The possibility is on my radar. The main thing stopping me is that this is LITERALLY the very last thing that needs to be done, and it seems like such a headache to retreat one step away from the finish line.
That and I have no idea where this better installation is; I trust big box stores even less, and local stores seem like a coin flip.
I will just commiserate with the OP. I am a pretty smart person, but do not have the background/capacity with tools/hardware/home repair to be able to do much on my own without lots of back and forth to the store and lots of hours and $$. And, anything involving moving or managing awkward or heavy objects is a big challenge. To me, even though it can feel expensive, calling someone else is money well spent.
I’ll echo the recommendation to find a local handyman, and/or service person and just expecting that anything you need done will cost $150-250 dollars, depending on parts and effort.
For this specific need, I’d search for “dryer vent cleaning” service. That’s something you should get done regularly anyway, and those folks are equipped and ready to do this exact work. The last time ours was cleaned the guy discovered that the hose had a hole worn in the side, and he replaced the hose. I don’t remember what the cost was for hose replacement, but it was a minor addition above the cost of the service call.
(ETA: in my experience, the folks who come to do “free/included” installs for appliances are just about as good as a customer service representative on script. They can do the thing if everything goes smoothly. If it doesn’t go smoothly, they can’t help and neither can their supervisor. )
No need. Any handyman or even a neighbor you see working with tools in their garage could do this. Most of the people who have posted in this thread could do the job in less than 15 minutes.
I feel for you. The service is crap.
Any professional installers know that every house has some quirk, something that won’t fit “out of the box”. It’s the nature of homes. The homeowner paying for installation should not have to know this! That why they (you) are hiring professionals, or in this case ,“professionals”. The installer should know how to make it fit, Or, at least more than “the standard part in the box doesn’t work, so we can’t do anything. sucks to be you.”
This sounds like kids from “everyone gets a trophy day” grown up.
I love Costco, generally. But Costco subcontracts most/all of their appliance installs and does so as cost effectively (cheaply) as they can as free installs are often included in sales prices. Which means that delivery/installs vary wildly from place to place and even install to install. I purchased a new range and over-oven microwave/exhaust last year (yes, less effective but it’s a condo - kitchen space is at a premium), free installation included. Price was awesome (4th of July sale). Both delivered at the same time, but the deliverer was only certified to install the oven. Another couple of guys had to come an hour later to do the microwave install. It went fine, but I’ve heard everything from high praise to disasters like the OP’s.
Basically Costco installs are a crapshoot, you just have to cross your fingers. If a bad company is subcontracted in your area, you can get screwed.
More like
This is pure corporate enshittification.
I don’t understand why these contracted installers are such nitpickers. It would almost be faster to just adapt the parts to work than to explain to the customer that you can’t. Is there some ridiculous rule they are following?
I am on the “this is bullshit” train too. I am sorry that you are suffering, @Leaper.
You’re right. The gist is that the service van doesn’t have to be a rolling Home Depot. Carry around the material and adapters for the 95+% of the installations, and keep a supply of the same items at wherever home base is.
Additionally – a little resourcefulness goes a long way. “Can’t cut the foil duct to size” … really?
Because if you don’t know how to do something, that something is impossible?
They’re being paid $10 per worker to make the install. At most. The faster they get out, the more money they make per day. So it’s either easy, or they declare it impossible and leave. Most customers will fume, but few will complain. And since Corporate doesnt care, none of this shoddiness will redounds back to the shoddy workers.
Makes complete sense to me.
Hm, someone reminded me that having someone else complete the installation could void my warranty. If so, I’m more inclined to return the damn things.
That sounds wrong to me. I can’t imagine that the warranty would be invalidated for that reason.
Which warrantee? The manufacturer’s, or Costco’s? Big difference.
Costco is pretty good about taking things back. You might have better luck purchasing a dryer from someplace like Home Depot or Best Buy who have people more knowledgeable about these things than Costco does. Bring pictures of your vent and dryer area when you go and explain the issues you had with Costco and get an assurance the same thing won’t happen with their installation.
Yes, if you do end up sending those back, take pictures of the space the replacements will go into. Pictures that include tape measures so people know what the space looks like and how big it is in actionable detail.
I honestly don’t think that Best Buy or Home Depot is going to be any better than Costco. They will just send out subcontractors just like Costco. And they might have worse customer service policies than Costco.
I would try Costco again and raise a little hell. Or even try going there in person.
If all else fails do you have a Dryer Vent Wizard that serves your area? They could do it right. Albeit more than you wanted to spend.
Good question. It was just something someone I was discussing this situation with said. I get the logic, even if it ends up being wrong (and I can definitely see the logic of it being wrong as well). I’ll ask Costco if it comes to that.
And yeah, if I do buy somewhere else, I’m gonna give a local business a spin before doing a Best Buy or something. I’ve heard the horror stories.
I would go to an appliance store. Ideally not a regional or national chain. Skip the Big Boxes.
And there are still independent local appliance shops in many places.
Here in my dense suburbia I just checked and we have as many dedicated appliance stores as big boxes within 20 miles. Admittedly some of those are selling fancy-pants brands, not the basics.
All of which is irrelevant since it only matters if they’re wherever the OP is. The alternative is to simply keep the new machines the OP already has, and hire installation from a third party washer/dryer service outfit.
Yes, more money, but them’s the breaks. Maybe Costco can be persuaded to credit back $50/machine or whatever for flunking installation 101 three times.