ACE Hardware Has Great Customer Service

I recently moved to Houston and I’m steadily finding my way around.

Houston is BIG! The city covers about 600 square miles, and it can take hours to drive from one side to the other.

I needed to pick up a few hardware and decorative items. I am familiar with the store layout and product offering of Lowe’s and Home Depot, and can usually find what I'm looking for very quickly. However, neither of those brands were within a 10-minute drive time. I needed a store with a shorter drive time, that carries everything I need for my new home and storage requirements.

Ace Hardware Also Carries Extensive Household Supplies

I used Google to search for a different hardware store, and discovered an ACE Hardware in my neighborhood. The first time I visited, I was pleasantly surprised by the variety of products in the store. They offer everything from kitchen utensils to coffee beans, pot racks to garden tools, and even a United States Post Office!

One of the items on my check list was ant killer. Texas is famous for fire ants, and my yard seems to full of them. In fact, there are so many ants that I dare not pull weeds unless I want to get stung by these bad-tempered insects. I was approached by a store employee that actually suggested a particular product that works well in this area.

I settled on a bag of Spectracide because the package states, "Once and done". Now that's my kind of bug killer!

I also needed paint supplies, picture hanging tools and a towel bar. The employee was happy to show me where the different items were located and even humored me by listening to my internal debate about which towel bar would fit the style of the house.

The house is about 30 years old with brass fixtures (which is my least favorite), so I want to update it a little but felt like the Franklin Brass® Bellini® Towel Bar was a happy medium. It's a little retro with the ceramic and aluminum combination.

The longer I was in the house, the more I learned about some unexpected idiosyncrasies.

The Washing Machine Would Not Drain

For example, the washing machine would fill but not drain. I was assured that this has not been a problem in the past, so I stopped by Ace Hardware to get an idea of why.

The Ace employee suggested that I replace the 'tube' that sits on the edge of the drain outlet. So, I purchased and installed the new part. I turned on the washing machine, and it began to drain the water. It is possible that the movers did not push the tube deep enough into the outlet, so it wasn't getting the right 'vacuum'. However, the new part worked so I kept it.

The Drippy/Leaky AC

Texas summers are hot, and there is no getting around it. Homes are no longer built to allow outside air to circulate through, and summer can be stifling with no breeze.

As the AC unit runs, moisture drips into a pan, where it is supposed to evaporate. I discovered this leaky problem by walking barefoot down the hall and stepping into a large wet spot.

We hadn't gotten any rain that week so I knew it wasn't a leaky roof. The maintenance guy had to get into the attic to find the leak and discovered the source was the AC pan. He was able to fix the issue, and that ended the leak in the hallway.

Ants

It rains pretty frequently in Houston, and every time we got more than a passing shower, we got ants. Everywhere. This became a problem for both the front and backyard, and I needed to exterminate these cranky pests. Ace Hardware had exactly the right product, and I found it to be very effective. I suspect the ants just moved next door, but they were no longer a concern for my family.

I have never been in a store where the employee actually seemed interested in what I needed. It was like visiting a doctor that was able to spare more than 10 minutes on a diagnosis. I was even more surprised at the register when they asked if I had joined their loyalty program. I had a similar experience at Lowe’s, but their program is really just a project tracker to follow how much you spend on a particular project. That is a fine project tool, but it is not a loyalty program.

Did You Know That Ace Hardware has an In-Store Post Office?

Later in the week I needed to return digital receivers from my former cable company. The company had emailed a Return Receipt to me and all I had to do was paste it to a box and drop it in the mail.

I returned to ACE Hardware to check out their Post Office service. They were able to accept the UPS labeled package and this saved me a trip to a UPS drop center.

I visited the ACE website and was happy to discover a very dynamic site that is laid out very nicely, has rotating web banners, online discounts and ‘The Helpful Handyman Corner’. I am completely sold on this brand, and they really do provide best-in-class service. While the term Handyman may be gender specific, I know that ACE appreciates the ladies too. This lady has received excellent service and competitive pricing with each visit. Thanks ACE!