Keter Mia cracked garden furniture fix?

tony3619

Hello, 

First of all never buy keter garden furniture. 

Secondly both my out door seats have developed a crack on one of the support beams of the seat part of the chair. Is there anything I can use to fix this or atleast strengthen it to get another summers use of it. I thought of super glue but it needs Abit of flex and bend and I think super glue will just crack. 

JohnJ76

i have some epoxy which would probably glue it but as it looks like it is in constant tension you could try and find some metal plate, drill through end then bolt them on both sides of the plastic rib to reinforce it something like these https://www.diydirect.com/flat-repair-plates-stainless-steel-marine-grade-316-60-x-38-x-1-5mm-10-pack but a bit bigger if you could find them, and bolt and clamp it rather than screw into the plastic.  Stixall ive used a lot outdoors and it is pretty good on most surfaces. 

Simonon77

I would get a metal bracket to put across it ( screwfix or most big DIY places sell them in various sizes ). If you get something with fairly big holes in it, then use smaller bolts and a washer on each side you can get a bit of flex and movement into it

Simonon77

You could also try plastic welding ( basically melting the crack back together with a soldering iron ) 

Postik

Oh dear, I just bought this exact set 2 weeks ago.

How long have you had it?  I'm sure it said 3 year guarantee when I bought it recently.

Would it be worth drilling some holes either side of the cracked piece and securing it with some strong cable ties, pulled tightly together?

Edit: Just found where it says 3 year guarantee: https://www.keter.com/en-gb/outdoor-furniture/lounge-sets/mia-4-seater-lounge-set-with-storage-table-grey-233223.html

subjecttocontract

Cable ties are unlikely to work. As already suggested.....a steel plate each side secured with nuts & bolts. You can get all the bits in B&Q or Homebase.

ThisIsWeird

That raised flange looks to be solid? So should take self-tapping screws quite well (given a pilot hole is first drilled)?

If so, I think S77's, J76, and StC's suggestion will be best, but I do also see Postic's idea working.

For the former, you could use something like a securing strap ( eg: https://www.screwfix.com/p/sabrefix-roll-edge-restraint-strap-bend-500-x-100mm-5-pack/85398 ) as it would cover a lot of the material's width. Mount with one edge flush with the top of the plastic part. Press the seat base down until the gap closes (optional whether to put any glue in there, but I doubt it'll help) and then drill a series of pilot holes through the strap's holes, and into the plastic flange. Then fire in suitably-sized self-taping screws, possibly https://www.screwfix.com/p/easydrive-pz-wafer-self-tapping-screws-8ga-x-1-2-100-pack/8979h .

The 'pilot' holes would usually be the width of the centre part of the screw thread - 2-3mm in the case of a size 8 screw, I'm guessing. The thread has to bite fully into the material, so screw in, and back off, screw in, and back off, scr...

For added strength, rough up the plastic surface, clean the metal strap, and smear on a coat of stixall on them before screwing.

NutsandBolts could also be used, as StC says, in which case having a strap each side would make it super-strong, and would likely be the ultimate solution.

Or Postic's idea is good, and should work. Nylon cable-ties are very strong, or metal wire could be used as an alternative. Basically, the two parts are 'stitched' together.

TELLIT01

How long have you had the furniture and have you contacted Keter to see what they say about it?

tony3619

TELLIT01 said:

How long have you had the furniture and have you contacted Keter to see what they say about it?

I've had it about a year. I've been chasing spare parts from keter under warranty but they always say they are out of stock and have no estimated delivery date. I've been chasing for 3-4 months now. It's ridiculous. 

Simonon77

I would double up the bracket and put one on both sides, and drill through and use bolts with washers. This will be a lot stronger than self tappers, and will also allow a bit of flex in the seat if the holes are slightly bigger than the bolts

tony3619

Just as a quick test of what I had lying around the house is this the kinda thing people are talking about? Obviously I would maybe buy bigger brackets etc