Browse Forums General Discussion 1 Nov 01, 2010 10:18 pm Just wondering how a novice (yes, me) can look at some items and figure out if it is a good price for a quality item or too expensive for a crap item? I'm thinking of things like tiles, door handles, carpet, toilets even! I think I know how to pick a good quality stove/oven/dishwasher but I wouldn't have a clue what makes a tile decent or just cheap junk that we should avoid. Any tips?? I'm losing my mind wondering whether we should be looking through discount tiling places (for example) or stick with the more expensive high-end shops, which has big implications for the budget (obviously). And of course, all sales people say their own products are just wonderful .... 2010, June : Land bought (1700sqm, battleaxe block). That's it so far! We're in the design phase .... Re: How do you determine "good quality"? 2Nov 02, 2010 7:21 am When we were looking at tiles I asked the same question...why pay $50pm2 when I could get a tile that looked the same and cost $20pm2. The person at the shop explained to me thayt it was about evenness of color, squareness of cut, consistency of thickness, sharpness etc. In fact looking at one tile against another it is very hard to see any difference. But they had a clever little area where they had cheap chinese tiles laid along side more expensive italian tiles and then you could really see the difference and the value of paying the higher price. I think look and feel is the main way to tell. Good taps will be very well engineered with smooth actions and a heft about them. Carpets is definately about the feel, weight and finish. But it is not always easy with a quick look with the naked eye. Re: How do you determine "good quality"? 3Nov 02, 2010 8:17 am As a rule Spanish and Italian tiles are good quaiity and you get what you pay for with Chinese tiles it is a different story but hey they do stand out for imperfections. Oh One more thing I try to avoid expensive spacious showrooms as a rule they charge you much more. Re: How do you determine "good quality"? 4Nov 02, 2010 8:44 am Melrich In fact looking at one tile against another it is very hard to see any difference. But they had a clever little area where they had cheap chinese tiles laid along side more expensive italian tiles and then you could really see the difference and the value of paying the higher price. I wish our competitors did that... using our imported windows . I bet they chose something that really stood out for crapiness... Stand our window alongside the local stuff and you will see the difference, pick it up and you will feel the difference, install it and weather a real storm and you will know the difference. I have supplied both... I know. How to tell what's good quality? Ask everywhere you go, mostly you will get the sales speak, but slowly you will assemble the underlying information and you will be examining the products at the same time. I got a phone call from an architect yesterday, he could not understand why our windows were rating so badly when compared to a competitor... That was until I explained the competitor was using old, out of date, U values, which were measured under a totally different method than those depicted in WERS. So I guess, one last piece of advice... get their claims in writing, you can always go back later and take it up with the law. A lot of customers come into our showroom filled with the competitor cr@p... I tell them to bring the salesman to me or let me go with them and pay him a visit... . Buy the product, not the hype. Ed "ECOECO" At 'EcoEco', we design windows, we design the best windows, we do it for you, so that when you’re happy we are happy. Tel. 1800 326 326 Re: How do you determine "good quality"? 5Nov 02, 2010 12:42 pm Just an offside question ... I didn't know that your windows are imported, Ed - can you tell me where from etc.... I can't find it on your web site (from my very quick look) ... thanks My signature is distracting people from my wise posts ... Re: How do you determine "good quality"? 6Nov 02, 2010 3:28 pm Lex Just an offside question ... I didn't know that your windows are imported, Ed - can you tell me where from etc.... I can't find it on your web site (from my very quick look) ... thanks China...we design everything here and have them made in our factories in China. What we save on labour we put back in quality... rated the best aluminium window in WERS against 7000 others. And the others all use Chinese glass, aluminium and hardware. Much stronger too... rated for cyclonic wind and rain... the same warranty as the locals. The price would be among the lowest. Ed "ECOECO" At 'EcoEco', we design windows, we design the best windows, we do it for you, so that when you’re happy we are happy. Tel. 1800 326 326 Re: How do you determine "good quality"? 7Nov 02, 2010 4:50 pm When it comes to build quality - good quality is what you see in a display home. Bad quality is what the builder actually supplies you with. As for tiles, particularly porcelin, its the variation is size thats the killer. Poor quality tiles can vary in size by up to 2mm which will look pretty bad once they're laid. Re: How do you determine "good quality"? 8Nov 02, 2010 6:17 pm Firstly, thanks to Ed Second, that's funny, Mozzie BTW, I don't think I've ever seen a pic where people's porc tiles are noticeable in size, or never heard that anyone complained about it . That's certainly something to keep in mind then ... My signature is distracting people from my wise posts ... 9 24816 Thank you. Do I use timber floorboards for stairs or do people use timber treads? Or is both the same? 6 7304 Hi, I have had them in the past and the pros are: Versatile, i.e many different colours and styles to choose… 1 6886 |