Lowes/Home Depot vs. small local stores - recent experience

savageactor7 · Jul 21, 2012

rtimgray I feel the same way as you and the wife and I have had similar experiences with rude local hometown employees

Never the less we still give them 1st shot at our money. All you have to do is see what happens to choice and quality 10 years after the WM, HD& Lowes takes over local competition.

chad22 · Jul 21, 2012

bcp said:
To connect this thread back to tractors, here is a clamp-on pizza cutter for your tractor:

View attachment 274272

Bruce

Now that's my kinda pizza cutter. :thumbsup:

Chad

QRTRHRS · Jul 22, 2012

I don't care for the quality of lumber at HD or Lowes, especially the PT. The closest HD is over an hour north of me but I have two Lowes about equa-distance that I use. No complaints with the personnel being friendly and for the most part knowledgable. I find that I really have to look close at the hardware because it is often mixed. Also, the local yard has far more choices in the more specialized lines such as Topcon fasteners albeit a bit more expensive. I also know when I need to go to a regular plumbing supply or electrical outlet for items that the big box does not carry.

For PT posts, I am lucky to have a plant about an hour away where I can get about anything along with dressed by special order. I also have some Almish or Mennonite owned business's I frequent.

For me, it's about knowing where to go for the best price and quality along with limiting my running around.

NuBota · Jul 22, 2012

I noticed a big shift in the big box stores a few years back when the housing bubble burst - all of the sudden the staff was very helpful. I also noticed the store wasn't as busy during peak times as it used to be. I used to avoid big box for many of the reasons already stated - but mostly because the check-out lines were always too long and staff was next to useless. I could go to True Value, local lumber yard (or 84 lumber) and the local nursery, all in the same trip, and be done faster (and happier) than a single trip to HD/Lowes. Plus I am a big fan of mom and pop as long as they act right. But since that shift a few years back, my experience in the big box has definitely improved

300UGUY · Jul 22, 2012

NuBota said:
I noticed a big shift in the big box stores a few years back when the housing bubble burst - all of the sudden the staff was very helpful. I also noticed the store wasn't as busy during peak times as it used to be. I used to avoid big box for many of the reasons already stated - but mostly because the check-out lines were always too long and staff was next to useless. I could go to True Value, local lumber yard (or 84 lumber) and the local nursery, all in the same trip, and be done faster (and happier) than a single trip to HD/Lowes. Plus I am a big fan of mom and pop as long as they act right. But since that shift a few years back, my experience in the big box has definitely improved

I went to the local HD with my contractor neighbor. As we walked thru, he said hello to several guys. All of them used to be in various trades, carpenter, drywall, plumber, electrician. It is my understanding that HD has a licenced electrician and plumber on staff at most stores. My dad got a lot of help from a plumber at the HD in Florida. Our local electrician at HD has helped me several times. I don't think the mom and pop places can compete with that

Btw, I have talked to a couple of these guys, and they have no intention of going back to self employment. I think the plumber and electrician are the 2 highest paid people in the store.

Pixguy · Jul 22, 2012

I have a BIL who is a dept. supervisor in a FL HD. My experience has been that the FL stores are much better in associates, due to the abundance of retired tradesmen and the work ethic of that generation. But working for HD is lousy, low pay and lousy hours. He never know his schedule as it changes week to week.

But I do shop at both the big box stores because of selection and hours open. My local lumberyard caters to the trade and is not interested in the homeowner/handyman.

Just my :2cents:

rtimgray · Jul 23, 2012

To give an update to this thread, I'll have to say that I found a local store with which I will continue to do business with because of friendly and helpful employees.

As a part of the house addition, we needed to pour some concrete floors and I needed to rent a troweling machine. The closest place was $50 per day, but only open until noon on Saturday, and if the unit is not back by then, you pay two more days rent (Sat & Sun) until you bring it back Monday. We were pouring a couple of pads on Friday afternoon and one on Saturday, and I wasn't sure I could get finished and get the unit back by noon.

I checked in a nearby town that I remembered seeing a rental store and called them. They had a machine for $40 per day, plus they are open until 6 PM on Saturday, so I knew I could get it back. I picked the unit up at noon on Friday and used it Friday evening with good results. We poured Saturday morning again and (of course) this concrete wouldn't set up, so I didn't get it done until about 12:30. We ended up getting the unit back to the store at about 1:30. However, the guys there just charged me for the $40 - even though the contract I signed said I would be liable for at least another half-day rental when I exceeded 24 hours. Of course, this made me happy and I will definately use them again.

Additionally, this store, which is about 12 miles from my house, is part of a True Value store that is really neat. It not only has all the normal hardware stuff, paint, pluming, electrical, etc. but also has fabric and crafts, household goods, and (maybe most importantly) a farm toy section. Just a quick look through the store and my wife and I made the determination that this was a pretty cool place to visit. We made a few purchases and were on our way, but we'll definately return.

Not that I really had any doubt, but there are still plenty of good local stores left - I will just keep trying.

rtimgray · Jul 23, 2012

Deleted double post

dmccarty · Jul 23, 2012

aczlan said:
Sounds good.

We have tried not pre-baking the crust, but have found that the little pieces of chicken tend to get burned that way.

Aaron Z

The wifey has made pizza dough and pizza a few times. The crust does seem like it could use a pre bake. It was still good though. :thumbsup:

We had a buy one get one free coupon to one of the corporate chain pizza places so I got a pizza with ham, pineapple, etc since I had BBQ chicken last time. :licking:

There is a brewery right next to the pizza place so they wifey brought home a growler of beer. :licking::licking::licking: Beer AND Pizza! :thumbsup:

Which is best with pizza? Home brew, store bought, or fresh from the brewery? If one has home made pizza does one have to have home brew? :laughing::laughing::laughing:

Later,
Dan

dmccarty · Jul 23, 2012

CompactTractorFan said:
Only on TBN could a thread about Lowes, Home Depot, and hardware stores turn into a thread about pizza. :laughing:

Yeppers, now I will see if we can start talking about beer. :laughing::laughing::laughing:

Later,
Dan

dmccarty · Jul 23, 2012

CompactTractorFan said:
That would be called a Turkey Quesadilla.

I changed it up though. I made a grilled cheese sandwich with three cheeses, Mozzarella, Swiss and Parmesan, fresh tomatoes, and a slice of Prosciutto ham. :licking::licking::licking:

Washed down with the last bit of beer in the growler. :beer:

:laughing::laughing::laughing:

Later,
Dan

EddieWalker · Jul 23, 2012

Another thing to consider when deciding on what store to shop at is the return policy. Home Depot and Lowes are both very easy and fast to return stuff to. The other local stores will take returns, but it can be a game and it takes time. If it's tile, they all want a restocking fee if you buy extra for the job.

When I lived in CA, I hated the local Home Depot because it was dirty and impossible to get any assistance. I would pay a bit more and go to Orchard, where everyone was very helpful and the place was spotless. Sears bought out Orchard and it started carrying all the Craftsman tools, which I really liked at the time.

Eddie

forgeblast · Jul 23, 2012

Lowes has that my lowes card now, that if you get it scanned at the check out they can pull up your purchases and you dont need a reciept. Plus I think you can put dimensions in to a program and pull them up at the store if needed.

Danno1 · Jul 24, 2012

bcp said:
To connect this thread back to tractors, here is a clamp-on pizza cutter for your tractor:

View attachment 274272

Bruce

There was a show on the History Chan awhile back which said that Americans (America) eats 100 acres of pizza per day.

.

IslandTractor · Jul 24, 2012

Danno1 said:
There was a show on the History Chan awhile back which said that Americans (America) eats 100 acres of pizza per day.

.

Can you imagine how many Olympic swimming pools of beer it takes to wash all that down!

rekees4300 · Jul 24, 2012

1 acre = 43560 square feet
100 acres = 4,356,000 square feet
estimated population of America on July 24 = 314,016,262
4,356,000 / 314,016,262 = .0138 square feet of pizza per American per day
1 square foot = 144 square inches
.0138 X 144 = 1.98 square inches of pizza per American per day

So the average American eats about 2 square inches of pizza per per day. Food for thought.

izza:

PatasColo · Jul 24, 2012

rekees4300 said:
1 acre = 43560 square feet
100 acres = 4,356,000 square feet
estimated population of America on July 24 = 314,016,262
4,356,000 / 314,016,262 = .0138 square feet of pizza per American per day
1 square foot = 144 square inches
.0138 X 144 = 1.98 square inches of pizza per American per day

So the average American eats about 2 square inches of pizza per per day. Food for thought. izza:

Who sells a 2-square-inch pizza? ....And most pizzas I see for sale are ROUND.

:laughing: :laughing: :drink:
-Mitch

PatasColo · Jul 24, 2012

IslandTractor said:
Can you imagine how many Olympic swimming pools of beer it takes to wash all that down!

No need to imagine:
The Dimensions of an Olympic Size Swimming Pool is approximately 164ft x 82ft and 6ft deep.
Surface area = 13,454.72 sq ft Volume = 88,263 cu ft = 660,253.09 gallons

A typical large pizza is 18", and cut into eight slices. Area of a slice is 9-squared x pi x 1/8 = 31.8 sq inches. Thus there are 4,356,000 x 144 / 31.8 = 19,725,283 pizza slices in that 100 acres.
For calculation purposes only, we'll say that people drink a bottle of beer (12 oz.) per slice (YMMV :drink: ) - That's a total of 236,703,396 oz., divided by 128 to get gallons: 1,849,245 gallons of beer! Divide that by 660,253 (volume of Olympic pool) = 2.8 Olympic pools of beer per day to wash down the 100 acres of pizza!!!

[NOTE: This is not a scientific estimate, and ignores kids, soft drinks, religion, affinity for alcohol, and all other factors affecting beer consumption. :thumbsup:]

IslandTractor · Jul 24, 2012

PatasColo said:
.
For calculation purposes only, we'll say that people drink a bottle of beer (12 oz.) per slice (YMMV :drink: ) - That's a total of 236,703,396 oz., divided by 128 to get gallons: 1,849,245 gallons of beer! Divide that by 660,253 (volume of Olympic pool) = 2.8 Olympic pools of beer per day to wash down the 100 acres of pizza!!!

That's my kind of pool party! I also agree that one beer per slice is about civilized. Eating faster would be uncouth. Drinking slower would be,well, unmanly. Gotta keep up with the Canucks and Aussies.