They usually have pretty nice looking homes in their flyers (Not including land and labor). Seems like it would be cheaper to buy the materials from menards and higher a construction outfit built it vs going with a home builder, but the quality of the materials might be suspect.
Would you ever by a new home kit from Menards?
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anon_01irjibf16qqj
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No, I would not buy a home out of a Menards catalog. Menards materials are complete shit. You get what they send you and it's usually a mess. Studs aren't strait at all, they just throw the first pieces of lumber they find on a truck and send it off.
Factory-built homes have much greater quality than a home built on-site. It's not even debatable.
I remember riding a bus to school and they were building a new Pizza Hut restaurant on the route. In the morning, the site was all prepped, and there were trucks with the walls and the roof sitting there. On the way back from school, the entire building was assembled. I couldn't believe it.
I remember riding a bus to school and they were building a new Pizza Hut restaurant on the route. In the morning, the site was all prepped, and there were trucks with the walls and the roof sitting there. On the way back from school, the entire building was assembled. I couldn't believe it.
I've done a designed garage. The quality was good. I just exchanged pieces I wasn't napped with. My only complaint was the delivery guy forked a can of roofing sealer. Got black everywhere. They delivered replacements for everything ruined. 4.5/5 stars.
A friend did the prefab home thing and he was ecstatic with it. Quality was really good.
I bought a garage "kit" from Menards almost 40 years ago. It was a 7 step process - the first step was "pour the cement pad" and the last step was "paint the garage". 
Swear to God.
The materials they provided were fine, but important things were missing, like shingles.
Doing a building on the cheap seemed like a fine idea when I was 25 years old. Looking back it seems pretty stupid.
Swear to God.The materials they provided were fine, but important things were missing, like shingles.
Doing a building on the cheap seemed like a fine idea when I was 25 years old. Looking back it seems pretty stupid.
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anon_01irjibf16qqj
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Sears catalog homes are generally considered classics and sought after today. From the pulse of this thread, I'm guessing most people assume Menard's homes won't have the same disposition 100 years from now.
The quality controls in a factory are much higher than building on site. Everything is much tighter, fewer gaps, etc.
That's not true. You have to know what you're doing. I've built 60 homes out if Menards. And the warranty that John Menard requires from his vendors is iron clad! Nothing wrong with Menards materials unless you're a piker.
I have built a lot decks with Menards lumber. If they have more than 2 bands on a bundle, send it back. It's more than likely warped and twisted. If I would have built my shed from their kit, the T111 walls would have only been 1/4" thick. By doing my own design, it is 3/4". I'm glad I did 10 years of construction prior to working in the factory, because I know lumber, and have returned warped, twisted, and knotty lumber for what is more appealing for the customer that I have built for.
I work local so I buy local. I'm building a new house right now out of my local lumber yard. I sort through the lumber as I build. The crooked stuff I set aside and they give me credit when the next load is delivered.
Used Menards on three houses and spent way to much time going through material and separating studs. Literally had 50 or more that were completely unusable and had to pay someone to take them back, pick out 50 more that we could use, and then drive back. Going through a local lumber company I could tell them what I wanted/expected and they delivered every time. Was Just a heck of a lot easier. Also if we needed one bundle of shingles they would have them on the way instantly. Any time we called for anything no matter what side the load, they sent it out right away.
You have to order in full bunks only. Unbroken. You need to find the right guy in the building materials dept. They know what lumber stamps are consistently the nicest boards. It's not hard if you know how to work it. I knew which lumber stamps had the straightest boards. Which mill had the best sheeting, sheet rock, etc. Once you know who the key people are in each dept, it's easy.
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