Channel City Hardware and Lumber

I’ve called in looking for odd hardware and they have gotten me what I needed very promptly, and they have given great quotes on lumber over the years.

Great service, no attitude. If you want lumber and need to also pick up some other odds and ends (even electrical stuff) for house projects, don’t waste your time at Home Depot. Support this local business and you will be rewarded with great service, guys that actually know what they are talking about when they give you advice, and helpful service. My favorite part — just drive your car or truck right up to the lumber racks and get help loading everything. No pushing one of those *#$^ carts around!

They provided very helpful advice regarding what kind of wood we would need for a project. They also will build custom planter boxes at just the price of the materials, and delivery charge was reasonable ($ 25). Good selection in this tucked away lumber yard, it makes for a good alternative to the home depot down the street

I’m a carpenter and I buy material where the contractor has an account. I always like to go to Channel City because it’s one stop shopping, they help me load my truck, they always have coffee going, they’re helpful, knowledgeable, and friendly. I can get what I need and get back to work faster when I shop there than at the other yards in town, or especially at Homie D’s. The only drawback is that sometimes they are out of stock or low on stock, but if you phone first they’ll check for you.

I didn’t have a pleasant experience here. I wanted to price out some cabinets. I provided the kitchen planner with a list of cabinets with detailed spec and an elevation diagram done in ²⁰⁄₂₀ that virtually all kitchen planners use. She kept asking me who are my other kitchen planners and what are their quotes and who is installing my cabinets. I felt these are not information that she need in order to give me a semi accurate quote. It was her way of gauge the likelihood of me actually buying cabinets from her.
She seemed quite knowledgeable, but her attitude was a turn off. Its no surprise that everyone shops around when it comes to big ticket items like cabinets. Oftentimes, kitchen planners waste some time pricing out quotes for customers, but it is offset by the fact that cabinets have high markups and when you make a sale, there are profits for all the middlemen. In the end, she figured that it wasn’t worth her time, and I never got a quote from her after several emails back and forth, so I can’t comment on whether or not Channel City Hardware is a good value.

If you need woodworking supplies (wood, hardware, bits, blades, finish, etc.) Channel City is the place in Goleta to come, hands down. The people are always friendly, and I always find what I’m looking for.
Home Depot is good for some things, but they tend to be a bit disorganized and carry mostly carpentry stuff, not so much woodworking (i.e. furniture) grade supplies. Home Depot’s wood also leaves a lot to be desired (almost all green, and net of very high grade). OSH is fine for a lot of hardware, but there have been a number of times where I couldn’t find what I wanted at OSH, and I found it at Channel City.
The only reason I don’t do all of my woodworking shopping at Channel City is their hours. Always closed by 5pm, and closed on Sundays. Great if you’re a contractor, not so good if your a weekend woodworker. Their selection of hardwoods is also somewhat limited. What they have is good, but… there isn’t a great deal of it.

I feel like Channel City is hidden little secret of Goleta. With Home Depot just down the road in the Costo Shopping Center, and their secretive location at the end of Aero Camino next to the tracks and 101, I’m suprised that they’re still in business.
They are a ma and pa type hardware store with a huge drive in lumber yard in the back. Sometimes I go to home depot out of convenience for all hardware/​home repair needs, but 3 times now, I’ve gone to Home Depot looking for a specific piece of hardware (screws nuts bolts), or something needed to do a basic home repair, and home depot has been out of it… or their stock was in such disorder that I gave up trying to find it after digging through the unopened boxes of stuff.
I go to Channel City, am greeted by a friendly howdy at the counter and what do you know, they have exactly what I’m looking for exactly where it should be.
The staff is ma and pa shop friendly. The support contractor accounts. You can drive your vehicle right up to the stacks of lumber in huge yard in back… no more loading it on to a cart, dragging it up to the front counter, having them awkwardly look for the barcode on the end of each piece, then rolling out to your car in the lot. The guys who work in back will even give you a hand and help you tie it down or secure it.
Channel City is a great local business, I support them any day over home depot.