I bought mine after we were hit by hurricane fred washed away my entire garden 3 years ago. I live just outside Asheville NC and hurricane Helene hit us hard. My beds stayed and my veggies are still growing! I'm sorry you had such a hard time but I love my beds and just ordered more.😊
Just bought 3. I tried installing the cross bars they now send with the beds (so you are probably not the only one having this issue, or at least your feedback has had some effect), though they haven’t yet added anything to the assembly instructions for the bars. I tried installing them during assembly and had the same experience you did. The bars are a few inches short so they actually pull the sides inward. I even tried just using one of the two connection holes in the bars to make them longer - still slightly too short. I may try jury-rigging something, but the design problem is obvious - with relatively thin metal construction AND a wing-nut secured seam, there is just no way the sides are stiff enough to withstand the hydraulic pressure of moist soil as it settles over time. Other than that one drawback, they really are a nice raised bed for a decent price. Shame.
I was able to get them to send me some braces. However, to install them, you have to completely remove all of the soil around the perimeter of the beds and also down the middle where the braces go. It's a real pain having to do all this work twice. I wish there was a way to sue them for false advertisement since they originally advertised the beds as "having thicker metal with no need for support rods". I will continue spreading the word for people NOT to purchase from them. I hope you do too! Best wishes in getting yours fixed at the end of the season! Thanks for sharing your experience too!
The rounded corners should overlap the middle section. Looks like it doesn't. The middle section needs to be behind the sides. Corners always should overlap on both sides and the middle needs to be behind it. This guy can tell you how to avoid that bulge. Everyone needs to do this when putting them together. The companies could save themselves the trouble if they would put that in the manual. From 15:00 he begins to tell how to avoid bulging of the middle panel to 18:50. ruclips.net/video/TUAsZQsi0ac/видео.htmlsi=R8ie4W3uuq2xS5xa Just take the middle pieces and put it behind the sides and it will be strong. Thanks to the video my two are strong. Nothing wrong with the beds. Just the way they are set up. Short middles need to be behind longer pieces on both sides.
Actually, the Anleolife folks admitted that MANY people were having the same issues I experienced with the 4x8x2 beds. The problem is they didn't include any cross-braces and the 8-foot span is too large of a space to not have those. The corners overlapping the sides would not have improved anything in this case since the weak point is along the center seam...which isn't protected or contained by the corners My problem with Anleolife is that they missed that in the design of their product and this created MUCH additional work for me since I purchased so many beds at once. After receiving the cross-braces from them, you have to remove most of the soil from the beds to try getting everything to line up again since the soil settles and presses outwards at all points of the bed.
Yes they are not made like the vego garden beds and the Olle. That only works when the middle piece is shorter than the others. Vegega and a few more companies have the same amount of pieces. There are usually 12. This looks like less.
Already tried that. That's when they pointed out their 30-day return/refund policy. It's bad they advertise their beds will last for "many years" but only offer a 30-day refund policy. I guess that should have bee the red flag, huh?
I appreciate you sharing the problems that you've had. However, all the other companies that I've been comparing also have a 30-day refund.. If you think about it, how many gardeners after deciding gardening was too much work woul be trying to get a refund after the first season? It's not only about making a good product and supporting it, but staying in business. I was about to order a number of 4x8 beds, and I probably still will. It is unfortunate if they have not made those braces properly, but the other features, like the rolled edges, are important to me. The braces aren't that big a deal. I will make my own if necessary. It is unfortunate that they are sending out improperly sized ones. I think you might have found that other companies would not have bothered giving you the discount / free stuff, or new braces. While I was listening to you I had to wonder at what point you would have felt satisfied. You said the beds look like garbage. Sure that hourglass thing would be better without it, but the beds are absolutely functional. It's a fallen creation man. There is no perfection here.
I bought mine after we were hit by hurricane fred washed away my entire garden 3 years ago. I live just outside Asheville NC and hurricane Helene hit us hard. My beds stayed and my veggies are still growing! I'm sorry you had such a hard time but I love my beds and just ordered more.😊
Thanks for sharing this info and hate to hear of your troubles. Hope you have a blessed day and week ahead.
Just bought 3. I tried installing the cross bars they now send with the beds (so you are probably not the only one having this issue, or at least your feedback has had some effect), though they haven’t yet added anything to the assembly instructions for the bars. I tried installing them during assembly and had the same experience you did. The bars are a few inches short so they actually pull the sides inward. I even tried just using one of the two connection holes in the bars to make them longer - still slightly too short. I may try jury-rigging something, but the design problem is obvious - with relatively thin metal construction AND a wing-nut secured seam, there is just no way the sides are stiff enough to withstand the hydraulic pressure of moist soil as it settles over time. Other than that one drawback, they really are a nice raised bed for a decent price. Shame.
6 of the same beds. Same problem. After the season im going to dig them out and make my own braces.
I was able to get them to send me some braces. However, to install them, you have to completely remove all of the soil around the perimeter of the beds and also down the middle where the braces go. It's a real pain having to do all this work twice. I wish there was a way to sue them for false advertisement since they originally advertised the beds as "having thicker metal with no need for support rods".
I will continue spreading the word for people NOT to purchase from them. I hope you do too! Best wishes in getting yours fixed at the end of the season! Thanks for sharing your experience too!
The rounded corners should overlap the middle section. Looks like it doesn't. The middle section needs to be behind the sides. Corners always should overlap on both sides and the middle needs to be behind it.
This guy can tell you how to avoid that bulge. Everyone needs to do this when putting them together. The companies could save themselves the trouble if they would put that in the manual.
From 15:00 he begins to tell how to avoid bulging of the middle panel to 18:50.
ruclips.net/video/TUAsZQsi0ac/видео.htmlsi=R8ie4W3uuq2xS5xa
Just take the middle pieces and put it behind the sides and it will be strong. Thanks to the video my two are strong. Nothing wrong with the beds. Just the way they are set up. Short middles need to be behind longer pieces on both sides.
Actually, the Anleolife folks admitted that MANY people were having the same issues I experienced with the 4x8x2 beds. The problem is they didn't include any cross-braces and the 8-foot span is too large of a space to not have those. The corners overlapping the sides would not have improved anything in this case since the weak point is along the center seam...which isn't protected or contained by the corners
My problem with Anleolife is that they missed that in the design of their product and this created MUCH additional work for me since I purchased so many beds at once. After receiving the cross-braces from them, you have to remove most of the soil from the beds to try getting everything to line up again since the soil settles and presses outwards at all points of the bed.
Yes they are not made like the vego garden beds and the Olle. That only works when the middle piece is shorter than the others. Vegega and a few more companies have the same amount of pieces. There are usually 12. This looks like less.
Maybe plant little shrubs or something around the ones that don't look so great.
Not too good when you buy top of the line beds and they fail. Obviously you bought them to look nice as well as function.
Absolutely! We are very disappointed with the amount of extra work that was required along with how they ended up looking.
ask for refund
Already tried that. That's when they pointed out their 30-day return/refund policy.
It's bad they advertise their beds will last for "many years" but only offer a 30-day refund policy. I guess that should have bee the red flag, huh?
I appreciate you sharing the problems that you've had. However, all the other companies that I've been comparing also have a 30-day refund.. If you think about it, how many gardeners after deciding gardening was too much work woul be trying to get a refund after the first season? It's not only about making a good product and supporting it, but staying in business. I was about to order a number of 4x8 beds, and I probably still will. It is unfortunate if they have not made those braces properly, but the other features, like the rolled edges, are important to me. The braces aren't that big a deal. I will make my own if necessary. It is unfortunate that they are sending out improperly sized ones. I think you might have found that other companies would not have bothered giving you the discount / free stuff, or new braces. While I was listening to you I had to wonder at what point you would have felt satisfied. You said the beds look like garbage. Sure that hourglass thing would be better without it, but the beds are absolutely functional. It's a fallen creation man. There is no perfection here.