Gardeners Poles. Quality.

[cleaniac]

Hi fellas. 

Not sure if I am the only one noticing this, but is it me or has the quality of these slightly diminished?

Bought a new slx-27 (red one) and after 2 months of use, one of the sections snapped. Now I do use my poles hard, and bang through the work when on the rounds, I don't necessarily care for them as much as I should perhaps, but frankly I'm too busy working then wasting time wiping down after every use. Normally a Gardiner pole will last me 2 years of constant use/abuse before it starts wearing out and getting thin or breaking. But 2 months? 

Had a look at the section, and it is considerably thinner than my older worn out slx sitting in the garage.

Also the brush jet has started leaking, it's one if those quick release twisty ones..what's wrong with the old designs? They never leaked.

Emailed Gardiner and they need me to fill in an elaborate warranty claim,.with pictures, despite me already sending them a video of the broken section, just can't be bothered, I have cut the damaged section down, and put the clamp on the longest section left, it's only a couple of inches lost..

Anyone else found the same? Just interested..

 

[Alex Gardiner]

Hi fellas. 

Not sure if I am the only one noticing this, but is it me or has the quality of these slightly diminished?

Bought a new slx-27 (red one) and after 2 months of use, one of the sections snapped. Now I do use my poles hard, and bang through the work when on the rounds, I don't necessarily care for them as much as I should perhaps, but frankly I'm too busy working then wasting time wiping down after every use. Normally a Gardiner pole will last me 2 years of constant use/abuse before it starts wearing out and getting thin or breaking. But 2 months? 

Had a look at the section, and it is considerably thinner than my older worn out slx sitting in the garage.

Also the brush jet has started leaking, it's one if those quick release twisty ones..what's wrong with the old designs? They never leaked.

Emailed Gardiner and they need me to fill in an elaborate warranty claim,.with pictures, despite me already sending them a video of the broken section, just can't be bothered, I have cut the damaged section down, and put the clamp on the longest section left, it's only a couple of inches lost..

Anyone else found the same? Just interested..

Hi Cleaniac

Naturally, I wanted to respond to this post ?

Quality and Specification - The quality and specification of these poles has not been changed in anyway - the carbon tubes on the CLX & SLX range are exactly as they have been for several years - any wall thickness or dimension changes would cause us problems so we work hard to ensure that they are manufactured to exactly the same dimensions, tolerances, wall thicknesses and carbon layups as previous versions. Of course if subject to accidental damage or impact of some sort even a new pole could break - you would be best placed to judge whether this latest break was as the result of excessive force/impact or not - we would only be able to asses by looking at the pole as presented.

Warranty - The warranty form has been designed to be as simple to fill out as possible - this can even be completed from a phone where photos have been taken. Our warranty is a 'Return to Base' warranty (as is common for professional tool sales), but if possible, we like to be able to resolve an issue without needing this to happen. Providing a few photos and details will often allow us to make an assessment remotely. In the case of a broken section a few photos are much more useful than a video as it will allow us to inspect for signs of impact damage or unusual abrasion etc.

If you really do not want to fill in this form and take some photos then please get back to the Customer Service Team and request a Returns Number to send the section back and we can then carry out a full warranty assessment in house which in many ways is simpler for us and gives a more accurate assessment. If upon assessment there is no signs of accidental damage or there is signs of a manufacturing defect (such as a sub-standard carbon wall etc) then we would of course replace under warranty and refund the return costs.

Brush-Jets – We will be happy to look into this for you – please contact our Customer Service Team about this. In most cases we can resolve such an issue and help prevent such an incident happening again. For instance, if you are using a univalve then there are some precautions in use that our Team can advise you on.

 

[windowsurfer]

Sounds like you have the clx, as you referred to the red one.

I use a univalve n if there's too much pressure on jet capsules they do start leaking or pop off. Very frustrating, as old style lasted a long time without being faulty. 

 

[Alex Gardiner]

Sounds like you have the clx, as you referred to the red one.

I use a univalve n if there's too much pressure on jet capsules they do start leaking or pop off. Very frustrating, as old style lasted a long time without being faulty. 

Hi windowsurfer

It is not usually a pressure issue with the use of a Univalve and these brush jets. Rather the actuating of the Univalve puts a strong repetitive tugging force on all of the push-fit connections above it and it is this action that can sometimes damage the Jet Capsules. The same thing used to happen with the previous plastic fanjets we sold.

The way to prevent this is to fit a clip or 'hose-stay' to the gooseneck hose above the gooseneck which stops the hose and connectors being pulled when it is actuated. The manufacturers of the Univalve also supply such as a 'hose-stay' here is the link to their latest version – they also recommend that this is fitted if using the univalve with our Brushes & Jet Capsules – Many of our clients fit a standard metal O clip in this position as an alternative option.

We do have a new Gooseneck being released in a few months which will completely isolate any such univalve actuation forces from affecting any push-fit connectors on the jet hose or brush head. This will simplify the system for those using a univalve or swivel etc.

 

[cleaniac]

Hi Cleaniac

Naturally, I wanted to respond to this post ?

Quality and Specification - The quality and specification of these poles has not been changed in anyway - the carbon tubes on the CLX & SLX range are exactly as they have been for several years - any wall thickness or dimension changes would cause us problems so we work hard to ensure that they are manufactured to exactly the same dimensions, tolerances, wall thicknesses and carbon layups as previous versions. Of course if subject to accidental damage or impact of some sort even a new pole could break - you would be best placed to judge whether this latest break was as the result of excessive force/impact or not - we would only be able to asses by looking at the pole as presented.

Warranty - The warranty form has been designed to be as simple to fill out as possible - this can even be completed from a phone where photos have been taken. Our warranty is a 'Return to Base' warranty (as is common for professional tool sales), but if possible, we like to be able to resolve an issue without needing this to happen. Providing a few photos and details will often allow us to make an assessment remotely. In the case of a broken section a few photos are much more useful than a video as it will allow us to inspect for signs of impact damage or unusual abrasion etc.

If you really do not want to fill in this form and take some photos then please get back to the Customer Service Team and request a Returns Number to send the section back and we can then carry out a full warranty assessment in house which in many ways is simpler for us and gives a more accurate assessment. If upon assessment there is no signs of accidental damage or there is signs of a manufacturing defect (such as a sub-standard carbon wall etc) then we would of course replace under warranty and refund the return costs.

Brush-Jets – We will be happy to look into this for you – please contact our Customer Service Team about this. In most cases we can resolve such an issue and help prevent such an incident happening again. For instance, if you are using a univalve then there are some precautions in use that our Team can advise you on.

Thanks Alex for the very swift response. 

I was working from around 12 foot away standing at the top on a grass incline bank. with the property at the bottom of the bank I pushed on the pole to give it a bit more scrubbing power as I was cleaning the top 1st floor window to scrub some poop off, and BANG it went. It just surprised me, as normally they do take a bit of force, and i didn't expect it to fail like that. 

I will send you pictures, but to be honest, I have already glued the longer section left back to the clamp, and have been using it no problems and I am not exactly loosing sleep over it to be honest; your products are still top notch, but just wondered if anyone else had experienced the same issues.

As far as the water Jet it seems to be leaking on the 0-ring side, but I am going to swap over my older brass ones from the old pole so, don't worry about that either.

Thank you for your time. 

 

[cleaniac]

Sounds like you have the clx, as you referred to the red one.

I use a univalve n if there's too much pressure on jet capsules they do start leaking or pop off. Very frustrating, as old style lasted a long time without being faulty. 

Erm yes the CLX

Shows how much attention I pay to my equipment eh? ?

 

[Part Timer]

Erm yes the CLX

Shows how much attention I pay to my equipment eh? ?

Our new CLX pole clamps seem to come loose a lot quicker than our older ones. Constantly having to tighten them to stop the pole spinning. Probably 3 or 4 times a day on different clamps, this will obviously cause extra wear. I don't know if it's because we use bigger brushes or just lower quality clamps.

 

[Martyn]

Normally a Gardiner pole will last me 2 years of constant use/abuse before it starts wearing out and getting thin or breaking. But 2 months?

You must be flipping hard on them, ? my SL-X18 has done ten years and it's not dead yet. I wouldn't say I'm particularly good about maintainence either. I'm hoping to get a new one next year but this one will be kept in reserve.

When I started out you were lucky to get 6 months out of a cheap pole and 18 months out of a "good" one.

I got a SL-X35 earlier in the year, I can see no lowering of quality, for the money it's a really good piece of kit.

IMHO the new jets are much superior, the apertures are more consistent and they are much easier to unclog when you get a blockage, also they don't snap which the old ones were prone to doing over time.

That's my tuppeny worth, happy cleaning!

 

[Marko067]

If you use the close coupled hose assembly supplied for the jet capsules and a solid clamp on the hose just above the gooseneck, you shouldn't have any problems using the univalve with the  new jets.

Personally I like the new jets for the same reason as Martyn

 

[cleaniac]

You must be flipping hard on them, ? my SL-X18 has done ten years and it's not dead yet. I wouldn't say I'm particularly good about maintainence either. I'm hoping to get a new one next year but this one will be kept in reserve.

When I started out you were lucky to get 6 months out of a cheap pole and 18 months out of a "good" one.

I got a SL-X35 earlier in the year, I can see no lowering of quality, for the money it's a really good piece of kit.

IMHO the new jets are much superior, the apertures are more consistent and they are much easier to unclog when you get a blockage, also they don't snap which the old ones were prone to doing over time.

That's my tuppeny worth, happy cleaning!

Yeah I must admit. I am quite hard on my poles. 

For the record, this thread wasn't to start a Gardiner bashing thread, they are still the best and are the most superior poles on the market, it's just we are used to such high standards from Gardiner, when there is an issue it's noticed more as we naturally expect the best from the brand due to the good reputation they have. 

I know many view this job as a bit of a hobby too, so buying poles, maintaining them, caressing them buying new equipment is all part of the fun, especially if you are new to this game.

Me I don't want to spend a minute more than necessary on window cleaning related stuff, I don't want to spend a penny more than necessary on equipment to do the job, I want to go out earn as much as possible in the most efficient time possible, come home shut the van door and not look at the equipment, not think about the job, until it's time to go back to work..

Hang on...I am on this forum...? darn it...I'm off to play with my hifi or motorcycles..

 

[Martyn]

Me I don't want to spend a minute more than necessary on window cleaning related stuff, I don't want to spend a penny more than necessary on equipment to do the job, I want to go out earn as much as possible in the most efficient time possible, come home shut the van door and not look at the equipment, not think about the job, until it's time to go back to work..

Hang on...I am on this forum...? darn it...I'm off to play with my hifi or motorcycles..

It does tend to take over doesn't it? I like to get out with my camera when I can.