Big-Box Store Flooring Installation vs. a Local Installer: Honest Pros and Cons

A lot of homeowners buy LVP at a big-box store and add installation at the register. It's convenient and sometimes there's a promotion. Here's what you should know before you check that box.

How big-box installation usually works

The store sells you the installation, but the person who shows up is typically an independent installer the store contracts with. The store schedules them, sets the price, and handles the paperwork. You usually don't pick the installer, and you may not know who it is until the day before.

The upside

• One receipt for material and labor
• Store financing and promotions
• A big company to call if there's a dispute

The tradeoffs

• Layers between you and the installer. Questions go through the store, then to the installer, then back.
• Scope is often limited to the floor. Subfloor leveling, trim, transitions, stairs, moving furniture and removing old flooring can be add-ons or excluded.
• Nobody's thinking about the rest of the room. Transitions to the next room, stair nose and baseboard often get treated as extras, or skipped.

Questions to ask either way

1. Who exactly is installing it, and are they registered and insured in Connecticut?
2. Is subfloor prep included, or priced separately after they see it?
3. Who removes and hauls away the old floor?
4. Are baseboards, quarter-round and transitions included?
5. What's the warranty on labor, and who do I call?

Can I buy the flooring at the store and hire my own installer?

Yes. We install customer-supplied flooring all the time. We check the boxes for quantity and damage before we start, and we'll tell you at the walkthrough if you're short. Order about 10 percent extra for cuts and waste, more for diagonal layouts or lots of doorways.

Want the subfloor, the floor and the trim handled by the same person who quoted it? That's where working with one local installer really pays off.