Ace Hardware

Seems like this Ace goes out of their way to help the customers. Every time I have been there with a question, they do everything possible to help me with a solution. In a day when many companies could care less about the customer, this Ace goes out of the way to make the customer feel appreciated.

I have been going to this Ace for a long time. Last year I described a stone sifter gadget that I have never seen but wanted them to make so I could get most of the little stones out of an area of my yard and then be able to plant. One of the store employees listened and promptly created a stone sifter for me. It was something like $ 15.00, which was very reasonable, and it worked!
Once I brought in a broken music stand and asked the same man who made the stone sifter why it was broken., He found a comparable part to replace the stripped part with, and I am still using the music stand.
I have taken in screen windows and they have inexpensively replaced the screen.
Recently I pestered the paint department repeatedly on deck stain for an old abused deck. They were great about giving suggestions and I wound up with decent stain at a reasonable cost.
I seem to need a miscellaneous nail, hook, bolt or screw a few times a year, and this is the place to go to find that sort of thing. They have little drawer after little drawer of these parts.
And generally there is someone who is happy to sift through the drawers and make sure I have the correct item. I like Home Depot, but there is no way a big box store will have all these little parts, nor would anyone be likely to explain why one nail will be more appropriate than another.
For years I have had keys made at Ace. They have always turned out.
I buy high quality lawn fertilizer and seed from Ace that you cannot buy at a big box store. I use less fertilizer than is recommended because it works well so that a little goes a long way. It is the Green something or other fertilizer. The Black Beauty grass seed is high quality as well.
I do not recommend the Rug Doctor machines. I gave up and got my own steam cleaner. I wish Ace would give up on renting these.
Each year late fall, I take some of my garden tools in to Ace to be sharpened. Shovels, clippers, even house scissors and I think kitchen knives can be dropped, off for sharpening service.
Not every employee can be expected to be exemplary, but Ace in Palatine does manage to hire a lot of helpful employees. They provide strong customer service in an era where that seems to be almost dead.
While some things at Ace are higher priced, it is things like nuts, bolts, screws, hooks and nails that are moderately priced, good quality, and in good variety. And there are enough moderately priced items in the store, as well as enough higher quality items, that I find this a practical place to shop. .
If you are only moderately handy, Ace can be a life saver. And if you are handy, you might find those miscellaneous bolts and screws that came out of your snow blower when you hit a rock under the snow.

Shop here often. The employees try hard, if they don’t know an answer, they’ll ask some one else. A few employees always go above and beyond. That’s what I love about it. Other stores say sorry, try our dot com, these people will look it up and try to get it. They have even called competitors to check stock for me if they couldn’t get they’re hands on it! I’ve been at the counter and had a customer next to me ask this ace to repair a ridiculous item that I would NEVER bring to a store to ask for help, and they gladly accepted the challenge. Keep up the good work. I’ll be back.

Service is a dying breed. I went there today with a bad back-​up sump pump battery that is approx. 3 – 4 years old. The staff had worked with the manufacturer before so they called the manufacturer to see what my options were for a replacement as opposed to just selling me a new one (which are expensive). They load tested the battery and let me borrow a battery charger for a couple of days to see if the battery could be charged and reinserted as opposed to replaced. I can’t imagine getting this level of service anywhere else. Nicely done Ace Hardware Palatine!

I bought a can of spray paint here on a Sunday which was on sale. When I got home I discovered I got the wrong type. I went back the next day to exchange it, with the receipt and bag. I was charged full price instead of them just exchanging it outright because it wasn’t on sale that day. The cashier was an old grouchy lady who actually raised her voice at me when I asked why we couldn’t just do an even exchange. Good customer service and a store who would want repeat business would have done so. They are also high priced on most of their items. I’ll avoid shopping here in the future!

As a new homeowner, I have lots of needs and lots of questions. The staff at ACE has been tremendously helpful, and I trust their advice. Excellent customer rewards program, too.

I also like to give business to independent/​local places but this one has me rethinking that practice.
I needed a small electrical adapter. One of the red-​vests (older guy not a high schooler) helped me locate it. Sign said $ 3.49, probably double the cost of same at Menards or HD but OK, fine. This particular item is small enough to fit in the palm of your hand, which is an important detail to keep in mind if you read on…
Well as it were I can’t resist the temptation to walk around and look at all the other junk, never knowing what you’ll find on sale or what will catch your eye as a «must have». I’ve bought some of my most essential hardware/​tools this way. So off I go, digging through the bin of cheap Chinese tools (they’re OK for magnets and the like) and perusing the aisles, being the chronic tool shopper that I am.
I have been wanting a new full set of hex bit sockets, and since they carry Craftsman I looked at what they had. WOW! At least 50% higher than Sears (the 7 pc set is about $ 20 at Sears, it was $ 31.99 there). They aren’t even USA made. No thanks. Anyways…
It didn’t take long for me to realize that the man who had helped me find this electrical adapter seemed to be everywhere I went. EVERYWHERE. I’d be in an aisle, he’d come down the aisle. Then he’d turn the corner and double back on me again. This happened over and over. He was lingering, lurking, not asking me if I needed more help, just sort of «there». Then it dawned on me: he thinks I’m gonna shoplift his crappy little overpriced adapter!
Don’t know why he decided I was gonna rip him off the $ 3.50 — nothing about me would convey that impression I’d like to believe — yet it was quite obvious this was his thinking. He was eyeing my hand each time, covertly he must have thought in self-​adulation, to see if I had slipped it in my jacket pocket. He was shadowing me, trying to be sly about it but failing miserably.
I felt like handing him the trinket back and telling him to kiss my a##.
Alas, I didn’t, but instead made my way to checkout where I encountered an indifferent and unfriendly little old lady who must be retired from the DMV or something (it takes a career of practice to develop such unpleasant customer service skills). My adapter rang up $ 4.49, $ 1 more than the shelf price. I mentioned it to her and she scoffed, letting out a indiscernable grumble and a harumpf and depriving me of the courtesy of a verbal reply. But I read *her* mind too; «I’m not interested in your petty price discrepency, nor is it worth the energy it would take for me to investigate your assertion. Like it or lump it.»
I paid the $ 5 because I wanted the adapter and off I went, never to return again.
Fortunately for me this is NOT the Ace closest to my house, we just happen to be in this strip mall from time to time as we come to the area on other business. Our Ace is much better. Plus we have a newer Tru-​Value half a mile from us which I use all the time.
This place get an extra star for having an OK selection. Otherwise it’s about the worst Ace in the area.

I’ll never top here again from shelves that look like they have been pick over to the grumpiest cashier ever. I have been coming in to this store for years probably since it opened, as I use to come into this building when there was a Kreskies (pre dated Kmart) and Pankow drug store I don’t remember an Ace here anyway its never been a great store to go in, but today took the cake or the straw that broke the camels back with the most unfriendly of cashiers ever The owners have you Sandy, to thank for losing a long time customer maybe just a smile would be nice you angry /​unhappy «so and so» …

I actually enjoy Ace Hardware over the bigger stores. It’s like going to Mr. Rodgers hardware store. Surprisingly they have a lot of the smaller stuff here that you can’t find at Home Depot. I’ve been to Home Depot several times when they didn’t have an item I was looking for & they told me to check out Ace Hardware.
Shopping at an Ace Hardware is old school & that’s probably why I enjoy it so much. It seems like a place where the employees would remember your name & they all know exactly where each item is. At Home Depot you have to go to so many different departments & deal with so many employees to find exactly what it is that you’re looking for.
The employees here are all very nice. They don’t seem to mind helping you. A lot of other places act like you are bothering them when you ask for help.
Overall I enjoy this Ace Hardware & would return if I needed something from here.

I really wanted to A-​OK this Ace because I have stopped here occasionally over the years and gotten good advice from a tall slim guy named Dave, But Dave is Gone.
And that means that my attempt to sort of stay NW local here like Zimmer Hardware, and skip the bigger chain Menard-​Home Depot was lost in a rough sea of really well meaning housewives, not trained high school help, and really nice to cranky retirees making keys and picking up a little extra change.
I’m saving you a long back and forth return story here on a dirty pet hair filled «rug doctor» rental (we have NO hairy pets). So Save YOURself. The only consistency here will be the not-​really-​trained register check-​out help trying to sign you up for another «loyalty» card you don’t need and they don’t even understand. Yes, you will get credit for whatever was botched, not clean, or wrong to begin with, but do you really have time or patience for that? While I was pulled up in front returning the dirty Rug Doctor Rental, one of «the not-​so-​trained help» started loading somebody else’s salt in the back end of my SUV because the back was open.
I made really good money on Home Depot stock, but definitely sold too early.
Good luck.

I must say this is the biggest small town hardware store ever. All the clerks try to know your name. You can ask any employee about inventory and they know where to locate it. Each department has a knowledgable employee who can assist you with your at home project. Owner Jim Shilling is always on site and will help you find or order any item you need. I love this store and shop there at least twice a week for my buildings and business.

This Ace Hardware felt, looked and smelled like every Ace I can remember. The team members range from geeky teen with newly-​found facial hair to retired guys with fingers the size of sausages. I don’t know how that adds to the review but an observation.
I came to have some keys copied.
The man had no patience for my casual questions and seemed irritated that I didn’t know what I want in my style of copied key (who knew there were so many options?).
They were incredibly fast and the keys work (most important part).
Ace has a bit of everything, so there’s much to look at while you wait.
It’s a nice store. I’ll go here when I don’t want to endure the big box retailers and want to talk to people with knowledge and mildly grump attitudes. :)

I came here on Tuesday March 29^th around 10:30am for a return that I wasn’t sure would go through as I had misplaced the receipt and the item was defective. The young woman at the check out did not judge my awkward request and promptly called for a manager on her lapel walkie-​talkie. Almost instantly I had a manager in front of me and I explained my situation. He listened carefully to my request and found a solution for my return item. The young woman at the checkout then found the item in the system that was purchased a year ago and processed my return. There was no hassle and both employees had professional attitudes. It’s friendly, knowledgeable, and efficient employees like this that keep brick and mortar stores in business when considering the alternative value available online these days. Thank you.