Sometimes, a house is more than just a house - it's a castle.

Since April, Air Force veteran Pat Aschlimen and his wife, Doris, have donned the slogan, "Let Us Carpet Your Castle," for their business, PDQ Flooring.

Bringing samples of wood, vinyl, laminate and carpet to the customer, and then ordering the product wholesale, allows Aschlimen to pass along savings to the customer.

"I fell in love with it and decided to start my own business," said Aschlimen, who worked at Great Floors before deciding to branch out on his own. "Brick and mortar was a big overhead. I was able to set up a program where I get discounted prices from the vendors."

Aschlimen said PDQ Flooring takes all the hassle out of shopping.

"I do the chasing," he said.

When customers call, Aschlimen visits them in their home, brings samples and does measuring. Once the type of flooring is selected, and the amount is ordered, Aschlimen works with an installer. The installer is paid a separate fee.

Aschlimen is based in Lacey and services customers in Thurston, Pierce and South King counties. Active-duty military and veterans are eligible for military discounts on a wide range of products and services.

"Sometimes this will be free padding for carpet, or free underlayment that goes under the vinyl or laminate," he said. "We advertise with different discounts."

The type of flooring that he sells ranges from the very best and most expensive, high-quality brands down to the inexpensive, basic brands.

"I have engineered wood and solid wood, a lot of different wood patterns in laminate flooring, and my favorite is luxury vinyl," Aschlimen said. "(Luxury vinyl) looks and feels like wood but wears like iron. You see it in stores like Safeway in the produce section. It's really strong. It doesn't fade, scratch and scuff. There are different styles. The best ones have a lifetime guarantee."

Eric and Donna Corp of DuPont recently worked with Aschlimen to improve the ground level of their castle. The Corps purchased the luxury vinyl.

"We wanted to save money and wanted the vinyl because it was less expensive and more durable for the pets in the home," Eric Corp said. "We decided to go with vinyl, because it's easy to replace and take out and put in new."

The Corps' home was built in 2001; the couple has lived there since 2007. Eric and Donna served in the Army National Guard for 30 years and 24 years, respectively.

With no specific plans to sell any time soon, the Corps said they've done a lot of landscaping and are "doing things that make the house nicer."

Aschlimen said he also sells different varieties of carpet, and a lot has changed in carpet quality.

Today, high quality carpet incorporates nanotechnology, in which the yarn fibers are coated to repel dirt.

"They put a positive charge on the fiber, and it rejects the dust really easily," he explained.

For more information, visit pdqflooringllc.com or call 360.791.2128.