Vinyl lifting problem, advice please?

[David McCarroll]

If he hasn’t used a pressure washer or washed it at all for that matter since he fitted them then he certainly hasn’t cleaned/degreased properly. He may have bee "fingering" it a lot to get them straight i.e lifting and sticking back down leaving the oil from his hands behind on the vinyl.

Regardless of if anything was used to help stick it back down, by the time you/he buys this then it probably outweighs the cost of replacement vinyl and for stripes its just not worth it.

My stand on it would be, If you offer a fitting service then he obviously hasn’t wanted to pay for a professional service so may be chancing his arm and where does the replacements stop. If he bought it on eBay or such, would the seller be refunding it- I wouldn’t have thought so. As long as your are positive you handed over a quality product that was suffice for application then incorrect fitting lies with the customer.

[Iain Pearson]

Yup, totally agree with David
In the early days when I set up on my own, every now and then similar issues would arise, and almost all were down to bad cleaning on the customers part.
I learned my lesson after having to replace media etc and decided to change tactics.
If the vinyl is "Supply only" then I give the customer a step by step fitting instruction sheet which emphasises the importance of cleaning and de-greasing.
There is also a disclaimer at the bottom that clearly states that replacements will not be supplied if customer chooses to fit themselves.

Vehicle graphics are a minefield at times, which is why I encourage customers to let us fit them, as it gives them a quality guarantee
Worst case – supply a new set of stripes and chalk it up to experience.

[David Rogers]

There’s a load of reasons for vinyl to lift.

What grade of vinyl did you supply?

Clean & degreased isn’t always good enough if they have used a silicone based ‘polish’ or trim spray within 2 weeks of the fitting or worse still any of the ‘nanotech’ coatings which makes the surface virtually non-stick.

Greasy fingers, stretching, poor application, mechanical car washes (spinning brush types) all can lift vinyl.

The only way to be sure is to get it brought in for inspection and assess it from there. Usually there’s no way to just stick vinyl down again.

Depending on the cost / hassle factor either split the cost of a re-supply & YOU fit or walk away from it.

Dave

[Paul Hodges]

If the suggestion is that the vinyl is faulty, then all of that particular vinyl will show signs of failure, i.e. not only will you see it on other jobs, but all of what you supplied will fail – or that particular colour etc.

If inspection of the decals proves that some of the vinyl (of the same colour) has not failed, then it’s going to be down to some other factor outside of your control.

We had a roll of Avery vinyl fail once, it had been on the shelf too long. It was obvious because all of that material curled up what ever we did with it but everything else on the same sign was good.

[Peter Johnson]

Agree with all of the above plus my tuppence worth.

I always tell the customer to ensure they wash the vehicle with plain soap and water.

One of the biggest mistakes people make when they ‘wash’ the vehicle prior to fitting decals/signs/stripes is the fact that they use some form of soap with wax in it. They think the car is super clean but there is a thin film of wax between the adhesive and the actual paint work. Also, if they use some form of de-greaser and don’t clean that off properly, similar problems can occur.
In certain circumstances, the de-greaser/wax/adhesive can react in a way to cause an oily film. I have literally seen stickers slide off some vehicles.

And, off course, they could just be applying it on top of rust/primer etc..

[Mark Newman]

Thanks for the advice,
managed to bottom out the issue to him using no gloves when fitting and the oil causing the lifting. by moving and replacing a few times, plus adding stretch to it.
So not my fault, and he has gone away happy, ish.
He said if it gets any worse he will buy a new set so all is well.

most of my sales are mail order at the mo, so cant guarantee the fitting is done right.

[Robert Lambie]

Regardless of outcome in the end here. "He fitted it"
You have no way of knowing if he used the guidance given. there for he is on his own.

As long as you are supplying 100% correct media for this type of application, preparing and posting it in the correct fashion. then you have done your bit. There are far too many variables involved in installing to start compensating someone for their own stupidity or inexperience.

Imagine baking a cake, then taking the ingredients back to Tesco asking for a refund because it tasted crap.
Do you think they would honor it or laugh?

Our industry is full of "i can do that" type folk. its being devalued daily by the likes of online sales of chinese cutters and more by "manufacturers". do not make the cheapskates lives any easier for them. your in business to make money.

3M one of the worlds leading vinyl manufacturers are guilty of this on a grand scale!
https://www.uksignboards.com/topic63750.html

[Ian Jenkin]

We have issues down here in Cornwall with many of the new VW vehicles being over polished or waxed which makes the vinyl lift also.

VW themselves now advise to leave a full 4 weeks (yes seriously) before any livery is applied unless you use some decent IPA cleaner or similar.

Not sure if this is relevant – but im having my lunch at work and thought i’d post it! 😀

[Hugh Potter]

quote Robert Lambie:

Imagine baking a cake, then taking the ingredients back to Tesco asking for a refund because it tasted crap.
Do you think they would honor it or laugh?

Great anaogy!!

I’m going to make a poster to that effect for customers to read while waiting for graphics they’re going to fit themselves!