As with many
aspects of the joinery industry there are numerous ways to cut corners and
sneak in cheaper quality products. The polishing/painting industry is no
different. With an ever increasing number of imported joinery items coming on
to the market and many less reputable painting contractors coming and going we
have seen a significant rise in the occurrence of cheap quality lacquer being
used on joinery.
The problems
associated with cheap quality lacquers are often not immediately evident but
problems that can arise a few months down the track can lead to financial and
reputation risks that far out way a small initial production cost saving.
One of the
problems with lesser quality lacquer is their longevity. Whites can quickly
turn cream and lose that crisp vivid colour. Clears can turn yellow very
quickly as well, and this in turn will change the look of your timber joinery.
Below is an item of joinery that was coated by an overseas
manufacturer in a cheap quality lacquer with no UV inhibitors.
After 6 months in the front window of a shop it was sent to us for
recoating in a top quality UV resistant two pack lacquer.
What happens if you need to undertake a few minor repairs in a few months
time? Will a door that is resprayed look exactly the same as the rest of the
job or has the lacquer on the original section changed colour and now your
repaired panel does not match.
Colour variations are not the only concern. Cheaper quality lacquers can
have a greatly reduce functional lifespan as well. Lacquer can crack or become cheesy.
They can go chalky or even delaminate away from the substrate in extreme cases.
Some problems may show up immediately whilst others may not appear till a few
months down the track.
In reality the cost saving per litre of paint may be $2-5. Using an
assumption that generally one litre of pigmented top coat lacquer will cover 3
square metres, by using a cheap quality lacquer you may save $1 maybe $2 per
square metre. A very small saving to be made when offset against the risk of
major rework needing to be done in 6 months time.
At Simmonds
Polishing we only use the best quality lacquer for all our painting and
polishing. We insist that our suppliers support us with our lifetime guarantees
on all our surface coatings. As a result our coatings have stood the test of
time. As yet we have never had an item of joinery returned due to the breakdown
or failure of the surface coatings. That’s over $60 mil in painting and
polishing over 33 years and not one return.
