Congoleum DuraCeramic Reviews and Prices

Congoleum DuraCeramic continues to be the best selling groutable luxury vinyl tile on the market. It is a great alternative to hard, cold, and high maintenance ceramic tile. I monitor several DIY and installation related flooring forums and chat rooms to keep abreast of consumer problems and complaints about different types of flooring.

The most common complaints I read about DuraCeramic tile is installation related and mainly about cracking grout. This is usually caused by not enough grout and is easily corrected. For installation, it is essential only the correct adhesive and grout are used. Another complaint I see here and there are the ones of damage caused by dropping heavy objects or dragging heavy furniture accross the surface. To this I say, not even a concrete driveway is damage proof if precautions are not taken.

I have DuraCeramic tile in my kitchen, breakfast room, and laundry room. It has been down about 2 1/2 years. I have a dent by my cooking island caused by dropping a crock pot. Did I get mad at Congoleum? No, I was mad at myself for being clumsy. I also had some grout related problems right after installation which have been corrected. Did I get mad at Congoleum? No, I was mad at the installer for not following instructions. I also had a water issue in the laundry room that caused no damage.

We sell about 50,000 flooring products on a yearly basis and Congoleum's DuraCeramic Luxury Vinyl Tile has the fewest complaints of any product we sell. Consumers must remember that no floor, or any other product for that matter, is indestructible. I am proud to offer DuraCeramic tile to our customers that are considering this type of floor. So buy with confidence that your new floor will look great and be serviceable for years to come.

Meeting with Congoleum

On Tueday, even before the show started, I had an early morning meeting with my friends at Congoleum. Since American Carpet Wholesalers is the largest dealer in the world for Congoleum's DuraCeramic Luxury Vinyl Tile, I got an early preview of new introductions to the line.

Although I had previously been exposed to considerations, the new patterns were the final cut. The intros fall under the new line called DuraCeramic Plus. I was reading a forum post and the writer was wondering what the plus meant. It means the new patterns incorporate Scotchgard protector into the finish. The two patterns, DuraCeramic Polished Cement and DuraCeramic Rustic Stone, have a combined color line of seven new and exciting shades. These new patterns will quickly become top sellers in the product line. They are simply gorgeous.

All in all, the meeting went well. We discussed my sales figures for 2008 and projections for 2009. In such an unsettling economy projections are very difficult. Advertising support, sample support, and other topics I think proved fruitful. I am thankful for a supplier like Congoleum and the wonderful support personnel at their headquarters in Mercerville, NJ.

Customer Feedback

Typically most of our customer reviews and feedback are posted on American Carpet Wholesaler's website. Here are a couple that were sent directly to customer service I would like to share:

To: LeAnda Seay

We needed 8 cartons of Quik-Step laminate flooring to finish a project we had started 3 years ago (finances and time delay). I found the exact match, and on sale at that, ordered 8 cartons and they arrived within 10 days. We had them delivered to my husbands workplace, which cut shipping. We were able to finish our project and still saved almost $200; without compromising product or quality. With the price of gas and the value of your time, this was ideal. I highly recommend shopping their products and giving them a try. We were thrilled with our results.

Dean & Ronda Rustad

To: LeAnda Seay
Subject: Thank You

Dear LeAnda,

I just wanted to let you know how please I am with the service of your company. The flooring arrived just as you predicted and the delivery guy was so nice and helpful. I have had the floor layed and it's absolutely beautiful, much prettier than I imaginaged. I'm sending you an attachment of what the floor looks like in my kitchen.














Thank you and the ones that helped with the shipping of the floor. I have already recommended you to my sister, which she will be ordering soon.

Thanks again,
Karen Young

I wish to thank Mr. and Mrs. Rustad and Karen Young for their kind words and LeAnda Seay for a job well done. Keep up the good work.

Quick Step Laminate and Congoleum DuraCeramic Tile are two of the products in which we maintain a huge inventory. Most orders can be shipped out the same day on these products.

More Price Increases Announced

Over the last few days more price increases have been announced. Mohawk Industries and Shaw Industries have announced price increases of 3-5% on their hard surface products (laminate floors, hardwood floors, and tile products). The Congoleum Corporation announced a 3-6% increase on their entire product line which includes items such as DuraCeramic, DuraStone ,Duraplank and sheet vinyl flooring. Kraus Carpets has also announced price increases on their entire product line. Earlier Quick-Step Laminate (Unilin, owned by Mohawk Industries) also announced a price increase. Beaulieu has announced a price increase on their carpet line. And as I am writing this post, I just received notification from Shaw Industries the price increase will apply to their residential carpet and commercial carpet as well. Mohawk inevitably will follow suit. All of these increases take effect mid July.

Keep in mind, we just had all these increases less than 2 months ago. All of this is directly the result of oil prices. I find it very difficult to understand why Congress will not lift the ban on offshore drilling, because it looks like this trend is not going away any time soon.

We at American Carpet Wholesalers as well as some of the other reputable online flooring merchants are doing all we can to keep our prices affordable to the consumer. All the while some of the manufacturers are trying to establish minimum adverised pricing. What's next, minimum selling prices?

Rest assured, if we cannot show you our lowest price, we will certainly tell you and you can always call us for that price. You can also be assured that if a manufacturer establishes a minimum selling price, we will no longer offer their products. It is un-American and defeats the spirit of free enterprise.

Welcome Back Lt. Colonel Dan West

Being a Vietnam Veteran myself, I understand the hardships one faces in a war zone. Being away from family and friends for such a long period is enough, but add enduring a hostile environment and continually watching your back and keeping your head down. Throw in the apathy of the American public toward our military and it becomes even harder.

Dan West is the Southeast Regional Manager for the Congoleum Corporation and a U.S. Army
Reserve Officer. He has just recently returned from a year and a half deployment in Afghanistan. It also hits close to home as my nephew, Army Sgt. Steve Hammontree, is finishing up his third tour in Iraq.

Dan West and Pete Dumenil both manage my relationship with Congoleum and are reponsible for growing my business with Congoleum. Especially the Congoleum DuraCeramic Tile line and the DuraStone Tile line.

Welcome home Dan.

We Ship AnyWhere - Even Mercerville, NJ

What a coincidence! Just back to work after my Congoleum visit, I decide to walk thru our shipping department. I do this almost daily to make sure we are protecting our shipments to minimize possible freight damage. I don't know of any company that takes the time or spends the money we do for shipment protection in our industry.

It was a busy shipping day. There were lots of pallets of Quick-Step Laminate, Mohawk Laminate, Mohawk Hardwood, Bruce Hardwood, Tarkett Laminate, Nafco Vinyl tile, several pallets of Congoleum DuraCeramic tile, several rolls of Beaulieu carpet for Pakistan, and lots of Shaw Carpet being shipped to residential customers.

While walking thru the pallets I noticed one particular shipping address on a pallet of Congoleum DuraCeramic. It was shipping to Mercerville, NJ. That is where Congoleum is located. Now Mercerville is not that big, so I wondered if this person worked at Congoleum. After investigation, I decided not, because the customers email address indicated the New Jersey Dental Health Association and we were just shipping to a residence in Mercerville. So in fact it was just a coincidence, Strange but true. In fact we ship a lot of other products to New Jersey.

We are thankful for all of our customers. No matter where we ship.

New Jersey Trip To Congoleum Factory

I just returned from touring Congoleum's tile factory in New Jersey where DuraCeramic is made. Unfortunately I left my camera back here in Georgia so I cannot share pictures. The tour was quite interesting to see the overall quality control of the product. From the time the limestone composite is placed in the hopper until it goes to distribution warehouse for shipment is about 10 days. I was impressed with the amount of attention given through the various stages of the manufacturing process
to insure the precise outcome of each production run. I can honestly say that I take a great deal of pride and comfort knowing that with each order we sell, our customer is getting the best product for their money.

That evening I was treated to a fantastic dinner at The Ferry House. Great food, great company. Before and after dinner I was given a driving tour of Princeton, New Jersey and I must say (even being from Georgia)that Princeton University is one of the most beautiful campuses I have ever seen. So rich in architecture and tradition.I lived on the Jersey coast for three years and I can honestly say, I have never seen such a gorgeous community.

The next day was a meeting at Congoleum's Corporate Headquarters in Mercerville, New Jersey. I met with their national sales and marketing team to share ideas on my particular efforts on selling and marketing Congoleum products. The meeting was very enlightening and I feel it will help us to continue to be strong in the sales Congoleum flooring. By noon we were on our way to the Philadelphia airport where our flight was delayed about two hours and then on to Atlanta and my drive to Dalton, GA. Welcome home. It's always good to be home.

Congoleum Duraceramic

What a GREAT product!
Congoleum has a winner here. Looks exactly like ceramic but is more durable and is warmer to foot traffic. It is easy to install. You can install with or without grout. We have literally sold millions of dollars of this product at American Carpet Wholesalers almost complaint free. Congoleum Duraceramic is the name to remember when considering tile for your floor.