Three months of direct sun turned my $100 patio umbrella into a pile of shreds

3 comments

3 Comments

My $15 yard sale umbrella lasted longer than that, granted it was held together with duct tape and good intentions by the end.

wood.eric1mo ago

Haha "held together with duct tape and good intentions" is basically my buddy Dave's whole life philosophy. Last summer he spent $40 on one of those big golf umbrellas at a gas station, swore it was the best thing ever. First gust of wind at the lake, thing just snapped in half like a twig. Meanwhile he's still using the same beat up beach umbrella he found at a garage sale five years ago, even though three of the ribs are literally held together with zip ties and electrical tape. It's funny how stuff you don't expect much from always ends up outlasting the "good" stuff.

blair_taylor321mo ago

Also makes you think about the psychology of it. We treat cheap stuff like it's disposable so we don't get attached. The expensive stuff gets babied, then we're mad when it breaks anyway.