Customer service, Ameristep Pop up blinds

[alleyyooper]

I have not been over joyed with the two I have this year. I sent the following E mail to the customer service dept.

Not very happy with my dog house blinds this season. The
zippers have been frozen solid shut several mornings starting on Nov.
16th.
Now I was froze our of both on the morning of the tenth of Dec. I went
around and worked all the zippers to free them up in theafter noon but
once again they were froze solid shut this morning the 11Th.
Tell me what to do to stop this freezing shut zipper trouble.
I already have coated them with BEES WAX. I don't think Sno Seal would
work any better.

Why has a flap not been sowen on to protect the zippers? I would like
that better than those little leafy things.


I got this reply.
AL ,THERE IS NOTHING THAT WILL KEEP THEM FROM FREEZING IN OUR MICHIGAN
WEATHER THERE ARE NO ZIPPERS MADE THAT WILL NOT FREEZE THE ONLY THING
WOULD BE TO BRING THEM IN AT NIGHT I KNOW THIS IS NOT ALWAYS THE OPTION
BUT MAY BE THE ONLY SOLUTION AT THIS TIME
THANK YOU AMERISTEP

What Ameristep Is saying really is you only need one since you have to pack it into a warm dry place at night. Maybe a better bet is to buy one other than Ameristep where they protect the zippers from the driect water and wet snow.

I do have a different brand of blind and the zipper has never froze on it. It has course teeth and a flab that goes over the zipper to protect it some from driving rain or wet snow.
It was made in the USA when I bought it but is now made in Shri Lanka.

I think I have a fix worked out my self with some rubber type fabric and those stick on velcro fastners.


And the best fix since I hunt my own private property is to build permeant ones.

The Ameristeps were $140.00 at the local Dunhams a few days ago so I can build wood permeant ones for that.

Al

[gearheart]

There are zipers that can stand the weather. As a Scouter in Ontario we winter camp in tents that have robust zippers that can stand the abuse. They also have flaps to cover the zipper so that it does not get wet. The first time I took my "dog house" blind out it got little pieces of straw from the grass in the zippers and they haven't worked right since. Shoddy material is the cause. The teeth of the zippers are too small and fragile. If they used decent zippers it might cost an additional $10 per unit and if that added $20 to the retail cost it would be a bargain. I'd gladly pay and extra $20 to eliminate theaggravation caused by their sub-standard zippers.

[alleyyooper]

I tried a couple of things to stop the freezing before writeing them.
One thing I found after writeing them is Hopps # 9 MDL sprayed on the zippers thru the straw.
Still the zippers could use the courser teeth and most of all a flap over them to protect them.
A sheet of the cedar T1-11 is $15.00, 4 needed
A sheet of OSB for the roof is $6.88 1 required.
a2x4 is $1.88 2 required split in half.
A small bit of sheet black plastic as a roofing materal. about $5.00
A hand full of dry wall screws Lets say $5.00
Comes to 85.64 for the stuff I need to buy.
I have windows I picked out of the trash I can cut down for that. Frames can be made from the left over OSB or T 1-11

Al