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Carpet Buying Questions & Answers 3
Should I Buy Carpet from Lowe's, Home Depot or Costco?
Like you, I shop at home improvement warehouses when I need lumber, lighting, nails, potting soil or small hand tools, and overall I think they have reasonable prices and a nice selection.
But as a 30-year carpet expert, I think that buying new Carpet from Lowe's, Home Depot, Costco or any other big box warehouse retailer may not be the wisest way to go for most homeowners.
Here's why...
All of these big-box retailers farm-out their measuring and installations to other companies, and they use private labels on their samples to make comparison shopping almost impossible. There are many other important reasons why I don't recommend buying new Carpet from big-box retailers. Read on...
Homeowners need accurate and complete answers to important carpet buying questions!
From what I've experienced myself, I find that many BIG BOX salespeople are relatively new to the carpet and flooring business and many lack sufficient product knowledge and "hands-on" experience to accurately answer even the most basic carpet questions.
Working nights and weekends by the hour at a home improvement warehouse is surely a demanding job and many new retail workers have been hired after having lost their job from the downturn in the economy.
These nice folks have had to seek out other employment opportunities just to make ends meet, but they are often overworked and underpaid and likely don't have any hands-on experience in carpet and flooring.
This means that there might not
be much passion for their new and hopefully "temporary" employment at
the local big box warehouse.
Because buying new Carpet or Flooring is such a big and important investment, ALL your carpet questions need to be answered by someone who really knows what they are talking about!
You've come to the right place for honest answers! Read more about What Grade of Carpet Should I Select?
Big Box Corporate Conglomerates
It's obvious that Home Depot and Lowe's got into the Carpet and flooring business because they saw a golden opportunity to make some serious money selling carpet and flooring. They have deep pockets and enough corporate muscles to negotiate special flooring deals with certain manufacturers.
They also have the ability to spend millions on advertising to lure-in unsuspecting homeowners. In doing so they have forced many long-standing, honest and reputable, locally-owned flooring stores to go out of business.
I am very sad about this and want to help and support reputable locally-owned carpet and flooring dealers any way I can. My List: The Best & Worst Places to Buy Carpet & Flooring
Why do I prefer locally-owned, family-run Carpet stores?
Lowe's and Home Depot have certainly met homeowners needs for DIY home improvement products and I shop there for many items like most folks do, but knowing what I know, I would never buy carpet or flooring from them.
Why? Once you pay for the materials and labor costs (which they want paid upfront and in-full at the time of ordering), the big box retailer is pretty much all done serving you. They are only in business to sell you the materials and they subcontract out practically everything else, including the in-home measuring service and the installation to other privately held companies or independent contractors.
And what do big box dealers have to say when you call them with a carpet complaint?
They will likely say that since THEY didn't install your carpet and since THEY didn't manufacture your carpet, YOU have to seek a remedy with either the carpet manufacturer or the carpet installation company. Basically, this means you are on your own with little or no help from the big box store!
This also means if you believe you have an installation problem with your carpet, you will have to contact the installation company directly for a remedy. When someone finally comes out to inspect your carpet they may say your problem is not an installation problem, but is a carpet defect.
Now you have to contact the carpet manufacturer directly and ask them to come by and take a look at your carpet. They in turn will inspect your carpet and may say it is not a carpet defect, but an installation problem or maybe they will blame you for improper carpet maintenance, care or abuse.
This is the vicious cycle that makes homeowners absolutely furious when no one is willing to accept responsibility for their carpet complaint. And what about those incredible $37 carpet installation specials? It sure sounds good at first, but is it really a good deal for you in the long run?
Do you know what they mean by a "basic" installation? It means that anything you need, above and beyond their very limited definition of a "basic installation", will add significant additional charges to your final bill.
You might not discover how much more this will cost you until the day of installation when the installers arrive with your carpet and then require you pay hundreds more for materials or services before they will begin.
These are just a few of many reasons why I only recommend buying carpet from a reputable, locally owned, floor covering business. They have a vested interest in your community and will go the extra mile to make sure you are completely satisfied from start to finish.
I don't like hearing about all those huge corporate profits and mega salaries paid out to big-shot corporate CEO's while millions of hard-working Americans are underpaid, over-worked and struggling to support their families with a low hourly working wage.
The typical corporate mindset is mainly concerned about making as much profit as possible and spending as little as possible on wages, healthcare and customer service. The truth is, buying from locally owned small businesses is far better for you and our economy, better for local job creation and better for your community schools. roads, and the long-term future of your children!
Now that you know several good reasons why I only recommend buying from a locally-owned, family-run carpet business, I ask that you consider buying locally. Not only will they treat you like gold, but they will take very good care of you before and after the sale. See who I recommend near you.
Are "Soft" Nylon Styles a Wise Choice for Heavy Traffic Applications?
Question: We just bought a house and need to re-carpet. We've got a quote from Lowe's for a Mohawk carpet,
53-oz face-weight, 6.5 tuft twist, BCF, 100% Lisse® nylon, "textured"
style carpet. We like it but I have been rethinking
it because I'm not sure it is dense enough.
This carpet is for our entire upstairs, two bedrooms, one office and the main stair well. It's only the two of us, but I want to make sure we are making a good investment.
Does this carpet sound like a wise choice? Would you advise something more dense? We checked out a more dense carpet made by Pacific Coast (I think) and it would be $500 more for the same amount. I just don't know if the higher density justifies the added cost. Let me know what you think!
Alan's
Answer:
Your carpet selection basically seems fine to me based on what limited carpet
info you have told me. 53 ounces is a good carpet face weight. But you didn't
say how much the carpet cost per yard or what carpet pad you selected and how
much that will cost, or the density ratings of the carpet or padding.
The soft nylon carpet you are considering might be a good selection for your needs and lifestyle, but without knowing all the specifications I can't say for sure. Lisse' is one of the "soft" nylon styles and is more expensive than a standard nylon carpet because it feels more soft to the touch.
My Thoughts About "Soft" Nylon Carpet Styles
Homeowners prefer to buy the softest carpet. Fiber manufacturers create this extra softness by making the nylon filament thinner. However, by doing so, it may reduce the resiliency or durability of the carpet.
Resiliency is defined as the ability of the carpet fiber to spring back to it's original shape after being compressed or walked on.
If the resiliency is reduced by making the strand thinner, the carpet may not retain it's like-new appearance as long and might mat down or "crush" more quickly than a standard denier nylon (non-soft) filament.
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Matting and crushing of the pile is not typically covered under the carpet manufacturer's limited warranty.
Once the carpet fiber begins to mat down, there is little that can be done to restore it to it's original like-new appearance.
I do like the look and feel of soft nylons but the added cost and potential reduction in resiliency would make me hesitate if I wanted more than 10 years of use or in moderate to heavy traffic applications.
Have you ever read a manufacturer's new carpet warranty?
You'd be surprised to discover how many hoops you have to jump through just to keep from inadvertently voiding your new carpet warranty.
Learn more about Carpet Stain Warranties here. Read My Special Report: The Best & Worst Places to Buy Carpet & Flooring
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