His Workmanship

I have an invasive weed Garlic Mustard that suddenly appeared in April and also the common buck thorn in my back trees. I was told I had to pay cash and they would not take a check. They would also not come to do any estimate on how many guys and hours I would need to do the job; I had to guess. I ended up having them come two times: first 4 guys for 8 hours; second time 2 guys for 4 hours (per the guess of the first leader for how long and what I'd need the second time). They still did not complete the job. The first crew of guys were better than the second crew of guys. They were college guys, some working hard, some walking and working slowly and on their phones. However, I'm suffering cancer and could not take care of the job, thus had to get someone to control the spread. Thankfully, they did get most of the job done for me. Whether the Garlic Mustard was pulled out by the root, time will tell. The first crew used shovels and got the buck thorn pulled out pretty good; the second crew just cut the buck thorn off. Although I had informed Eric Pfeffer about the invasive weed and explained how it would spread on boots and tools, procedures were followed by some of the guys and not by others. They did not seem to be familiar with working with an invasive weed. Both crews arrived on time, but stopped work 45 min before end time to pick up tools, but also both left the job site (unfinished) a good 20-30 minutes early. Eric communicated via email pretty good after the initial "canned" email response. In their survey, they ask to rate the guys - if you expect this, they need to have their names on their shirts or give you their names. I am unsure, I may or may not hire again.

Our family had a terrible experience with His Workmanship. We hired 4 workers for 8 hours for two days (9-5 each day), to weed and mulch bedding in our yard, at a cost of $4420. On our first day, we did a walkthrough to show the weeds and beds. Before the second day of work, we shared pictures of large weeds the team missed on the first day (likely they weren’t identified as weeds), and agreed that we’d be back by 5:00 to walk through and settle with the team. Evidently our e-mailed instructions, photos, and the first day's verbal instructions were not relayed, because the second day's team only finished mulching the one incomplete area left by the first day’s team, leaving behind weeds, unmulched beds next to adjacent bags of mulch. The team tried to contact me at 3:00 (as I made clear, I was at work and not available), then left. My wife returned from work by 3:30 and the team had already left without authorization and without doing any of the weeding in our verbal correspondence, e-mailed correspondence, or e-mailed photos. They left all areas that the prior days team had not begun unweeded and unmulched, along with extra mulch in our driveway right next to the unweeded and unmulched beds that we had asked them to take care of. They charged us for the full eight hours after leaving two hours early, without authorization, and without the walkthrough we agreed to do when we returned from work. All our e-mailed correspondence and Ring screenshots with timestamps are available upon request. Given that our instructions were all in writing and we followed our commitments to be available after our own workdays, we asked to be credited or refunded for the two hours they left without authorization and undone work (communicated both verbally and in writing). His Workmanship confirmed that the team was not supposed to leave without authorization, but declined to credit or refund the time they were paid to work but not working or available to work. I don’t fault workers, who probably never received any direction from the team hired on the first day or my e-mailed instructions. We paid them fully while they were on the clock but gone from the property. We don't want the company's poor communication or loose norms to affect the workers. But I do fault the company for not delivering on what we agreed upon and paid for, failing to honor our written instructions, and then not making it right with us. Given their poor internal communication, inconsistent supervision, and unwillingness to correct their mistakes, I would not recommend them, especially if you need to be away while they are supposed to be on shift. I leave you with a photo of one of those piles of mulch, next to one of the many unweeded, unmulched areas of our yard, that the team left behind mid-shift, after having been instructed to apply it. The second photo is one that I had sent them of weeds to be removed, but they were not despite all the extra time they had before they all left. (I shared the substance of the above with my contact at His Workmanship to confirm the accuracy. I was offered "one free hour" if I bought two hours additional work. We do not want "one free hour." We want the work that we paid for, but could not receive, because the team left before we returned from work and during their shift.)

The guys were great! They got a lot done.

We have used His Workmanship 2 times with completely different experiences. The first could not have gone better! The crew was exceptional—such hard workers! With this in mind we had very high hopes for this recent visit; however, we could not be more disappointed. This crew did not seem to accomplish a whole lot in the 3 hours. Their work was sloppy—they left trimmings all over the porch and bed, and bushes were not cut cleanly (lots of uneven pieces sticking up). They did not even bring any equipment. The most frustrating part however was how things were handled from there. The His Workmanship website states very clearly that ALL email is answered within 24 hours—Eric, the owner, has always been quick to respond in terms of questions about coming out for a job, and yet, when we emailed him (2 times!) asking to discuss this recent less-than-stellar performance he completely ignored us! It’s been 2 weeks and no word whatsoever. This is unacceptable customer service! Sadly, it seems, they only respond when it profits them. If we could have had a simple conversation, the company might have kept our loyalty and business! As it stands we are upset and especially disheartened from this experience—this is NOT a good reflection of HIS workmanship!! We honestly chose this company because they stand apart as an upfront Christian organization. We really love what this is supposed to be based on! The whole premise of the company leads us to believe they have integrity and are a service that stands by its work, is trustworthy, and one that treats its customers fairly. How very disappointing to be treated otherwise. From this experience we would NOT recommend using this company!

I paid for 4 hours for 2 workers I was not home and paid remotely when they were done trusting a good job was done when I got home and saw that most weeds had not bend plucked but some of my plants and hostas were removed. They are great to communicate before work and for payment but they haven’t answered my calls after the service even though I called texted emailed and NO answer

It didn’t. I asked for a call to discuss project and negative reviews and I received this text… I think I’m good. You can keep your luck. Phone calls are technologically regressive. Get with the times bro. Then the person sent me a snapshot showing they had over 1,000,000 in an account. Can’t make this stuff up..

1" of gravel removed from under old deck, $1,000!!!! We did it ourselves and gave it to a neighbor. They claim they do landscaping but when asked if would build landscape planter said no. Felt like a bunch of college kids trying to make $$ during time off.

The crew arrived nearly an hour late. I gave them a planting map for $450 worth of plants and instructions provided by the plant nursery. They removed rock from a small area and planted 30 small plants. I paid them cash and they left. The following day, I noticed some of the plants were wilting despite sufficient watering. I dug one up to find that it had been planted too shallowly because it was sitting on top of a large rock that should have been removed. The plant could not have survived with no place to put down roots. I ended up having to dig up, remove rock and replant 18 of the plants. I contacted Eric Pfeffer in 4 separate emails, providing pictures and asking that he contact me so we could discuss resolution of the situation. He ignored all my emails and only responded to a Google review that I placed after allowing him 3 weeks to set things right. His Google response disputed what I said but stated I "should contact him by email to discuss". He then responded directly to me by saying I would receive no refund because I "undid all their hard work for no good reason", which is absurd. Why would anyone spend 7 hours replanting plants if they didn't need to. This company purports to do work in the name of God, which is horrible. Their business practices are unethical and dishonest. Using the "facade of God" to sell your business, then disrespecting your customers is unconscionable.

I could not have asked for a better result. With the many trees in my yard the amount of leaves is a bit overwhelming. The two young men that arrived at my home were incredibly efficient, courteous, and a pleasure to be around. They arrived early and worked pretty much non stop. I will hire them again for other projects.

A few months ago our family moved to a house that had not been updated since the early 70's. This included the landscaping. I hired His Workmanship to remove landscaping rock and some dead bushes that were impossible to remove myself since the rock had sunk into the soil. They also hauled all the landscaping rock away. It was a huge project, and they completed it in two 6 hour days. What I really appreciated about His Workmanship was their responsiveness. I got an email back within 12 hours of my initial inquiry, and someone promptly responded to every email. This really cannot be underestimated, since I have dealt with may unresponsive contractors. For a project like this, His Workmanship was an affordable alternative to a traditional landscaping company.

They workers arrived promptly and listened well to the scope of what I wanted done, as well as honoring my priorities as I wasn't sure if all the work could get done in the time frame I had. They were very respectful and easy to work with. They got right to work with and needed very minimal direction from me. They worked hard for the 3 hours and did a great job.

Wow, super impressed with this company. Great communication. They did exactly what they said they would do, were prompt and very professional. I would definitely hire them again.

It went very well. They were courteous, hard working, prompt, eager to satisfy out needs.

Showed up on time and they guys worked hard.

All went very well.

On August 11th, I scheduled a paver patio to be installed on August 23rd. Eric Pheffer, the owner, gave me a list of the materials that I would need to buy, in order to have the paver patio installed (we provide materials, they provide the labor). I asked what I needed to sign, or if they needed a payment to hold my installation date, but recieved no response. I assumed that because of the religious aspect of their business, they would stay true to their confirmation of the installation date. On August 15th, Eric emailed me to notify me that he was cancelling the installation, due to his workers getting ready for the school year (which begins after Labor Day, September 2nd). He then mentioned that his workers only work May until mid-August. This fact is not mentioned anywhere on the website. The reviews that I had previously read were for work all year round. Apparently Eric lives in California, and has no direct supervision over his employees (or their schedules) in Minnesota. I have also been unable to find a business filing in the State of Minnesota. Please proceed with caution!

I think it went very well. It was a tough, slow and dirty job. They stuck with it and got the work done.

Eric and Cody arrived on time and quickly went about their work cleaning up my back yard. The work included digging up and moving some landscaping timbers and lumber, cutting and removing several broken tree limbs, cutting down and cleaning up weeds, and moving some dirt from my lawn into a fill area behind a block wall. Despite the heat, they worked efficiently and got everything done in less time than I expected. They brought most of the tools they needed to complete everything and I provided a bow saw for cutting the tree limbs. Both Eric and Cody were extremely courteous and professional. My back yard looks much better. I will definitely call on them again if I need any yard work completed.