Dear customer, I apologize for the less than completely satisfied feeling you are left with, but this is not the norm for our Sun-Ray umbrellas. Did you reach out to our customer service team @ ezreplacement.com to discuss your issues? Our contact info should have been clearly shown on the front page of your manual. This should be an easy claim for a replacement. That being said, we did not hear from you. Even if you have already discarded or returned the product, please reach out as we would like to make this right. No one should be left with such a negative view of our products, as we take great pride in providing the best quality and value, backed by first class customer service and support. We appreciate your business. Please allow us a chance to prove it to you. Please reach out to our team, reference this review, and we would like to make you a deal on replacing the umbrella you were unsatisfied with. You can contact us via email at contact@ezreplacement.com or phone at 877-477-2264.