Galvanized Nail False Advertising
Gordon Doughman is a subscriber to my FREE newsletter.
He was kind enough to share a fascinating discovery he made.
Allow him to share the story:
"Tim,
I know in several of your recent newsletters you discussed galvanized nails and the performance difference between hot dipped versus electroplated nails. I recently rebuilt my deck (capped composite and aluminum railing; very little maintenance!) and had a need for some galvanized nails to secure some boards between joists for the connection of the railing posts. I went to a local Home Depot in Cincinnati. Take a look at the photos below to see what I found!
As you can see, the manufacturer claims these nails are galvanized, but the fine print (second photo) states that in fact, the nails are not galvanized, but rather has a "Proprietary polymer coating…that is equivalent to galvanization…". It then goes on to state "The use of stainless steel fasteners is recommended for all outdoor projects" even though the first sentence states "For use on exterior applications and with all treated lumber".How can the manufacturer get away with this!?!?! In my mind this is false advertising. Of course, these nails were about half the price of true hot dipped galvanized nails (same manufacturer no less).Thought you might like to alert your readers to this deception.Blessings,Gordon"
Here's my answer - as best as I can.
Gordon, it's a game of whack a mole.
Companies can put just about anything they want on a label, and there are not that many people out there that have the authority to stop it.
Be thankful that the labeling at least had a description of the truth, albeit you had to hunt for it! They could have left that off and everyone would be really deceived.
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