ACE Hardware

The Southern Ace: Ace Housewares

Location

240 G Street at 3rd Street/4th Street (see map)

Hours

Mon-Fri 7:30am-8:00pm

Sat 7:30am-6:00pm

Sun 9:00am-6:00pm

(Housewares open 10am-6pm daily)

(Rockyard closes at 6:00pm daily)

Phone

(530)758-8000

Email

<info@davisace.com>

Website

http://www.davisace.com

Slogan

The helpful place

The Northern Ace: Ace Hardware Map of the buildings, rotated

Davis ACE (which some still refer to as Davis Lumber) has everything from furniture to bulk lumber, plants, cast iron skillets, and plumbing supplies to pets. Ace consists of three large buildings and several small ones, organized into four service areas. It runs a long length of G Street from 2nd Street to 4th Street. The southern section is more oriented toward household items. They no longer take payments for PG&E bills or SBC bills. The northern section is similar to a mini Home Depot and also carries gardening and pet supplies. If you have unpaid merchandise and need to cross 3rd Street to one of their other buildings, ask a staff member and they'll walk you across the street so you only have to make one payment transaction.

Some people believe that a wider selection of lumber and more knowledgeable hardware salespeople can be found at Hibbert Lumber, although many people use the exact same reasoning in going to ACE. Hibbert deals with more contractors, so they're usually very professional-oriented, whereas ACE caters to a greater variety of customers. However, they do have a lumber yard and rockyard to buy sand, gravel, cement, and the like.

Keys can be copied in the hardware section which is south of gardens and pets in the section between 3rd Street and 4th Street. Once in that building the lock section is in the middle of the back half (eastern half).

The Ace home store used to have a pay phone inside of it located by the entrance nearest to 3rd Street, but it was noticed missing on 2005-09-01.

In September 2007, Davis Ace began accepting compact fluorescent bulbs, which contain mercury, for recycling. However, as of 2008, they no longer do so.

In December 2008, the custom frame shop closed. They still sell a selection of pre-made frames, though.

Each Ace Hardware is individually owned, but is affiliated with the Ace corporation. You really are shopping at a locally owned neighborhood store.

A bunny in the Pets and Garden ACE.

Hardware: Tools, Paint, Electrical, Plumbing, Screws & Fasteners, Automotive/Marine Supplies, Keys, Bulbs, Lumber Mill. Services: key cutting (including transponder keys), lumber cut to length, household battery recycling, paint color matching, shade re-screening.

Housewares: Furniture, Cleaning Supplies, Patio Furniture, Household Appliances, Cookware, Lamps, Seasonal merchandise, Grills and Barbecuing supplies. Services: knife sharpening, free gift wrapping, retired American flag collection (given to a local veteran's group to dispose of in a sanctified manner), household battery recycling.

Garden & Pet: Live Plants, Houseplants, Potting Soil, Fertilizers, Garden Hoses, Sprinklers, PVC Pipe, Pet Supplies, Fish.

Rockyard: Landscaping Materials, Rocks, Soil, Mulch, Cement, Brick, Pool Supplies, Water Softener Salt, Paintball Supplies. Services: home delivery of bulk goods, propane tank refilling.

This page is slightly misnamed. Although the parent corporation is "Ace Hardware Corporation", this location is actually named "Davis Ace" or simply "Ace". Ace hardware is only the central building, along with Ace housewares, Ace Garden & Pet, and Ace Rock & Rental.

I dispute this. Housewares, garden and pet supplies and such are all available from any Ace Hardware store... and their website. They may stretch the definition of hardware, but the various buildings are merely departments. Or is there no such place as "Sears", but rather "Sears Mens Clothing" and "Sears Tools" because each of the departments has their own name? That's silly. Ace Hardware, commonly called Ace (as in their slogan "Ace is the Place") has a Davis location, commonly referred to as the Davis Ace store. Just like all Ace Hardware stores, they have several departments. Unlike most, there is no single building, but rather several buildings, one for each department. Or are you saying that they are individual competing companies? —jw

Ace holds regular events in both hardware and housewares buildings. Demos are designed to provide helpful advice for home projects and showcase Ace products and services. Attendees of these events often receive special discounts on products showcased. Advanced reservations for participants are encouraged.

Cooking demos are held every Sunday at 3pm in the housewares building.

Great Fish selectionA selection of high quality fish food Active,Healthy Fish

Comments:

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I don't know if it is the largest, but it is one of the larger ones I've seen, though all the successful ones that compete with the large box lumber/hardware stores (home depot, lowe's) are pretty large. RocksandDirt

My contractor father-in-law is pretty happy with our Ace. Generally well-stocked and the parts are in the correct bins. — RussBowlus

Ace is pretty good for supplying my general needs, but when I need more specific or specialized stuff I head to Woodland to go to the Orchard Supply Hardware there. I also prefer the Redwood Barn Nursery's plants, but you should really go to both to get the full range of planting options. -KarlMogel

I was in the ACE a few days ago, and I was really impressed how good the staff there helped me, although I only wanted a single nut for only $0.06! Another time the told me honestly, that the thing I wanted to buy, was much cheaper in another store. They are really helpful and very qualified. -BurkhardLehner

2005-09-04 22:03:46   I thought of ACE as just a hardware store, but in the Houseware section I've found tons of stuff that would do well in an apartment or dorm. Cookware (from cheaper cast iron to Le Creuset ($$$)), dishware, coffeemakers, cleaning supplies, shower curtains, bookcases, and pillows (no sheets, though). They sell the cutest creamer in the shape of a cow with the mouth for the spout. Or at least they used to. I love this place. —IrenePark

2006-10-12 08:42:43   The gentleman who helped me at the paint counter was fantastic. He took the time to stop what he was doing and focus on my question, even though it was about a tool they didn't have! —NelsonConley

2006-12-13 22:16:33   They really have everything here! Between the two locations I think you can get nearly anything you want. —JohnHumperdinkle

2007-05-15 14:03:39   It was a little strange having the store split up into different buildings, but this place totally helped me out when I needed a key made. —Jedron

2007-05-15 14:29:38   I like how you can ask just about any of the staff where item X is, and they'll know exactly where to find it (usually down to the aisle number). I also like that there's always a coupon for 10% off of a purchase in the Green Machine. There certainly are other great alternatives to what Ace offers, but it's good to have it as a failsafe. —KevinChin

2007-05-15 14:35:18   I've been really impressed by my visits here, especially to the "Hardware" part of the store. The staff is friendly and knowledgeable, and seems to genuinely enjoy helping people. And when I needed one item from "Hardware" and another from "Garden and Pet," they waved me right through with my item without making me go through the checkout. I guess that's how you know you're in Davis. :-) A friend of mine told me that Ace Hardware stores are all independently owned and operated — I don't know if it is true, but if so then that might be another reason to patronize the store. —CovertProfessor

2007-05-23 19:01:35   The staff here is quite helpful and very friendly. I walked in looking for a replacement buckle for my knapsack, and not only did they have several choices, but they knew exactly where in the store to look. Home Depot / Lowes never, ever have this kind of service, in my experience. I will certainly be back. —JamesShearer

2007-09-22 18:45:53   It seems like ACE doesn't like me. The people at the register are normally nice to me, however the older staff near the plumbing tend to be rude and sarcastic. Last three out of four times they did not have what I needed. They close at 6:00pm on Saturday! The Sun has not set yet, so I guess they're afraid of vampire or something. —DavidHolcomb

2007-12-04 15:31:49   Perfect place to get a large variety of errands done, most importantly helped me copy a key for my place. —NCSaephanh

2007-12-05 11:34:51   The hardware employees have always been really helpful. But the Houseware prices seem really expensive. I went looking for lamp oil for decorative lamps I'd been given. A large bottle of oil at Ace Housewares was $16. I went to Walmart and found the exact same product at the same size for $3.50. —ElleWeber

2008-03-29 14:12:08   It'd be nice if they gave local downtown businesses discounts. We tend to shop here a lot. —SunjeetBaadkar

2008-04-13 11:27:23   I really want to like this place, but I always end up leaving unhappy. They waste an inordinate amount of space on high profit items, like patio furniture and power tools, at the expense of hardware store basics. On big ticket items like those, I am obviously going to shop around - if Ace has the best value on those, then so be it, but that doesn't happen often. Conversely, when I need a specific bolt or wire nut, I don't want to have to shop around. I am willing to pay a small premium for that convenience. I have been to much smaller Ace stores that I can count on to have those sorts of things, but this one fails to deliver. In addition to being pretty steeply priced, I have found their service to be pretty lackluster (ie: not having wire cutters at the wire cutting station and keeping me waiting for 10 minutes while they find a pair of scissors to try to hack through the wire). Speaking of bulk wire, I'm curious as to what the Weights and Measures people think about their measuring practices... I asked for 6' of wire and the clerk said "I'm about 6' tall," and then roughly measured the wire against his own height. I have found Orchard Supply Hardware in Woodland to be far superior in price, selection, and service... which makes it worth the drive for me. —RyanCoates

2008-06-24 16:05:26   Were able to fulfill most of my hardware needs here pretty easily, very helpful employees! —calvinz

2008-12-02 14:05:52   I bought some plants and pet supplies here and everything went fine, but when I went for copper wire a different time, a salesperson in the hardware department told me that wire is not made of copper and they wouldn't have any. He didn't seem interested in helping me at all. I went to the hardware store near the food co-op, forget the name of the place, and there was someone working there who was happy to teach me some about the various gauges of copper wire and help me pick out the kind I needed. So, I'll be going there from now on. —DanaSullivan

2009-02-07 09:33:44   ACE is a great place for many things. I enjoy their pet section especially their fish selection. They have great prices. The tanks are not overcrowded like PETCO and the staff is helpful when selecting fish. They will even special order. They get most of their fish from local breeders so they are young, active, and healthy. I have bought over 20 fish from the department and they are all doing very well. ACE also has a guarantee on their fish for 7 days, if a fish dies you bring in the frozen fish and a sample of the water and they will refund your purchase and run a complimentary ammonia and nitrite test as well test the Ph. They carry a high quality of fish food pellets and wafers made by Aquadine as well carry frozen bloodworms, glassworms and brine shrimp. The only fish I have not been happy with is their Betta's. Chelsea is very helpful and the best fish person I know. She even threw in a few water snails and small fry on my last purchase as a bonus. The ACE rewards program is also great for getting cash back on all of your purchases. I recently received 10 dollars in the mail in the form of a gift card. I have also used ACE's key making department. They are friendly and most of the time keys made work, but always check because I have had several occasions where the copy made was useless, but the key department at ACE also has a guarantee. If the key does not work, bring it back and they will remake it for you. The garden and plant department at ACE is one of my favorite stops, they have a good selection of plants that are alive,green, and healthy. Enjoy your shopping experience at Davis ACE! —ElizabethBarthel

2009-08-11 15:37:52   Great service and selection. I was concerned that I would have to head to home depot for all of my home improvement projects. I have yet to walk away from ace without everything I need. —JeffS

2009-11-20 17:43:01   FIVE STARS! :) When my family moved to Davis, we were really shocked to find out what it was like to live in a small town. Coming from the Bay Area, to shop in a place where employees will go WAY out of their way to help me was, well....downright confusing! Yes, it is a bit odd an inconvenient to have the place split between three buildings, but that's the trade off if you want small town service with big town inventory! The household items are wonderful....this is THE place to get something for that kitchen aficionado, or a unique wedding gift. In hardware, there are knowledgeable people in MANY aspects of home repair, and if they don't know, they'll find someone who does! They carry items unique to Davis. I have a furnace circa 1973 and they are the ONLY place to carry filters for it. My husband looked for them at Lowes and HOme Depot and you can't even order them. But Ace keeps them in stock. Why? Because there were a lot of furnaces with that size put into Davis homes. I do worry about the new Target hurting these guys. I truly hope it doesn't. I think if ACE keeps doing what ACE does well, they'll be in business for many years to come! —toriac