ScreenHouses Unlimited (Arkew Holdings Ltd.) Sells do it yourself kits in Canada and America for screen rooms, patio covers, screened enclosures, door canopy awnings, and storage sheds.

Complaint #1 – Damaged Material

ScreenHouses Unlimited promises “100% Satisfaction” and assures buyers: “If you are missing or have received a broken piece, simply call our toll-free line and we will courier you the part in as timely a fashion as possible.” In 2010, I paid over $4600 for a kit. I received damaged material. I notified them. I sent photos. I brought to their attention Canada’s Competition Act Paragraph 74.01(1)(c)(ii) (Deceptive Marketing Practices). They still refused to honor the warranty.

Complaint #2 – Inaccurate Assembly Instructions

ScreenHouses Unlimited advertises “complete” instructions come with the kits. Instead, I received 2 partial instructions dated 1997 / 2001. Their solution? Refer me to 4 more sets of instructions online dated 2004. My contractor has an engineering degree; yet the extra hours to make up for all the instructions’ errors and omissions added up to $150. Errors included: unfinished diagrams; different parts identified by one part number; different part numbers for one part; and entire pages about parts not in the kit. So, to build a safe unit, you must compare all the instruction sets and keep delaying work to call and clarify discrepancies.

My Conclusion:

Bad materials + Bad instructions + Bad customer service = Bad business. When I said I was dissatisfied with the instructions and damaged materials, they tried to re-define “100% Satisfaction” as “limited” and didn’t mean “satisfaction that is determined by the customer.” In my opinion, 100% doesn’t mean a limited part of 100%. Still, I offered to accept a partial refund in lieu of reshipping and as compensation for my excess costs. They refused. I don’t know if you would say ScreenHouses Unlimited is a fraud, scam, or rip-off, but I do know that I’ll NEVER do business with them again!