A New Beginning Tree Service

unknown

I had two no-shows and one no call back from other companies who I saw in Angie's List. So I branched out to the local classifieds and found an ad for this business. The ad stated they accepted credit cards which is how I wanted to pay.
I did not get any other estimates for the work. The last tree work I had done was two huge pine trees that were taken down, cut up and moved into the woods for $800.00 in 2009.
Pros:
1) The rep, David Wooden, called me back immediately and came out the same day for an estimate. This was on Saturday.
This was a welcome change from the lack of response I had been getting elsewhere.
2) Gave me a three day window of when he might be available the following week. He said he would call before hand with the exact day and he kept that promise even when he had to delay a day due to equipment trouble.
3) Quoted $1200.00. Said I didn't have to pay until all the work was done to my satisfaction.
4) The work was done as promised. The crew arrived early and worked steadily until the job was done. The grass around the tree was all torn up from all the tree parts falling to the ground but the workers raked up all the debris, cleaning up after themselves. The wood was piled up in the correct location.
Cons:
1) When he arrived he had no business cards and a generic estimate document-nothing with the company name. That seemed unprofessional to me and made me wonder if he really had a business.
2) We seemed to have trouble communicating and at some point he took on a cold attitude toward me which never went away. Since I am still bothered by that, I am not sure if I would call on him again.
3) Couldn't bring the equipment originally planned (bucket truck) which I thought would have been safer for such a big job.
4) He never inquired as to whether I was satisfied or thanked me for my patronage.
Other:
1) When I asked about paying by credit card he said he didn't take them anymore. I waited and rechecked the ad and called him back saying that the ad said he did take them so he might want to change his ad. Then he said he guessed he could do the credit.
2) He did most of the felling of the tree by climbing up it and using a chainsaw dangling from a rope on his belt. Rather than felling the tree and then taking off the limbs, the limbs came off first, then some upper parts of the trunk. This minimized the risk of the tree falling over onto something, I guess. It was a large feat of strength and skill which was impressive.
3) He did give me one of his business cards after the work was done with the contact name of a sawmill written on the back, per my request.

David Wooden and his crew cleared out two trees in our yard and cleaned up hanging branches from several other trees in our yard. They were punctual, extremely professional and their prices very reasonable compared to some other estimates we have received from other companies. We would definitely use their services again.