I want to share some helpful hints and tips for others considering The Contemporary Fencing Company...
Firstly, the quality of the products is extremely good. There's no denying that the wood is of a high standard and the workmanship is excellent - 5 stars for this.
They guys were very helpful in sending part of my order when I need some of the posts urgently ahead of the patio being laid - Again, 5-stars for this service.
However, there were some things that I think could most definitely have been improved particularly given the premium price tag...
We spent many thousands of pounds on a bench and the thin privacy fencing solution. As such, I was very surprised to find that the powder-coated screws required to attach the panels to the posts were not included - The product is sold as a complete solution so this was very surprising and resulted in a delay in us being able to install. In fairness, when I called to find out where the screws were, the guys did offer to send some out free of charge (usually over £60!). However, disappointingly, they took over a week to arrive with us, although given a reduce postal service during Covid-19, this might be partially to blame.
There was no mention or reminder of needing these upon checkout, so that could be made more clear.
I also had to order some width-reducing kits which specifically stated coming with the required stainless screws, and these were missing too - a few were chucked in with the powder-coated ones but not enough for the full assembly. A minor thing, but frustrating nonetheless when spending so much. We had to buy some more of our own.
We purchased over £200 worth of oil too, which is sent directly from the manufacturer, who had stock issues at the time meaning this was delayed too - we weren't kept up to date with where this was, which again ended up causing a delay to installation. I ended up having the chase the manufacturer myself to get this.
When quickly phoning for installation advice, I felt that the guy I was talking to was becoming frustrated with my questions, all of which would have been negated if some installation guides had been provided with the order. He was a little blunt and sharp with me, which takes the edge off the service.
The biggest frustration, however, lay in that despite being told that we didn't need to treat any timber that couldn't be seen, the cedar has leeched tannin into our brand new k-rend planter on which it is mounted. This is proving near impossible to remove and looks to have permanently stained the wall that we had paid thousands to have rendered. I phone The Contemporary Fencing guys for advice and was told to try and jet-wash the wall but they wouldn't take any responsibility if I damaged it - alas, I tried this and it didn't work. We also tried a few different acid-based cleaners, on their advice, none of which worked. So we're left with a beautiful fence and a not so beautiful planter. Given that the product is specifically designed to be mounted on top of walls, I'm surprised and annoyed that there is no guidance as to how to avoid this happening- in fact, from what I've since read, the only real solution of treating the enter panel and post (all the way around), was advised against by The Contemporary Fencing Company.
One final frustration was that I must've spoken with 4 or 5 different people at TCFC and was often promising calls or emails that never materialised. I understand that the company is fairly small, so it's surprising that so many different people are answering the lines.
Overall, the quality of the product is great. The service surrounding it, no so great. So, if you want great quality products, you're in the right place, just don't expect a 5-star service to accompany it. A shame especially given the premium price, as previously mentioned.
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