A-1 IRRIGATION REPAIR SERVICE

I hired Ed to put new lawn in the front and back yards. Additionally he was to till and amend a slope in the back. He was very insistent on doing the things He wanted in the yard, and I trusted his opinion since he, allegedly, was the professional. First of all, unrelated to the poor quality of work, Ed Stucco has a very loud mouth. He spent most of his time yelling across the yard, or even from front to back, knowing that my 5 month old was trying to sleep. Even After I'd asked him to keep it down Multiple times. He used foul language in front of my 6 year old on the first day. When all was said and done I told him I was not comfortable paying him the quoted amount because he did NOT till or amend the slope. First he started by saying he did. I know he did not because I was here every day watching him Not do it. Then he said he didn't because the dirt was good. The dirt here is complete garbage--darn near solid clay. Then he said he couldn't get the tiller onto the slope, but that he "busted out that hump there by hand." "Oh, that one right There?" I asked. The one that was still there. (Incidentally, I finally did it myself and it took about 3 hours by hand with a shovel. ) He pitched a big fit and said he'd spent an extra $500 on extra irrigation parts. Wha? I'm pretty sure he didn't spend even a Total of $500 on irrigation parts. But I said it's not good business to spend money on something and not tell the customer what is was or how much. Or, should I say, ASK the customer. In any case, he was supposed to come back to adjust the sprinklers after the job was "done". He never came back. I called him no less than 10 times and if ever he returned my calls he gave me a lame excuse. Then he said he'd come by and done it. Except, again, I was here. He was not. Incidentally, I've had 2 subsequent landscapers tell me the work is below standard and the placement of the sprinklers, and Type of sprinklers is completely Wrong. The long and short of it is the man is a liar and an unskilled landscaper. Everything he did has already been redone after less than a year.

Stucco is a nice guy, but at the end of the day, the quality of the work he did on our property is questionable. At first, the valve area leaked badly. He did eventually modify it and reduce the problem, but it still leaks--at a level that is perhaps tolerable but not great. He never put proper casings on top of the valves, so they are just sitting out there waiting to be broken by accident. In addition, a lot of the sprinkler heads are jammed up right now, only a few months after installation. Perhaps this just means that they need some sort of ongoing maintenance, but if so, Stucco never described anything like that to us. The guy always seems to be in a big hurry to get on to his next job, and while he clearly means to be helpful, he does not seem to take the time to really get things right, or to offer a full range of options that one would expect from a professional irrigation company.

Ed was very pleasant and knowledgeable and happy to help in any way he should. We had quite a period of playing ''phone tag'' before we were able to coincide our schedules for his second visit.

Ed was excellent in keeping me informed. He responded within a day and had the repair done within two. He might even have been quicker, but a minor eye injury at another job required a visit to the emergency room for treatment. He kept me informed all along the way. He also advised me that the valve box may be set to low for proper anti-siphoning function and recommended that they be repositioned, which I will do during a future re-landscaping. I'll definitely use him again as needed.

We had a very unsatisfactory experience with this contractor.

ED, WHO IS THE OWNER OF THE COMPANY, RESPONDED IMMEDIATELY TO MY REQUEST FOR AN ESTIMATE AND ACTUALLY CAME OUT TO THE HOUSE WITHIN A DAY OF THE INITIAL CONTACT. HE IS FRIENDLY AND KNOWLEDGEABLE AND REASONABLY PRICED. HE DOES THE WORK ON SCHEDULE AND CLEANS UP AFTER HIMSELF.

ED IS A ONE-MAN OPERATION. HE IS VERY FRIENDLY AND RESPONSIVE TO QUESTIONS. HE SEEMED VERY KNOWLEDGEABLE ABOUT SPRINKLER SYSTEMS. HE ONLY USES WHAT HE CONSIDERS QUALITY EQUIPMENT.