Lowes steam vent

[BoredSysAdmin]

So about a few months ago, my better half asked me to buy new kitchen barstools. After LOTS of searching various internet sites I found this chair to match our liking:
Price seemed a bit high (I think originally it was either Wayfair or Etsy) and with Google reverse image search, I found the same chair priced at $105 at Both Target and Lowes (online only)
We need 4 chairs so at over $400 my mind goes to any discounts I could apply? Yes, I could - if I re-apply (already closed before) to Lowes Consumer credit card, I could get an extra 20% off on the first purchase and 5% off on all future purchases. As a homeowner, my travel to Lowes is already fairly regular. So far so good.

Now, this is where issues begin: Applying online was useless as I was getting some cryptic error message about duplicate accounts. Going to the store ended up just as useless as they put me on phone with corporate and standing an hour in-store on hold (while people in line for customer service keep on growing) isn't ideal, to say the least.
Ok, I free my schedule, take few patience pills and brace for impact as I travel complex Lowes/Synchrony bank phone lines and going thru no less than 2 hours and 8 people until I get a correct department, which gets me sent to Synchrony mobile site for additional identity verification. Finally, I call back, confirm the code I got on the mobile site, and eventually get approved. Hurray!

Not so fast! Being approved means you could get a temp card to shop in-store only, for online purchases, an actual piece of plastic required( they can't give out CVV code on phone). Ok, so now another two weeks to wait until the card arrives.

This Tuesday's new card finally arrives and yesterday evening I activated it and went on my big lowes online purchases (Finally ! or so I thought yey again).
I finally figure out how to apply the 20% off (which I kept hearing was supposed to automatic - it wasn't) and I press the magical BIG place order button! (Hurray!.... you know where this going right?) and all I get is this lovely and cryptic error message:

It was after Lowes (phone only) customer service work hours, so I check the site today, and the price on Lowes changed from 105 to $125 (Target has the old price for now).

I take whatever left of patience pills and call customer service yet again, after an hour on hold I am told that even if they could price match, they can't combine it with a 20% off discount. Company policy you see. The fact that I tried and failed to place an order on the old price is now considered irrelevant.

I think from now I going to go out of my way to avoid Lowes and their great CS like a wildfire. Hello Home Depot.

/rant

 

[ryanosaur]

Until recently, I had been preferring my local Lowe’s to HD very strongly. Just the overall shopping experience there from item findability to store cleanliness was so much better.
Over the last year... that changed, a lot. Not that HD got better, but Lowe’s definitely went in the wrong direction, including eliminating roughly a quarter-aisle of lumber.
Oh well.
*shrugs

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

Until recently, I had been preferring my local Lowe’s to HD very strongly. Just the overall shopping experience there from item findability to store cleanliness was so much better.
Over the last year... that changed, a lot. Not that HD got better, but Lowe’s definitely went in the wrong direction, including eliminating roughly a quarter-aisle of lumber.
Oh well.
*shrugs

I like it - findability - and 100% confirm my experience - now long ago a specific item is in-store shown isle/row number and was completely in a different location

 

[Eppie]

Eliminating lumber could be due to supply issues. The whole bloody continent is short on supply of building materials. A 2x4 stud that was $2 is over $8 up here now and a $20 sheet of OSB is $50! We've talked to builders who have had the material costs for a new home increase by $100,000.

 

[Verdinut]

Talking of price changes, a few days ago, signed into the eBay.ca site, I wanted to purchase a refurbished laptop from one of the biggest Canadian computer refurbishers.
Between the time I committed to buying the item and the access to my PayPal account, I jumped as the price of the item had increased.

The listing of the item had ended and was automatically relisted with the price increase during the interval. I think that is a situation which often happens with eBay taking account of the volume of business they are dealing with. I told the seller about the situation but he did not believe me. I also asked eBay to call me which they did and the call came from a lady in Colombia, South America. Of course, she couldn't help me and I asked her to tell her supervisor to call me. He never did. So, I cancelled the whole thing.

I'm not in a rush to buy one anyways. I'll continue to check for refurbished laptops which are offered on the Canada Computers stores website and will eventually find one that suits my needs. The Lenovo brand is a reputable company with affordable reliable products.

 

[Irvrobinson]

Eliminating lumber could be due to supply issues. The whole bloody continent is short on supply of building materials. A 2x4 stud that was $2 is over $8 up here now and a $20 sheet of OSB is $50! We've talked to builders who have had the material costs for a new home increase by $100,000.

That's partially because Biden hasn't eliminated that stupid 24% tariff on Canadian lumber Trump barfed up.

Edit: I was poorly informed:

Home Builders Applaud Canadian Lumber Tariff Cuts | Timberline Magazine

timberlinemag.com

 

[ryanosaur]

I just bought 4 sheets of 11/32" ply for my workshop at $45 each! Next to Trump's... most expensive wall ever! (At least mine is done! )
Asked for a quote to bring in some 3/4" equiv Baltic Birch BB grade... $70 per sheet.
FTW

 

[Eppie]

I like Canada Computers in general. Usually fair pricing and we have a local store with knowledgeable staff.

Tariffs are stupid! And Trump lied about them. Tariffs are applied by the importing country and paid for by the importer, not the seller! So tariffs cost Americans more money with the difference going to the government. U.S. manufacturers were screaming about the aluminum tariffs because Canada was a major supplier and there was not enough local supply. All the tariff did was raise production costs.

I am finishing a large wall unit in the basement recroom with maple ply. Thank goodness I purchased the materials last year. Was already $75 Cdn per sheet back then.

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

"...Trump lied.."

Would a person stealing money from a cancer charity ever lie? Nah. It's fake news!

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

Well, My main point of rant isn't necessary with suddenly increased price, but more so with customer dis-service hell I went through just to give up at the bonus time point.

 

[ryanosaur]

customer dis-service

!!!
I am fortunate to have a local hardware store that actually has skilled people on hand rather than attendants and stock-boys. On many occasions I’ve been able to get advice that significantly assisted my project. For the most part, they compete directly with HD and Lowe’s, and will often come out on top for item selection and...
Service!
I still have to walk in to the den of the beast, though, to get that one right item sometimes.

 

[Eppie]

Well, My main point of rant isn't necessary with suddenly increased price, but more so with customer dis-service hell I went through just to give up at the bonus time point.

Understandable. The Home Depots and Lowes used to advertise their customer service but I guess the bean counters decided that multiple staff for every dept got too costly. I always dread having to look for staff now. Not that the staff are bad; just hard to find. Offshore call centres are a big part of the problem too. Try as they might, Asian call centres have yet to offer the same level of expertise. It's easy to tell when you're dealing with someone in North America. Was Synchrony using local staff?

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

Understandable. The Home Depots and Lowes used to advertise their customer service but I guess the bean counters decided that multiple staff for every dept got too costly. I always dread having to look for staff now. Not that the staff are bad; just hard to find. Offshore call centres are a big part of the problem too. Try as they might, Asian call centres have yet to offer the same level of expertise. It's easy to tell when you're dealing with someone in North America. Was Synchrony using local staff?

Wasn't so much problem with accents (ie: Offshore) but just any department you call, the wait time is extremely long. They say it's "unusual" call volume, but if it's always "unusual" call volume, then it's not unusual, isn't it?
Why have 10 people in CS then 3 or 4 could handle it. I mean CS is just a cost center, right? Like IT /facepalm

 

[highfigh]

I just bought 4 sheets of 11/32" ply for my workshop at $45 each! Next to Trump's... most expensive wall ever! (At least mine is done! )
Asked for a quote to bring in some 3/4" equiv Baltic Birch BB grade... $70 per sheet.
FTW

FTW- "Fut The Wuck"?

 

[ryanosaur]

FTW- "Fut The Wuck"?

Don't you love internet slang?
FTW = Fcuk The World
Of course, it can also mean: For The Win...
...but lets face it, there's no winning for the majority of us at the doubling or tripling cost of raw materials. *shrugs

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

Don't you love internet slang?
FTW = Fcuk The World
Of course, it can also mean: For The Win...
...but lets face it, there's no winning for the majority of us at the doubling or tripling cost of raw materials. *shrugs

Last autumn I was getting quotes to replace AC (and maybe furnace - it was at the time trouble-free)
Decided to keep a big chunk of money invested and do it now in the Spring. Big mistake.
Due to the cost of most metals rising drastically all HVAC stuff gotten much more expensive

 

[highfigh]

Don't you love internet slang?
FTW = Fcuk The World
Of course, it can also mean: For The Win...
...but lets face it, there's no winning for the majority of us at the doubling or tripling cost of raw materials. *shrugs

I couldn't think of a reason FTW should mean 'For The Win' in your post.

If I build a house, I'd consider using steel & masonry for the outside walls, open-plan for the layout and alternative materials for the partition walls- maybe laminated lumber would be cheaper since it's made from wood scraps. Put it on a slab, use padding under the flooring and make it energy-efficient with solar for low voltage lighting and light loads, inverter for heavier loads like the fridge and passive solar heating to decrease the need to use fuel, but would have some way to burn wood, whether it's a fireplace with heat exchanger or wood stove.

Screw it- I'm gonna find a cave and heat it. A nice one- high ceilings, level floor......

 

[cpp]

NO issues at all with Lowes, been shopping there at least once a week for a really long time. Oh I did get a Washer that didn't match the dryer model we had, and they came and picked it up and brought the correct one.

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

Update: Yesterday I checked Lowes's site and lo and behind - the old 105 per chair price is back.
I re-check the cart- try to submit the order get the same error as before. After only 55minutes on hold, I finally get on the phone with Lowes's rep to help me order. After 30mins on call and confusing "Delivery" with "Shipping" - the first one is actually fully named Truck delivery - ie a truck from the local Lowes delivers to your home - Why is it even an option if normal (FedEx, etc) option is cheaper! Even the rep had issues using my new Lowe's credit card which was declined at the first attempt - this isn't about bad swipe - it's all electronic - so I ask WTF???
Luckily it did work the second time (somehow) and finally, the order was placed. I really really hope that I like this ducking bar stools and I won't have to continue dealing with Lowe's Customer Dis-Service department.

 

[Eppie]

First time I get to use a rainbow tag!