B&M Coatings, very disappointing

What an utterly disappointing and frustrating experience dealing with Mr Bruce le Cordeur from B&M Coatings (bmcoatings.co.za). I should have suspected something when he insisted on a 90% deposit before even committing to a date to start the project. Further alarm bells should have rung out when he insisted on being paid a R500 quotation fee although I had given him the go-ahead on a R120 000 order. This was to replace existing paving with PebbleKote over an area of approximately 110 sqm around a pool. I was suspicious, but he was the sole approved applicator in the KZN region for the PebbleKote product (kote.co.za) that I regrettably chose.

Unfortunately, the job did NOT go at all well. I was extremely unhappy with the outcome but I was constantly assured that it would look better once it had cured properly, but it never improved. The pebble finish is very uneven with the transition between the various sections that had been layed clearly visible. There is a large section that was patched after a few days of the initial surface being layed that turns white each time it gets wet and looks absolutely awful.

I gave Bruce many opportunities to rectify the poor workmanship, yet after several MONTHS, the situation had still not been resolved. Bruce constantly blamed the weather, stating that he needed a 7 day period of no rain to do the repair.

I am left with a mess on the entertainment area of my beautiful beach house and there is no solution other than paying another contractor to redo the entire job. Be weary of companies that do not belong to a professional organization such as the NHBRC who can be contacted in such an event to mediate.

I contacted Mr Dave Metzler from PebbleKote, as this was where I originally obtained the recommendation of Mr Bruce le Cordeur from B&M Coatings, but he was not interested in helping. I am wary of a water-based, outdoor product that requires a definite period of no rain. This is an impractical solution, especially at the coast where rain is unpredictable. What is shown on the PebbleKote website and what I am left with are two very different outcomes. I asked Mr Dave Metzler if he would publish some of the pictures from my beach house on his website, as he so boldly encourages, but that has met with no response.