home is incomplete as well, bare concrete blocks, etc, etc.

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So as the installer, he should  bear some liability for the installation of the product which failed as you cannot be 100% certain that a defective installation did not cause the subsequent damage. You did nothing wrong and followed the company guidelines and methodology and have a history of successfully cleaning the same types of roofs, then you should not be liable for the damages. Also, if the MFG has admitted liability, then you should be made whole. No small claims judge would think twice about awarding that to you. 

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So as the installer, he should  bear some liability for the installation of the product which failed as you cannot be 100% certain that a defective installation did not cause the subsequent damage. You did nothing wrong and followed the company guidelines and methodology and have a history of successfully cleaning the same types of roofs, then you should not be liable for the damages. Also, if the MFG has admitted liability, then you should be made whole. No small claims judge would think twice about awarding that to you. 

He has contacted our Insurance Company, The Joe Walter Agency. We carry a Liberty Mutual 1 Million liability insurance policy.

I have heard nothing more so far  but no way will they pay him, because we did nothing wrong.

The manufacturer assured me they will come to my rescue, and admit that his Dura Loc was a defective one.

I am not worried about him winning, I just worry about him getting my Insurance cancelled.

 

In over 20 years cleaning roofs here in Tampa, we have never had to file an Insurance claim.

And we have cleaned plenty of Stone Coated Steel Roofs, from various manufacturers, including Dura Lock.

In fact, the newer Dura Loc  and Gerard Roofs, and some of the Allmet Roofs, cleaned up just fine.

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This is not an installation issue, it is a manufacturing defect.  The roofing companies, or in this case the home owner, are in no way shape or form responsible for the coating loss. 

 

Dura Loc lied by omitting the truth about the granules they were using, granules they were told on two separate occasions by 3M were not suitable for a roof coating.  When they did start having problems with the coating they made the home owners jump through hoops for months to years and still blamed the contractor.  BTW we are Dura Loc factory trained installers.  They blamed everyone else and the only time a home owner got anywhere was to sue them...and us.  We just pushed the memo from 3M across the desk and let the home owner read it...we were then completely off the hook and Dura Loc caved and replaced the roof.  That happened four times.  Very few ppl sued because Dura Loc was not a US based company. 

 

FYI, Gerard and Decra are by far the leaders in coating technology...they were the first folks to start doing this in the USA.  Every manufacturer has had coating issues at one time or another, the issue here was Dura Loc just refused to stand by the warranty they provided.  

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Andy, did Dura Loc use the 3M algae block system, with zinc and copper granules embedded in the roof ?

This system works great, on Shingles! 

 

As roof cleaners, we have noticed that shingle roofs using the 3M Algae Block system take from 5 to 7 years to get dirty, here in hot, humid Tampa, vs  3 to 5 years for non algae resistant shingles.

 

The Hurricanes of fairly recent years damaged a lot of roofs here in Florida, and many people chose to have the stone coated steel roofs installed. 

Gerard and Decra are well known names to us, as roof cleaners here in Florida. 

But these stone coated steel roofs DO get dirty here, like  nearly every surface does in Florida.

 

The heat and humidity here in the South Central Florida eventually overcomes and scheme to stop the algae growth.

 

Where does Allmet figure in, in the scheme of things.

Are they the original creators of the Dura Loc roofs, or was it Decra ?

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As far as I know, no stone coated roof manufacturer uses an algae block granule. Even here in So Cal they get dirty and moss grows on them.  I was always told a soft bristle brush with mild soap and water takes it off.  We did actually power wash an HOA one time, just have to be careful.  We are rarely asked to do any cleaning though.

 

When Metals USA acquired Dura Loc they eventually changed the name to AllMet. You can guess why... Dura Loc had a bad name.  I am pretty sure Metals USA also owns Gerard Roofing. They used the coating and granule technology already in place at Gerard for decades to now coat the new Dura Loc known as Allmet.

 

The letter below says they only purchased the assets of Dura Loc and no liability.  Which is very curious if Gerard is now offering to give your homeowner all new product. As far I know, Gerard has not yet been found liable or had a judgement against them...Most of what I found googling was the case I posted.  I did find one more, it was Weiss vs ..., he was our first customer to file a suit and as I mentioned we were dismissed from any liability and Dura Loc caved in and gave him new tiles. They did not include installation.  Mr. Wiess expected us to install it for free, we refused.  That was probably 2006, I don't recall exactly.

 

 

 

Allmet letter of Acquisition_0.pdf

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As for the history just do a google for "Stone coated Metal Roofing history" and hit up the Wiki link. 

 

This sounds right to me as I was in NZ many moons ago and we had Decra installed on our home back in 77.  Then we moved to the states and it was imported here from AHI...which is mentioned in the wiki. Decra now is made here in the states...Corona, CA infact just 40 min from me.

 

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I looked at the Decra site and saw nothing in regards to an algae block. The Gerard site does say they add something with a life expectancy of 5-7 years.  

 

The copper and zinc must be a composition thing, the whole dissimilar metals thing would the an issue for metal roofing. We cant put copper flashing with the stone coated metal roofing, the run off with stain the roof coating and you would have electrolysis where the metal roof is in contact with the copper.

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