Why not to select Lowe’s for flooring install…
… and why i HATE LOWE’S
After persistant nagging from my wife, I was forced to make a quick selection for my wooden floor install. I thought, if I went to a reputable, chain I should be fine.
First of all, the sales person never explained the difference between a glue down and lock in. The price for the hand-scrapped wood looked cheap. So, I paid $35.00 for the measurement. The measurer came for the measurement and took the measurements.
What bothered me was the measurer was holding the tape slanting instead of straight. But, I was busy during the time (and did I mention the pressure from my significant other!)
I wont get into the details, but during the installation, I was shocked to see the installers wasting wood. They used to cut a small piece of wood and through away a big chunk of the wood. Even after that, they were left with substantial boxes of wood!!!
After the installation, being the engineer I am, I measured the flooring. With simple measurement, I came out with a difference of almost 25%. This was after lenient measurements. With the installation and wood cost, that was substantial.
What followed was nightmare! I called Lowe’s and what followed was accusations and counter-accusations and stuff like “why did you not call us when they were throwing away the wood…”, “everybody does (over) measurements like this”, etc. Etc. They reimbursed me about 10% of the cost and the cost of the remaining material.
Needless to say – I am responsible for any increased sales at Home Depot. J
If you want to do any flooring installation, here is my advise to you:
1) Measure your floor yourself Measuring is basically simple – multiply the length by the height. If the room is complexly shaped, break it down into components and then add up the areas. (Area of a square or rectangle is Length x Breadth, Area Triangle is ½ x Base x Height, etc)
The grand total of all the areas, is what your installation should be.
2) Shop around
Do not rely on a single store. The smaller local stores offer better rates. Because they DO NOT SUBCONTRACT OUT THE SERVICES.
3) Do you research
Understand the difference between glue down, nail down and lock ins. The Lock ins are usually cheaper though the glue ins add to the value of your home.
You could get an installer separately and then buy wood at a cheaper discount outlet. It works out much cheaper!!!
And if you are a handyman yourself, get the wood at a discount outlet or internet and install it yourself. Lock-ins are great for this purpose.
4) AVOID LOWES like a PLAGUE
You will be paying for their premium over subcontracted rates. People who have money to waste, should go there.
0 comments