Carpet dealers

[KenK]

I'm trying to choose a good carpet dealer. I recently got badly burned by a
drain service and am getting cautious about choosing various businesses. I
Googled but couldn't find reviews of the carpet dealers I am considering.
Maybe I should sign up for this Angie's List review list?

TIA


--
You know it's time to clean the refrigerator
when something closes the door from the inside.

[wilm...@gmail.com]

I found dozens on Yelp in my town.

Lowes and Home Depot have provided good service in the past, both are nationwide, not likely to close their door after I put down a down-payment.

[Camellia Sinensis]

>"KenK" wrote in message news:XnsA68B610A93...@130.133.4.11...

Angie's List has turned into a scam itself. There are complaints of
horrible spamming and problems with referrals. Going with the big box
stores like Lowes and Home Depot is a pretty safe bet--most of the smaller
mom and pop type stores are too expensive.

[BigDog811]

Carpet dealers are generally local, or at best regional, so you should be asking for recommendations from people who live near you.

Best to go with a carpet dealer rather than a big box multi-trade store. Carpet is carpet, and the brand you choose will be the same from one store to the other. There might be a slight difference in price, but if it's too great the guy with the low ball price is probably selling you a different carpet than you think you're buying. Also, the dedicated dealers generally employ their own installers. The big box stores subcontract the installation to the next guy up on their list; who may or may not be competent and may or may not ever work for them again. The local carpet dealer is going to be much more responsive to a problem because their business is more dependent on satisfied customers than the big box national stores.

Angie's List is a good starting point. At least with them you know it's a legitimate business with all the locally required licenses, permits and insurance, not some fly by night hack who's using your deposit money to pay off his last job rather than buying your material. I've used them twice in the past 18 months to find contractors to build a deck, and replace the counter tops in our kitchen. Couldn't be happier.

[BigDog811]

On Thursday, September 22, 2016 at 9:40:04 PM UTC-4, Camellia Sinensis wrote:
> >"KenK" wrote in message news:XnsA68B610A93...@130.133.4.11...
>
> >I'm trying to choose a good carpet dealer. I recently got badly burned by a
> >drain service and am getting cautious about choosing various businesses. I
> >Googled but couldn't find reviews of the carpet dealers I am considering.
> >Maybe I should sign up for this Angie's List review list?
>
> >TIA
>
>
> >--
> >You know it's time to clean the refrigerator
> >when something closes the door from the inside.
>
> Angie's List has turned into a scam itself. There are complaints of
> horrible spamming and problems with referrals.

Where can I find those complaints? I've not heard of any such issues in my area. I've been a paid Angie's List member for a little over two years. When I signed up I opted out of their email and phone offers and haven't a single email or phone call from them or any their registered businesses.

> Going with the big box stores like Lowes and Home Depot is a pretty safe bet

Sometimes, but not always. All of their installers are subcontractors, not employees so it's kind of catch as catch can in that area.

>--most of the smaller mom and pop type stores are too expensive.

It depends. We recently had quartz counter-tops installed in our kitchen. The original estimate from Home Depot was just under $3K, but by the time they added on "extras" like tear out and removal of the old counters and the plumbing the price jumped another $800.00. Plus it was going to take 10-14 days, start to finish. That's a long time to be without a functioning kitchen.

We went with a kitchen design firm we found through Angie's List. Not only was the total price lower ($3450.00 all inclusive) for exactly the same quartz, but the job was done in five days. So...I guess you get what you pay for. Sometimes you get more.

[RJH]

On 22/09/2016 17:32, KenK wrote:
> I'm trying to choose a good carpet dealer. I recently got badly burned by a
> drain service and am getting cautious about choosing various businesses. I
> Googled but couldn't find reviews of the carpet dealers I am considering.
> Maybe I should sign up for this Angie's List review list?
>

I recently had new carpets fitted, and cut the cost considerably (40%)
by fitting my own underlay. This was using a national warehouse-type
retailer - seems their models are based on a huge underlay mark-up.
Independents were more expensive.

A friend made similar savings by employing a local carpet fitter, who
was able to source underlay and carpet at competitive prices.

FWIW - this is the UK, where carpets seem to be going out of fashion to
laminates and engineered wood. That'd be IKEA for you.

--
Cheers, Rob

[wilm...@gmail.com]

On Friday, September 23, 2016 at 8:56:26 PM UTC-7, RJH wrote:

>
> FWIW - this is the UK, where carpets seem to be going out of fashion to
> laminates and engineered wood. That'd be IKEA for you.
>
> --

I just finished taking out the carpet and putting in laminate in the last room. Way easier to clean. The laminate I laid in the first room is as shiny and clean as the newest room. This stuff is suppose to last thirty years, but as little traffic as they get, they'll last until the next century. And the stuff is cheap enough that I could see changing it out because I'm tired of one color and want another.

[Bob F]

Just watch out for water spills on that laminate. A friend had one on
his that didn't get completely cleaned up immediately, and the stuff
warped horribly.

[wilm...@gmail.com]

I put it in the bathroom and kitchen. Ten years ago. Still no problem.

[Bob F]

Must have been a much better product than the one my friend had.

[wilm...@gmail.com]

I have used the cheap stuff, the middle of the road stuff and the most expensive. If you're doing it yourself, get the expensive, it just fits better.

[Camellia Sinensis]

>
>"BigDog811" wrote in message
>news:6e3249bd-95de-4769...@googlegroups.com...

>On Thursday, September 22, 2016 at 9:40:04 PM UTC-4, Camellia Sinensis
>wrote:
>> >"KenK" wrote in message news:XnsA68B610A93...@130.133.4.11...
>>
>> >I'm trying to choose a good carpet dealer. I recently got badly burned
>> >by a
>> >drain service and am getting cautious about choosing various businesses.
>> >I
>> >Googled but couldn't find reviews of the carpet dealers I am
>> >considering.
>> >Maybe I should sign up for this Angie's List review list?
>
>> >TIA
>>
>>
>> >--
>> >You know it's time to clean the refrigerator
>> >when something closes the door from the inside.
>
>> Angie's List has turned into a scam itself. There are complaints of
>> horrible spamming and problems with referrals.

>Where can I find those complaints? I've not heard of any such issues in my
>area. I've been a paid Angie's List member for a little over two years.
>When I signed up I opted out of their email and phone offers and haven't a
>single email or phone call from them or any their registered >businesses.

https://www.consumeraffairs.com/online/angies-list.html

[BigDog811]

Not a good source. Full of outright lies and complaints from stupid people who don't understand how business works.

Check the Federal Trade Commission, your state Attorney General's Office and the Better Business Office for reliable complaint history on Angie's List, or any other business,

[Camellia Sinensis]

>"BigDog811" wrote in message
>news:ab0434e2-3c25-4c05...@googlegroups.com...

Whatever. I thought the "stupid people" were the ones that needed help with
this kind of stuff. It isn't like this anything new. This is from 2014:
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/why-angies-list-is-getting-a-rash-of-bad-reviews/

The last one had complaints only a a few days old. So I guess if you want
to take your chances with a less than stellar Angie's List--be my gues.

[BigDog811]

http://www.bbb.org/indy/business-reviews/referral-contractor/angie-s-list-llc-in-indianapolis-in-3041007/complaints

Angie's List has an A+ rating with the BBB, which has received and closed 501 complaints in the past three years. That number of complaints over that time period for a national company with many thousands (maybe hundreds of thousands) clients is miniscule.

They maintain an A+ rating because they responded to the complaints in a timely manner and:

a. They resolved the complaint to the satisfaction of the complainant.

or

b. Their explanation to the BBB satisfied them that the complaint was without merit.

Go read them yourself rather than relying on an over two year old news article with no follow-up, no vetting of the sources or incidents reported, and some disgruntled Angie's List customers tagging it with anecdotal comments to disparage them.

Angie's List is not the only resource I use to find the businesses and services I need. But have been more than satisfied when I did. And will no doubt use them again in the future.

I certainly wouldn't rely on a web site like consumeraffairs.com which exists only as a place for people to rant. Even if the basic facts true (but don't assume they are) the whole story is never there.

[wilm...@gmail.com]

Why Consumer Reports Says You Can't Trust Angie's List - Forbes
www.forbes.com/sites/.../why-consumer-reports-says-you-cant-trust-angies-list/

Forbes

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