New Carpet from Home Depot

Getting our Family Room carpet replaced by Home Depot tomorrow. They had a $ 39 installation special going, so my wife and I took advantage of that for our 23' x 21' great room. As we wrote up the order, they said "Do you want the old carpet removed and disposed of, and will we be moving your furniture?" Now most people would say 'yes' to that, but I asked "Is that an additional cost?" Why...yes it was! $ 485 to remove and dispose of the old carpet and $ 250 to take the furniture out of the room and move it back in. Seriously?!?! I said "No way, I'll do it myself".

I have a pickup truck, a carpet knife, live 5 miles from the landfill and have been moving furniture for 30 years...I got this. The Home Depot clerk was astonished and said "Are you sure? No one ever does that". HA! Yeah, now I see why the installation is only $ 39, the gotcha is on the back end. I told my wife, "It will take me 90 minutes to move the furniture into the hall, cut and remove the old carpet and pad, and then 30 minutes to move the furniture back in after they are done. And since I don't make $ 367 an hour, I'll be doing that job. Tricky guys on that carpet install....

The $485 for removal and disposal especially is quite the deal (for them). I'm guessing that's based on the fact that most people don't know how easy it is to pull up carpeting? About a year after I bought my current house I decided I was tired of looking at the cheap hunter green plush in my dining room (over hardwood) so I just impulsively grabbed a corner and pulled, then rolled it up and threw it out. It was, like 15 minutes total for the carpet and pad, even with the stupid cat riding around on the carpet as I did it. Taking up the tack strips was way harder than just pulling the carpet.

Since you're replacing carpet with carpet, you don't even need to pull the tack strips. You should have told them not only were you declining the removal fee, but you expect an additional discount since the tack strips will be in and ready to go. They wouldn't give it to you, but it would have been amusing.

Duane, how did the carpet installation work out? I need new carpet and wondered if Home Depot had worked for you. Thanks

Very pleased with the install. Took me two 1/2 hours to move the furniture and take up the old carpet, and then 40 minutes to move all the furniture back (and 30 minutes to the dump and back). All in all I'm glad I did it myself as I'm a better furniture mover than carpet guys! Home Depot subs out the job, but they did a very nice install and its 0% interest for 24 mos so I was able to take advantage of that promo as well.

Home Depot carpet is all about the installer they use... If you get a good one, it's great. If not, they are a pain to deal with..

We stick with the local independent that we've been using for 20 years... Never an issue, and if there is, they fix it..