Merritt Glass Company

Auto Glass, Windshields and Free Stuff

chipmerritt — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 21:08:10 +0000

Having a broken windshield or any broken auto glass is never a good thing. It is scary when your glass is cracked or completely gone. Your sense of security is taken away from you.

Most of us will contact our insurance company and they will provide a list of companies to choose from and if you are not sure they will recommend one for you. Glass companies, like mine, try to influence you to choose them instead of having the insurance company recommend another company.

We want to be sure we influence you more than the company that offers free boxes of steaks, or the one that provides free gas vouchers and yet still, the other one who gives you free gift cards. In this effort to attract your attention we treat you, the consumer, as an unthinking person concerned mainly about what’s in it for ourselves. We barely mention that the most important consideration is safety.

Your windshield is a vital part of your vehicle restraint system. It is the thing that is needed for your driver and passenger air bag to deploy from and the thing that helps keep you in the vehicle in the event of a sudden impact or roll over. It is more important than the free stuff being offered you.

When you need auto glass replacement start with safety as your primary consideration. The other stuff is just stuff.

Innovation and Big Changes in Energy Efficient Glass

chipmerritt — Thu, 18 Aug 2011 16:16:35 +0000

There are some incredible advances going on n the construction industry in general and with energy efficient windows in particular. At a time when we need investment in these types of products more than ever we are in a time of significant economic uncertainty. Hooray for the people who strive on with innovation that will one day soon provide benefit for all of us. Take a look at recent innovation from a company in Israel.

Protection From Fraudulent Hurricane Product Claims

chipmerritt — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 17:12:39 +0000

FL House Bill Mandates Proof of FBC Product Approval
The glazing industry and its related associations are applauding the steps taken by Florida legislators that protect consumers in that state from fraudulent hurricane protection. Florida HB 849, signed on July 1, makes it a violation of the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act, to advertise, sell, offer, provide, distribute or market any product as hurricane, windstorm or impact-resistant unless it is in compliance with the provisions for product approval in the Florida Building Code.

Mirrors and Home Improvement Shows

chipmerritt — Mon, 14 Mar 2011 17:47:51 +0000

It looks so darn easy on the home improvement and do it yourself shows on television. Everything from huge additions and remodeling projects to much simpler projects motivate us to get moving and get busy. Bathroom renovations are a big part of these shows and the bathroom mirror is part of it. A while back I posted a tip on how to properly clean a mirror, as basic as that seems. Today, some tips on how to properly install a mirror. Click HERE to to see them.

Had Enough?

chipmerritt — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 17:25:35 +0000

The cold grip of winter has lost its hold around here and that is a good thing because I have had enough. Sunshine and Spring is taking its place and brings a feeling that it is time to come out of hibernation and move forward.

Like the Florida weather, the residential remodeling market is beginning to to heat up a bit. Consumers are showing more interest in shower doors, mirrors, furniture tops, colored glass, and energy efficient glass. Clearly they have had enough of winter.

Optimisim and Reality

chipmerritt — Tue, 04 Jan 2011 22:56:47 +0000

The new year begins with optimism and an eye focused on the reality of a subdued economy. It seems that economic news that points toward recovery is followed by news that points in the other direction. This condition of “is it ” or isn’t it” is an uneasy feeling and it feels heavy and wears hard. Hesitation and self doubt easily become ingrained in our thinking in times like these.

It is time to move on and move forward. Life, both personal and business, cannot long be lived looking backwards and I do not intend to stop living. The aspirations and ideas that gave us better and happier times are still with us. They have been put on the shelf for long enough. This is my prescription for the new year:

Face and accept your reality as it is. Change the things you that you can. Health is not always easy but you probably can do better. Listen to your doctors. Take care of yourself.
Quit doubting yourself. You are just as important and smart as you were before the economy went south. Yes, it has been really hard on some of us but we have still have our smarts and our accomplishments with us.
Make a plan. Any plan is better than no plan and it is better to be proactive than to sit idle while something happens to you. Define who you are and what you stand for and don’t let others do it for you. Stand up for yourself.
Think positive and look for solutions. Reality can often be tough but it does point out what we need to improve. Open your eyes and you will probably find the answer.
Enjoy yourself, your family and friends. They still love you and like you. Root for each other to succeed. You are important to them.

Happy New Year to All of You!!

Social Media and Human Interaction

chipmerritt — Thu, 11 Nov 2010 23:03:08 +0000

I saw an impressive video today on social media and its potential for the business world at a blog by Marketing Pilgrim. Watch it here. It advances the idea that consumers will not need to search for your business but that your business will find it’s way to consumers through social media. If that is true then my business certainly needs to get to work.

I have doubts, common among us “old schoolers”, that this is not true for all businesses. When you have a glass related problem or concern, which doesn’t happen very often in a person’s lifetime (hopefully), you will need to feel confident in the company you are looking to solve your problem. Social media is most likely to help if one is inclined to trust the peer ratings given to a particular company by those that have used the service of that company. It is sort of like an electronic or digital word of mouth.

Social media helps raise awareness of a company or a brand and can assist in peer reviews but it can’t replace the experience of interacting with employees of the company or help one discern fact from fiction. The human interaction is still the most important part of any relationship and I believe that is what determines who you do business with.

Protection of Aluminum Surfaces

chipmerritt — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 22:35:56 +0000

A recent call concerning deterioration of the aluminum on beach-side sliding glass doors is a reminder of the forces of nature or, perhaps man made forces, on aluminum. This call was not the first from this particular condominium and it involved doors on different floors and doors that were installed in different years.

A visual inspection confirmed it quickly. A chemical reaction, either natural or caused by a man made agent, has deteriorated portions of the aluminum bottom track to the point that the tracks have holes in them. You can see the concrete slab under the tracks. It looks a little like swiss cheese.

There will be field reports written and chemical tests performed in looking for what is causing the problem and more importantly how to fix it. For all our friends who live on or near coastal areas, protect yourself by performing routine maintenance procedures on aluminum sliding glass doors and aluminum windows. Visit this website from Lintec to see what to do. A little cleaning now and then can save you from big problems later on.

ShowerGuard Glass…squeaky clean just got easier

chipmerritt — Thu, 30 Sep 2010 15:38:35 +0000

Glass products continue to evolve to meet consumer demands. Keeping standard shower glass clean is a hard job an no matter how hard you scrub it eventually gets ugly. Hard water, heat, humidity, soap, and even cleaning agents can spot, discolor, and corrode the surface of the glass.

ShowerGuard glass is different. Its surface is protected during manufacturing through an ionic-bonding process. This patented process permanently seals the glass surface, stopping corrosion before it starts. With a minimal amount of cleaning ShowerGuard glass will look as gorgeous as the day you bought it. ShowerGuard Glass is covered by a limited 10-year warranty.

Come by our showroom and see the difference yourself.

AGRSS Third Party Validation Review Complete…We Pass!!!

chipmerritt — Wed, 18 Aug 2010 17:57:08 +0000

AGRSS is a big deal in the automobile glass replacement business. On August 4 this year we were reviewed for compliance by a third party validation firm. The validation consisted of a windshield installation while being observed by the validator, a verbal question and answer session between the validator and our auto glass technicians, an examination of our automotive sealant stock to insure proper storage and shelf life, and a review of our paperwork documenting the correct use of sealants and recording of relevant information.

What this really means is that we have passed an independent third party compliance validation for the AGRSS standard. Ir proves that in our daily practice that we do all the things to safely insure that we have done the job right. In these times you can’t always be sure that the job is performed to the proper standard. This validation proves that we do.