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We had a quote for countertops that came in quite a bit more than we thought. Wife is pretty unhappy with everyone around her right now. HD should be less than half, although we didn't get a quote yet. I am not going for a show kitchen, just an upgrade so it doesn't look like it was done in the '70s. Am I asking for trouble? LOML is on board to go with them, I'm just a little apprehensive.
We got the quote from the company that put in our deck. LOML was really happy with the deck, but there were a lot of things about that which made me unhappy. Not least of which was that they took about 5 times as long as they should have and didn't do a few things anyway. I think they gave us a quote for the counters based on what they thought we would pay, not based on the materials/labor.
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The guys who built your deck also do counter tops? Around here there are deck guys and there are counter top guys. Neither would do the other, nor would they be competitive if they tried.
I installed a kitchen for some friends using commercial cabinets. They got the counter top through HD but they don't do anything other than coordinate the work through a local counter top company. It took those guys three tries to get it right but, eventually, they did. It was pretty hilarious when the first guy came out and used a fancy camera or laser system to create an image of the walls/cabinets. When the counter top arrived it didn't fit and the sink cutout was way off. Round two was done by a different guy with templates and the pieces fit really well, until one guy who thought he was really smart cut off the wrong end of one of the pieces. Third time the lead installer came and everything fit like a charm.
John
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Coincidence.
We are in the middle of a kitchen remodel. The quartz countertop we are buying is being sold and
installed by a local outfit, albeit an hour north of us. Worked with our contractor before and are
very professional from all we know thus far. I have confidence that we will get a good product and
installation. But. It is an expensive purchase , so....
Went into our local HD a few days ago, to get a quote for the same product, if available, or near.
The store could not locate the woman working in the countertop dept. Twice. While they were
searching for her the first time, I got other things on my list. After a half hour, they still had no
one available that could help me.
What is it with stores that can't seem to have someone to take orders/money from willing customers?
Is business THAT good???
Mark Singleton
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I just saw a tile job done by a plumber. Worst job I had ever seen.
I'd want to see a strong list of counter-top references before I hired a deck contractor. There's a bit of an art to it.
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07-21-2017, 07:46 AM
(This post was last modified: 07-21-2017, 07:48 AM by Cub_Cadet_GT.)
(07-20-2017, 07:04 PM)EricU Wrote: We had a quote for countertops that came in quite a bit more than we thought. Wife is pretty unhappy with everyone around her right now. HD should be less than half, although we didn't get a quote yet. I am not going for a show kitchen, just an upgrade so it doesn't look like it was done in the '70s. Am I asking for trouble? LOML is on board to go with them, I'm just a little apprehensive.
We got the quote from the company that put in our deck. LOML was really happy with the deck, but there were a lot of things about that which made me unhappy. Not least of which was that they took about 5 times as long as they should have and didn't do a few things anyway. I think they gave us a quote for the counters based on what they thought we would pay, not based on the materials/labor.
Why on earth would you get a kitchen countertop quote from someone who builds decks.
Go to a granite yard pick out your stone and get an installation quote.
How many Square feet do you need?
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The contractors from Lowes are poorly screened. Some are probably OK or good even. But the guy who repaired my deck was not. He re-used joist hangers that were 60 years old and fastened them with zinc plated (not galvanized) drywall screws. I had to replace the hangers. I used proper hot dipped galvanized nails.
When I complained about the screws he said, "They're zinc plated; I use them for all my deck work". Scary.
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(07-21-2017, 09:00 AM)Cooler Wrote: The contractors from Lowes are poorly screened. Some are probably OK or good even. But the guy who repaired my deck was not. He re-used joist hangers that were 60 years old and fastened them with zinc plated (not galvanized) drywall screws. I had to replace the hangers. I used proper hot dipped galvanized nails.
When I complained about the screws he said, "They're zinc plated; I use them for all my deck work". Scary.
That's a statement painted with a very broad brush. I've known a couple Borg installers hat were very good. One in particular was a window installer.
There's a couple reasons contractors are fronted by the Borgs.
Sometimes they are great installers and lousy salesmen. That's probably the biggest reason. Some are just starting out on their own and this is a good way. It's cheaper and easier than advertising. I'm sure there are some lousy installers but it was my experience (working for Lowes) that the lousy guys don't last long. The last thing the store installed sales manager wants to do is field calls from dissatisfied customers.
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didn't really want to give the wrong impression. They are a renovation company that basically does all types of construction, and they will build you a deck. This really is a rural area, so that's not really that surprising. They do a lot of kitchens. Problem I am having is that I don't see any companies that just do counters.
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We bought countertops through HD. The measurement guy was great, I wanted all measurements (overhangs, radius and angles) exactly like the old counters. They turned out perfect.
We also purchased carpet through HD, that didn't go so well. They were some shady looking guys that drove one of those "free candy" looking vans. The van broke down in my front yard. I had to loan them tools and take them to town to get parts. They had to come back twice to fix the carpet.
Mark
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We had HD come out for our carpet and they measured and gave me a 29 sq yard quote. We only had 21 yards the first time and that was what I measured myself. They argued and said that because it was 12ft 8 wide they had to seam it. I told them that the fireplace cut out was more than enough for that and we had them drop it to 21 yards and they said thatif it wouldn't work I was paying for it any way. They came out and installed it and I still had a 6 x 8 piece left over.
