I live in Star but I was in Middleton to shop at Zamzows. Having discovered that they do not carry sprinkler supplies, I thought to stop at Ace Hardware there instead of going past my house to the one in Star.
I wanted to save time so I asked for help. The first gentleman I asked said he did not know much about sprinkler supplies, not having an irrigation system himself. I think, as an employee, you still need to familiarize yourself to the products so you can help customers. He called in the calvary, which was an older lady. I said, "So you're the sprinkler expert?" and she said, "I'll try." I wasn't trying to be a smart aleck, just genial.
Well, I had the innards of my sprinkler valve, the cylinder with the old head screwed on. She looked at it, at both ends, and seemed to think that the sprinkler head was supposed to screw into the other end of the cylinder, the one that sits in the valve housing. It was at that point that I realized that neither one of them could be of any help to me. I found the head I needed and headed to the cash register. The lady said to me as I headed away from the irrigation section, "I went on vacation for two weeks and forgot everything." Evidently.
To be fair, both the male and female employees were nice.
I've tried the Star, and now, the Middleton Ace Hardwares located inside Ridley's. Not impressed by either. In Star, they often don't have what I need. In both, the staff are generally not helpful or knowledgable.
I do highly recommend the Meridian Ace Hardware. Huge inventory and staff are knowlegable and helpful. Still, that's a drive for me. I will probably just go to the new Home Depot in Caldwell for my needs. read more
