You might expect a $10,000 fence to last more than 6 years. But just 6 years after installation, my back fence line began to cave in. No storm, no tornado, just multiple fence posts flopping over.
After some convincing, Imperial Fence sent an employee to inspect my fence. I was told that the posts "broke off" & they would be replaced/reset "free of charge and after warranty."
In reality, the Imperial Fence installers had assembled the back section of my 6-ft privacy fence over the original (OLD) posts from the preexisting 4-ft chain link fence. The 4-ft posts were not set deep enough to hold a 6-ft privacy fence & were not even properly set in concrete. Thus, "free" work was correction of the installer's mistake. But my goal was to have the company make good on the project, so I didn't debate repeated claims of "free materials and free labor." I even thanked them profusely. (Who knew when another section of fence would topple over & I'd need to call them again?) Well, "who knew when" happened just a year later! Only it wasn't a different section of fence. A post in the SAME section of fence was flopping around. Upon inspection, I found that it was an original 4-ft post, not set in concrete! This post was not replaced/reset during Imperial's last visit! They skipped this post when they came to fix their mistake!
So now it's been just over a year since all the posts in this section were SUPPOSED to be replaced/reset. I contacted Imperial Fence, and owner Ezra went from Dr. Jekyll to Mr. Hyde. In an aggressive tone, he reminded me of the "free, after-warranty" work. He refused to acknowledge that his company mishandled the job to begin with. Or the fact that, when they promised to redo the botched job, they only did part of it.
He continued, loudly steamrolling me each time I tried to speak, with his personal narrative that he went above & beyond. He made rude, sarcastic and snarky comments until I hung up on him...only to have him CALL ME AGAIN AND CONTINUE HIS RANT!!!
Unprofessional much???
But there's always a silver lining, right? My 17-year-old son, after a few YouTube videos, purchased a new (6-ft) fence post, set it in concrete and then rebuilt the section of fence. It took some time and effort, as it was his first try. (He's not a professional, LOL!!!) And it looks great! Who wants to bet that, years from now, it will be the last post standing?!?
Fortunately, I now have a new and reliable 17-year-old fence guy who is available at a moment's notice, in the event that other sections of fence develop problems. How many teenagers can build a 6-ft privacy fence? read more