Rust-Oleum "Deck Restore" Product Ruins Decks, Company Refuses To Take Responsibility & Make Consumers Whole Vernon Hills Illinois

There are large numbers of people nationwide who purchased Rust-Oleum's Deck Restore product in 2013.  We followed the prep and application instructions to the letter.  We all experienced utter failures (bubbling, cracking, peeling, flaking) before even a year passed -- for a product that was advertised to last up to 3 years and promised to "Restore" and protect old decks.

The company refuses to acknowledge this product failed so miserably and blames consumers.  It only offers to (after time spent on hold, gathering receipts, and processing) refund consumers the actual cost of the product. 

This was sold during the Great Recession as a DIY product, so the labor is uncompensated, and I believe many consumers are lower- and middle-class homeowners who, like me, looked to this product and its advertising claims as a way to preserve part of our investment at a time when budgets were very tight.  Perhaps it's a case of something being too good to be true. 

A mere product reimbursement is not nearly enough in this instance.  For some, our decks are ruined and must be completely replaced.  In the meantime, we are left with the removal of the material that hasn't flaked, peeled, bubbled and cracked. 

Please note this product contains crystalline silica (see https://www.osha.gov/silica/).  One company representative told a homeowner that stripping products needed to be used to remove it.  Another told me that, "per their website" it was "safe to sand it off."  I liken it to asbestos, when it comes to sanding it off.  Again, as a DIY product, most consumers are not aware of the dangers of sanding it off and inhaling airborne particulates.  Most of us aren't skilled at abatement of potentially dangerous materials, which I would liken it to, and lack the proper protective gear.  It is utterly reckless for the company to suggest consumers sand-off the material.

The company insists we all must have erred in our preparation or application.  We did not.  We followed instructions supplied to the letter.  After the fact, the company appears to have back-tracked and (depending who you talk) changed those instructions.  We have data to back-up our claims.  If you were similarly affected, please see the Facebook page "Rust-Oleum Restore Users" where we are attempting to communicate with each other.  Many of us have been banned from the company's page and had our comments removed as they were negative.

I personally would love to see someone take this on as a class-action lawsuit.  We meet the definition.  We cannot afford to sue individually, and ALL of our complaints with the product are IDENTICAL.  We have proof that flies in the face of the claims made by Rust-Oleum to the contrary.  There are many of us.

A simple Google search will reveal negative product reviews, horror tales, and please look at the YouTube videos of people's Deck Restore horror stories.  This company needs to make consumers WHOLE, legally, which meants the cost of removing the failed product and whatever needs to be done to either properly re-seal or if needed (in some cases) replace the entire deck.