The VP, Paul-Andre called me today and they are going to pay for the new zipper. The white rubber inlay of a bear in the knee pads has been coming off also, and he said that they would replace the knee pads as well. I told him, I don't care about the knee pads and not to bother, but he pretty much insisted. So they're covering everything, including shipping.
Yesterday when I talked to him, I told him about this thread and other positive posts I've written about Whites. He asked exactly how to access the thread, and I told him to do a search under my name and the word, "Whites", and he'd see all my posts. I don't know if ScubaBoard had any effect, or if he even looked, but he did decide to cover the whole thing. But he still blamed me, said they normally wouldn't cover the zipper, but that he was being a "nice guy".
Another thing that concerned me is what he said about the condition of the zipper. He said it was dry and brittle and looked as if it had not been maintained/lubed properly. He proceeded to give me a polite lecture on the care and maintenance of the dry suit zipper. My issue is that I have waxed this zipper (with the wax they recommend) before every dive with utmost care - just like I have my old DUI and OS Systems, which are fine.
This is the only thing I can think of: I built a gear storage/cleaning room (insulated) in my garage, and I keep it heated at 52F with an electric space heater. I know that these heaters are very dry and suck the moisture out of the air. Could this have effected the zipper condition?? Could this be effecting the rest of my gear??
The other thing is, he said to wax the inside of the zipper as well, and I have only been waxing the outside. Opinions? I don't want to have issues again.
Bottom line is, the VP was polite but firm in his belief that the zipper problem was MY fault (of which I am still dubious). But he took lots of time to talk to me and physically looked at the suit himself. And in the end, they are taking care of the repair in full.
Thanks for the advice from SB members in their posts and PMs!!
Would I buy another Whites dry suit? You BET I would. Right or wrong about the zipper, not too many companies would take the time Paul-Andre did with me (long phone calls). He did exactly what he said he would do, calling me back as promised, looking personally at the suit. And even though he thinks the zipper is not technically covered under warranty (right or wrong), they are covering it in full and making it right.