External door and window hardware has a lot to put up with - being under constant attack from environmental exposure.

Whether it’s polluted city air, corrosive salt air in coastal settings or continual exposure to the elements – external hardware certainly has a lot more to deal with compared to internal hardware.

“Wherever the location of your doors, they will some sort of 'attack' from the elements,” explains Loren Jenner, Managing Director at Coastal Group.

“And it’s not just the door furniture; locks and cylinders can also become sticky over time, making them difficult to operate.”

This wear and tear can affect the lifespan of doors and windows and may even lead to call-backs, customer complaints and negative reviews.

“The good news is this can easily be avoided,” added Neil Jones, Head of Marketing at Coastal Group. “A bit of regular TLC with the right products can make all the difference.”

View our Hardware Care and Maintenance video below and see how easily these potential issues can be avoided:

HOW TO AVOID THESE ISSUES

With a little hardware care and maintenance many of the issues homeowners experience with their doors and windows can easily be avoided - preventing unhappy customers plus the expense and pain of site call backs for issues which are often not yours to sort.

Issue 1: Tea Staining on Hardware

Tea staining is a cosmetic issue that takes place on contaminants sitting on the surface of the stainless steel. It does not affect the structural integrity or lifetime of the material but can look unsightly.

It can easily be avoided with regular cleaning of the hardware using a soft cloth and mild soapy water, then drying with a clean, soft cloth. Rubbing or wiping should be carried out in the direction of the brush or polish lines.

If tea staining has occurred, or the door is in a corrosive environment such as on or near the coast then our DR121 stainless steel cleaner should be used as shown in the video.

After cleaning with the DR121 cleaner we recommend applying the DR121 Conditioner.

This will leave a nano layer on the metal and help prevent new corrosion as much as possible.

You can see the difference in the hardware for yourself and how effectively the DR121 removes tea staining from the stainless steel handle.

ISSUE 2: Keys sticking/jamming in euro cylinder?

Over time cylinders can become dried out or clogged up with dirt and grime. Some cylinders can also become corroded. These combine to make the cylinder very difficult to operate and the key difficult to insert and turn around.

Our KABA cylinder spray makes it very easy to resolve this. A regular squirt of this into the cylinder cleans, lubricates and maintains it providing trouble-free operation and helps prevent corrosion

Note cylinder manufacturers state not to use other fluids or aerosol lubricants such as WD40 as they can have detrimental effects on your cylinder.

See the KABA cylinder spray in action on our video.

ISSUE 3: Multipoint locks seizing up, making your door handle difficult to operate?

Again over time the gearing in the multipoint lock can become dried out or clogged up with dirt and grime.

This makes the door handle difficult to move up and down and the multipoint lock hard to operate and lock.

A regular application of our GLS200 lubricant spray will help resolve this and prevent from happening in the future.

GLS200 is a fully synthetic PTFE grease which protects and lubricates with a clean, non-toxic, anti-corrosive shield. It is totally water and salt resistant which can be used in multiple applications on wood, metal or plastic. GLS200 lubricant is quick, easy and effective to use as you can see in the video.

It’s easy to take away the pain for your customers of caring for their new front door.

To make it easy for you and the homeowner we’ve put together a Hardware Care and Maintenance Pack containing these care and maintenance products. Why not stand out from your competition and pop one of these packs in with each door you sell. It will not only keep your door looking and performing better for longer, it will also create a lasting impression with your customer with the potential for a great online review and further referrals.

Compared to the cost of your door and the cost of an unhappy customer or site callback the cost is minimal, and the content can be adjusted to the products you require.

For more information on our Hardware Longevity Packs please contact us on sales@coastal-group.com or call 01726 871 025.