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My Question is, are plumbing fixtures for kitchens and baths, like faucets, that much better if you go to Plumbing Houses over Home Depot? I know that the manufactures are the same but I’ve recently observed a few premature leaks and failures in the Home Depot versions? I’m guessing that you get what you paid for and the Plumbing Houses are about 30% higher for comparable looking faucets.
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From when I worked at HD, I kinda had the same question. I spoke directly to a Moen rep and a Price Pfister rep, asking the same typical questions seperately, with no HD management around to cloud answers. I was told flat out that HD buys SOOO much that they just get that great a discount. The place that a supply house might be able to do you better is in custom/special ordering. HD does it too, but the bulk isn't as high, so pricing can vary. It also varies make to make. HD generally has a cost factor multiplier for each vendor. For example, Brand X lists at $150. Say HD's cost factor for Brand X is .75 - so your price is .75 x 150 = $112.50. Certain vendors cost (list) more to begin with, and combined with the different cost factors, products cost (retail) more or less across a range. 'Nuther example, Brand Y lists $130, with a .9 cost factor. You pay $117.
Accepting the general theory you get what you pay for, Brand X ($150 list) is better than Brand Y($130 list). But, you can wind up paying less for a better faucet. I'm not saying this is normally the case, or even that it is the case. It is theoretical, as I have not worked there in 3 yrs., and have little idea what the current factors are, etc. The cost factors are set vendor to vendor, year to year. They can be based in part on sales of stock faucets, desirability of a brand, mucho other facets of faucets. (sorry, couldn't resist.)
So, am I biased to HD? I don't think so. I generally do 90-95 % of my shopping there. They are cheap and there are 2 stores within 20 minutes open 24 hrs. That makes them tough to turn down. But, for bigger ticket items, especially of the special order variety, you'd be dumb to not compare prices. (That price guarantee usually won't apply to special orders.)
Hope it helps, and now I'll yield the floor to the anti-HD crowd.
Sean
PS - Potential reasons you see more leaks in HD units. 1. Maybe more people are buying them there? The failure/quailty control rate is (probably) the same, so maybe you just see more out of HD overall? 2. HD will acept anyything in returns. That stuff SHOULD go back to vendor if it's defective, but if it appears OK and returning customer doesn't say something, it'll go on the floor. 3. Customers have a tendency to need a washer or O-ring, or ??? and they'll take it out of a new package on a shelf. So, one legitimate 'bad' faucet perpetuates into more 'bad' faucets. 4. People tend to be more vocal about complaining when stuff comes from HD or even Lowes. If a plumber installed it, they complain about the plumber. Plumbers don't usually shop HD (from what I've seen). My plumber recently installed a new shower for me, and it had a bad cartridge within a month. I know enough to complain about Moen, not my plumber.
*Phil, don't know about the quality of name brand fixtures, but as to price I can generally get things cheaper at a local dealer with the contractors discount. Even places I don't carry an account. I always ask and start shoping a new place if a reasonable discount is offered with a greater discount provided as I increase my shopping there. Wouldn't suprise me if there was a qualiy difference though. Everything in life seems to have bests and seconds, and where do ya thing they will pawn off the close but not exacts? Somewhere where an owner will call them up and ream them a new one for insulting his loyal customers, or a big D.I.Y. place where the stock guys don't know where the manager is? Reminds me of the flight school I went to years ago. The fuel truck would come by and get sample tested, if it failed the test they'd drive to the next cheaper FBO then the next. Sooner or later they'd find a taker and leave with an empty truck! Jeff
*Interesting takes on Home Depot (and Flight School).If metal is better than plastic then what I recently heard from a builder/specifier is most interesting. A HD faucet might be 70% plastic where the same looking but different model # faucet at a Plumbing House might be 70% metal and 30% plastic. I'd like to think I could trust the plumber in this case.
*I have found that with a few exceptions, (Sinks, tubs etc.) plumbing supply prices are lower. That makes the decision easy. Not having to sort through the HD inventory for parts that are often not in stock saves a lot of time. I don't shop HD for plumbing unless I only need a few items and am there anyway.
*One other thing to consider is the response to a problem that might occur with any part. My supply house will do all it can to satisfy me and quickly take care of any problem that arises. Probably see the same guys behind the counter too. Try that at any discount house. The turnover in the trained associates itself would discourage me. No offense intended Mr. P.Also, those of us brought up on the family owned hardware, lumber yard, etc would never encourage anything that seems to weed them out. Not to mention waiting in line for some help behind some dufus complaining how his 2x4 was only 3 1/2" wide. No offense to you legitimate DIY'ers.Offensively yours,Small guy patronizer.
*No offense taken. I know about turnover there, as I myself was not there less than a year. Eye opening experience, though. I also forgot to mention one reason I shop there. I am a DIY (I'd like to think of myself as the legitimate kind) and I feel different in HD, or Lowes, or etc. vs. smaller outfits. In the smaller outfits (supply houses, not True Value types) I get a vibe of not being welcome, I guess because they're more used to contractors. At HD, I get a vibe of superiority, because I don't think I'm one of the dufuses (dufi?). Of course, I'm known to be wrong on that too. I realize it's me (psychologically) more than an actual issue of treatment. But it is comforting anyway.Sean
*probably obvious reflection but:I tried to get a cheap storm window for my basement at HD. They ordered it and three weeks later got my window. Made wrong (to hang vert, instead of horiz) and missing the expander strip and the screen that I paid for.No problem, I figured, they're cheap and not gonna be real good at 'details' I'll just toddle on down there and get this straightened out.The rest of the story is really long. 5 trips back to HD, very friendly people who can not help me promising to straighten it out. They always called me when they said they would and never forgot about me but kept not getting the parts I needed or in the right shape.The window is finally installed (this started in December and ended in April), after I reworked it myself to make it fit (access to a machine shop). The screen was finally made to the right shape (on the third or fourth try, forget which) after I personnaly measured it and watched them write it down to give the mfr....I like the 24 hrs part and pretty big selection. But I learned a great lesson: always go to the local guy for a custom item. Any % cost increase will be worth your while without a doubt.Interesting side light: several very healthy local hardware stores in town. They do not seem to be suffering from the HD or Lowes, in fact we had two big box stores go out of business in the last 3 years! Makes me feel good to see the local guys do well.
*"Yes," to all; I fully agree with those statements. I just think it is misleading, cheap, (you call it what you will), that the manufacturers make guts of a fixture cheaply and sell them to compete WITHOUT letting you know until after the failure that there is a difference. Keeping the local plumbing supply house in business,Phil