Lowes Wood vs Home Depot Wood

Arcrist · 03-11-2006, 06:41 AM

Has anyone done the research? I haven't done the math yet but it looks like lowes charges the same for a 3 foot board as HD does for a 4 foot. Atleast for poplar. HDs selection is bad though, and I found almost every board warped.

DaveO · 03-11-2006, 07:16 AM

Neither are very good buys. But IMO I think Home Depot is better for wood and Lowes is better for all the orther stuff. If the HD nears you hasn't culled out its bad stock either try another one, or find a manager (good luck) and make them a deal one some of the warped boards if you can find usuable pieces in the board. I've got sheets of ply for 1/2 price because a corner was banged up.
Dave

Mtnman · 03-11-2006, 07:50 AM

I have found that on any particular day one can be better than the other. It just depends on how many people have picked through the stack ahead of you. One thing for sure is the clerks at HD seem to be better versed on their merchandise. Ex- plumbers in the plumbing aisle, that sort of thing. I have never had an intelligent answer to my questions at Lowes.

Arcrist · 03-11-2006, 07:57 AM

Yeah try Sears, i was looking at the router table and router that i eventually bought. this old dude comes over and hovers over me. So i asked him questions about the features and he hesitated. A few minutes later he told me he never used a router, his only woodworking experience was building sheds. Thanks a lot guy, get lost lol.

Vanilla Gorilla · 03-11-2006, 02:16 PM

Sears is a tough place to shop. Seems like there's always one guy who wants to hug you and stare at you while you're trying to look at tools. But you're right, whenever you try to ask them a question about something other than "what color is it and how much does it cost" they look at you like a deer in headlights.

Travis Porter · 03-11-2006, 02:23 PM

When I was finishing the interior of my shop I compared prices on everything from sheetrock to wire nuts between the two. I even had one of the employees at Lowes help me gather prices as he was curious about how they compared as well.

I found that on the common stuff they were almost exactly priced the same. Some occassional variances, but overall, almost a penny for penny match. The small stuff is where the prices start to vary and the brands and quantities are different so you can't hit them with a price match. For instance, wire nuts when broken down by unit costs were cheaper at Lowes while plumbing fittings were cheaper at HD.

I haven't bought much wood from either in a while, but I want buy Lowes sandply plywood anymore with the variations I have seen in thickness between sheets. After reading the posts on "white wood" I will stay away from that as well. HD has their issues as well IMO. I learned my lesson on their imported hardwood plywood. It warps so fast that it will blow your mind if it isn't secured.

lwhughes149 · 03-11-2006, 02:30 PM

Looks like I am going to have a difficult time finding wood for my drawer bottoms.

We have a Woodbutcher (builds kitchen cabinets ) in Roanoke Rapids who keeps a good supply of lumber, think I will call him the first of the week and see what he charges for a sheet of 1/4" plywood.

Travis Porter · 03-11-2006, 03:28 PM

The BORG does carry some 1/4 inch hardwood plywood. Like DaveO said, I wouldn't stain the drawer bottoms. Personally, I have used 1/4" luan a lot and the 1/2" sandply from HD with good results. The luan is dark and the sandply is very light.

sapwood · 03-11-2006, 03:35 PM

I visit both regularly and find the wood selection at HD usually better than Lowes, but customer service better at Lowes. HD's are rapidly moving forward with automated scanning stations instead of clerks. I don't like that. I want a smiling face to greet me at the register, in addition to the issue of job displacement. A friend who has been a manager with Lowes for over twenty years cited the reason. HD did a customer service survey and discovered that more than 50 percent of customers perferred the scanners over the clerks. Of course, that brings up the question: are their training techniques and personnel worse than the machines?

As with any other franchise, the quality of the local management and staff varies widely. I am an equal opportunity spender, so I continue to shop wherever I get the best deal.

Sapwood

Arcrist · 03-11-2006, 06:27 PM

I dont like scanners for a couple reasons.

First they put people out of work, and second, i feel guilty when i check myself out like at the food store. I feel like im being watched by some hidden camera to make sure I pay for it all. It just makes me uncomfortable.

Travis Porter · 03-11-2006, 09:59 PM

I remember when I lived in KC there wasn't any Lowes around. The HD I went to had horrible service. They were extremely busy all of the time. A while later here comes a Lowes, HD is a whole lot slower, but all of a sudden the customer service improved drastically.

IMO, HD seems to be a lot junkier and more cluttered than Lowes.