Don’t want to give away all of my trade secrets but one of the things I do is keep my eye on the damaged and outdated items at Lowes and Home Depot. Right now I’m in the market for three storm doors.
Here where I’m at they put damaged items in the large carts (a few of these carts even have round wheels) and in the past I’ve bought interior doors, exterior doors, appliances, area rugs, light fixtures, electric drills, all at a reduced price.
sometimes they reduce the price by as much as 50%.
Enjoy!
Replies
i often see discouted plumbing products out on the dock of my plumbing supply store and if you offer cash the price can be reduced even more
You are right. I had an employee who now works the millworks department at Lowes. He is 7'2" and 45 years old...... has some health issues. When asked he tells people he is 5' 26"
He called the other day and asked me if I wanted a 7 HP / 220 Air Compressor / 60 gallon tank / Normally $485.00 Clearance $185.00. I bought it.
Too big for jobiste, but great for my shop.
to go with your tip.....get to know someone real well who works there and give them your cell number when things like that come up. He called me about one of those fancy scaffold / extension / A frame adjustable ladders Normally $135.00 Clearance $35.00.
He also calls when they have contractor breakfast or lunch, give prizes, freebees or one day discounts.
Helps if you know a few people who work in those big box hardware stores. A wife of a friend works on the construction material side of the store and she sometimes gives me a ring about something she thinks might be of interest.
This can be a boon to Boyscouts, community groups, arts types and people who do smaller projects.
Not uncommon for a customer want lumber diced the their specification and then to find out they don't need most of it or it is cut wrong, not that they would admit the later point. Thing is most of these stores give a refund, buy it back.
Full sheets of plywood returned, as long as they are in decent condition are seldom an issue to resell but three sheets of 1/2" plywood all ripped down to 16" is not something most contractors want to mess with.
Most stores then sell it for ten cents on the dollar. If you get there quickly you can get the stack for a song just because the lumber guy doesn't want to spend the time and trouble to find a corner to restock it into. A few times she has given me a jingle to see if I was interested and I'm there in a few minutes. At least once a manager told me just to take it with the understanding that I took it right then, no need for his employees to mess with it, and he never had to see it again.
Another steal is boxes of nails for air nailers. Brads, Framing nails, staples, etc... If someone drops a box, the peices will break apart. If you are willing to spend about 1/2 hr sorting them out, you can get $150 dollars worth of nails for $25. At least I have.
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People are entitled to their own opinions; People are not entitled to their own truth.
Jacob
Man o man, you guys must live in some out of the way places. The HDs here in north Jersey are manned by the most stupid people on earth who barely know their names, let alone give a rat's #### about helping you buy something at a discount. I chuckle to hear that you have HD employees calling you on your cell phone about a deal.
The other day, I needed help finding something and saw a dude walking in an apron. I asked him if he worked in the electrical department. He ignored me at first, then begrudingly said "no" and kept on walking. When I worked at a grocery store as a kid, the first thing they taught us was to say "No, but I'll find someone who does".
Ugh...HD....
The other day, I bought about 750 sq. ft. of ceramic tiles at Home Depot. The employee helping me (real nice guy) noticed that one of the boxes had several cracked tiles. I asked what HD will do with those tiles. His replied that they will be thrown away. I asked if I can have them at a discount. He said it was HD's policy to throw away defective or non-working items. He said he has seen power tools, appliances, lumber etc. thrown into a dumpster. What a waste!
I agree Re HD being such a waste, the ones I go to here (north of Boston) throw away tons of things. They'd rather not give it away (or discount) because it canibalizes their own sales. Go behind the store and look at their dumpster area and cry :-(
One exception: Although they throw away a lot of lumber, they also sell some of it at a discount, they have "cull" bins. anywhere from 10c to 20c on the dollar. But they cut them into smaller shorter pieces, which still come in handy on some elements of a project. On my own house remodel, I have framed many new windows using 5ft 2x4's that I paid for 20c @ (instead of $3 for a 8' stud)
I have also found the most amazing, crazy figured & spalted maple in those bins because the geniouses in charge thought the wood was "defective" compared to the rest of the bland, boring batch.
I agree. I'm trying to figure out how I never have to go in there again.