Home Depot Rant #476,352,939

[Charlesaf3]

eddie beat me to it!

 

[Tom_H]

I would get out a pen and pad and say, "Would you spell your name for me? I want to get it right when I send my letter to the regional manager."

 

[N80]

That's what I'm going to do.

The only thing I like about the big stores is that I like looking at what I'm going to buy. Especially hardware, plumbing etc. Often times I know what I need to do but I'm not sure what how to get it done. In the big stores I can look at stuff, handle it, see how things fit, etc. But, I can live without it.

 

[CDsdad]

For small jobs, I just shop with whoever is closest to the house that I'm working on. For bigger jobs, I go to McCoys. They are geared up for contractors and only have a very small display area. The yard is massive.

I tell them what I want, pay for it and drive around back, where they load me up. Same price, but I never have to leave the cab of my truck.

Eddie

Same at the local yard here in town (nearest Lowe's or HD is 40 miles). They pretty well have everything, and price is close if not as low. They'll load you, too. But I better check what they load. Inside they can be intelligent, but on the yard they ain't got the sense God gave a shiny brown rock.

 

[MossRoad]

For small jobs, I just shop with whoever is closest to the house that I'm working on. For bigger jobs, I go to McCoys. They are geared up for contractors and only have a very small display area. The yard is massive.

I tell them what I want, pay for it and drive around back, where they load me up. Same price, but I never have to leave the cab of my truck.

Eddie

Besides the box stores, we are down to one lumber yard in our town. They no longer want small customers and look at you like you're an infected skunk if you walk in the door. They also charge way more than the box stores. So you get treated poorly AND have to pay more for it.

There are a few lumber yards in other towns nearby that still treat small customers well and I use them if at all possible, but sometimes they just don't have what I need. And there is one Ace hardware left nearby that still has tons of stuff with a staff that actually knows stuff. Refreshing!

 

[hazmat]

One of the unexpected benefits (thought it would go the other way) of trading my truck for a sedan 3 years ago is that I now have to order my lumber from the local lumber yard. I spend 5 minutes on the phone & then they deliver it (free). It costs ~10% more than the depot, but is much better quality - and hey my time is worth it.

I can understand wanting to "try before you buy" when you're not 100% sure how things will go together. Being a mechanical engineer, I can usually visualize pretty well. Plus I'll let you in on a little secret - pick up "the book" at the lumber store - you know the one with all the millwork, doors etc. in it - It has pictures and dimensions.

For hardware - McMaster Carr UPS ground shows up the next day. One of the best online shopping experiences - they often have technical drawings of the products.

For Tools - Amazon

I still shop at Lowes & The Depot, but go there with the expectation that I will not get 100% of what I want. (Case in point, last night no gas burner switch plate at Lowes). I feel bad for folks who do not have a local lumber yard.

 

[riptides]

I don't think this level of service indicative to the brand of store where one shops. Service is more human oriented. And well, there are people who help and there are some who do not.

My HD story is quite different. I went in for some light bulbs. I found them and went to self checkout. I scan the bulb and it comes across as .01 cent instead of .99. The scanner calls selfhelp. I turn to the cashier watcher who is engaged with another customer and on the phone. They motion for me to come forward. I point to my already engaged transaction. They attempt to scan my bulbs in anyway. Same issue. The person stops engaging the other customer, being polite. They examine the bulb issue, tell the person on the phone to hold and call a manager over. The manager dismisses the transaction on the cashier machine, examines the bulbs, looks aroud to see other people waiting, and proceeds to say the bulbs are the problem. Please pay .02 cents and have a nice day. I say the bulbs are .99 cents and they say, thanks for pointing that out, we will fix it, and have a nice day.

 

[mjarrels]

Look for a forklift with the keys in it and start to move the lumber yourself... bet you will get some ones attention!

mark

 

[kenmac]

I feel your pain with hd. I e-mailed the home office once & complained about their cust. service They sent me a 10% off card for my next visit. Most of the time I go to lowes & found the same problem

 

[N80]

Look for a forklift with the keys in it and start to move the lumber yourself... bet you will get some ones attention!

mark

I seriously considered climbing up the lumber rack, but 1) it was waaay up there and 2) the lumber was still banded.

The thing that puzzles me so much is that HD is apparently in trouble as a company. Mr. Jimi emailed me a link to an HD hate site (it is very funny). And if you look over the long list of complaints and subtract out the ones from their EMPLOYEES, the most common complaints have to do with the terrible service. Apparently HD treats thier employees poorly and it would appear that the employees pass it on to the customers.

This indicates to me a top down problem which I suspect is equal parts poor management and trying to improve the bottom line by not hiring enough people to provide adequate service. Once again, for an eye opener just Google: home depot closing. I have no patience for management and employees that run a company into the ground.

And this rant was not because of a one time incident for me. Over the last five years I've spent more time and money with HD than I care to admit. This was just the final straw. I think I have been more than patient with them, I've always been polite and honest, I try to be understanding but no more. I'm never going back, and a 10% discount card would not help. I'm not calling or emailing them, I just taking my money somewhere else.