Risk reversal · Read before you buy
A building material warranty in Sri Lanka is only as good as its exclusions. Most disputes over failed coatings and waterproofing come down to a gap between what the client believed was covered and what the document said. This page explains both kinds of warranty, what voids them, and how to claim. It supports our building material supplier guide.
“Written to be read before you buy - not after something fails.”
Two instruments
A warranty is a written promise about performance, and in construction there are usually two of them. Treating them as one is how clients end up uncovered when a system fails.
Issued by the manufacturer
Covers the product performing to its published specification - the film not chalking prematurely, the membrane not degrading, the panel not delaminating. It assumes correct storage, the specified consumption rate, a prepared substrate and acceptable curing conditions.
Issued by the applicator
Covers workmanship - preparation, film thickness, detailing at junctions and penetrations, and the quality of the applied system as a whole. It is only as strong as the party standing behind the work.
A failure sits in the gap between two instruments. The manufacturer blames the application; the contractor blames the product. Both can be reasonable, and you pay for the inspection that settles it.
Where we supply and install through our in-house teams, both instruments sit with one party. That is the practical reason supply-and-apply is preferred on waterproofing, coatings and cladding.
Your document governs
Warranty duration varies by product, by system and by whether our teams installed it. For that reason we do not publish a general duration table. A number on a web page can be quoted back in a dispute that has nothing to do with your actual system.
Instead, the cover for your specific system is set out in writing. You will see it on the quotation before you order, and on the warranty document at handover. Those two documents are what apply.
Your warranty document states
Exclusions
These exclusions are near-universal across manufacturers. They are the ones worth understanding before work starts, because most of them are decided on the day of application rather than years later.
Notice how many are workmanship. That is the strongest argument for knowing exactly who applied your system - and for having that party carry the installation warranty.
Claims
A technical inspection comes before any remedy, because the fix is completely different depending on the cause. A coating that failed from rising damp needs the damp solved, not another coat.
Report it in writing
Photographs, the approximate date it appeared, the location on the building and your order or project reference.
Technical inspection
A site visit to look at the failure itself, rather than a judgement made from a photo.
Establish the failure mode
Material performance, workmanship, substrate movement or an unaddressed water source - each has a different remedy.
Agree the remedy
The fix follows the cause, so the repair addresses what actually failed rather than repainting over it.
Send claims to support@cnsprojects.lkwith your project reference.
Maintenance
Most coating and waterproofing systems carry a maintenance expectation, and ignoring it is an exclusion in many warranties. Periodic inspection, compatible cleaning and prompt attention to local damage extend a system's life well beyond its warranty period.
We supply a professional cleaning, protection and after-care range for exactly this reason. Using an incompatible cleaning chemical is one of the more common ways a sound coating is damaged after handover. Our guide to cleaning and protecting surfaces explains which product suits which job.
Clear roof outlets
Before and after each monsoon. A blocked outlet ponds water on the membrane for days.
Clean with compatible products
A pH-neutral cleaner such as Ultracare Multicleaner for routine maintenance.
Inspect junctions and sealants
Upstands, penetrations and movement joints are where problems start.
Repair local damage promptly
A small breach left open lets water behind the system and widens the failure.
Quick answers
No. A warranty covers the treated area performing as specified. Water entering through an untreated junction nearby is a separate defect, which is why an inspection establishes the entry point before any claim is decided.
Check first. Overcoating by a third party with an unspecified product is a common exclusion. If a colour change is needed, ask which topcoat is compatible so the original cover stays intact.
Not by itself. A long warranty with broad exclusions can protect less than a shorter one with clear conditions. Read what voids the cover, and who stands behind the workmanship, before comparing durations.
Before ordering, also read Credentials and certifications and Island-wide delivery and lead times, or browse our Premium building materials.
Due diligence
These six questions apply to any supplier or contractor, not only to us. Ask them before work starts, and get the answers in writing - they are far harder to establish after a failure.
The answer tells you who stands behind the product and who stands behind the work. If both are named, check they are not simply pointing at each other.
A warranty on the coating may exclude primers, sealants or detailing. Ask for the covered system to be listed component by component.
Many warranties need outlets cleared or inspections recorded. Missing a condition you never knew about can void cover you paid for.
Read the exclusions before the duration. Broad exclusions can make a long warranty worth less than a shorter one with clear, fair terms.
For developers and homeowners planning a sale, transferable cover adds value to the property. Cover that ends at the sale does not.
Know the route in advance: who to contact, what evidence to send, and who pays for inspection if the cause falls outside cover.
Records
A claim is only as strong as the paperwork behind it. Keep these together from the day the work is handed over, in one folder rather than scattered across emails.
It shows the specified system, the coat count and the scope, which is what the finished work is measured against.
The conditions and duration that actually apply to your installation, issued at handover.
Photos of the finished work on the day, which establish the condition before anything changed.
Dates of outlet clearing, inspections and cleaning - proof that maintenance conditions were met.
In short
Assurance
ISO 9001:2015Quality Management System · Certified
CCI Sri LankaChamber of Construction Industry · MemberGood to know
Ask us to walk through the warranty for your specific system.
