Last November I found Stephen Whiteman Window Cleaning on Homestars and the reviews were very positive overall. Stephen was very polite on the phone and seemed like the right choice. I was at work when he came to clean my eaves, but he assured me photos and video would be taken to show completed job (two photos and a very brief video of a single section of eavestrough was provided). Stephen even left the bag of debris to show that work had been done and I was happy with my choice at that time. He also noted a shortage of downspounts and that the shingles may need attention soon. A few days later I went up to put Christmas lights above the garage and noticed a significant amount (about 1" depth) of buildup comprised of dirt, leaves, shingle gravel and paint chips from when the painters did work during the summer. I immediately emailed Stephen to ask what I was looking at and asked why it was not cleared. He called within very short order and was very surprised at my claim. He said he was in the area and would swing by to look for himself. I was at work at the time and he called to say that he went back up to take a look and it was all clean. He became very defensive and I decided to just back off as I was dealing with a lot of other move related issues at the time. Today, I climbed my newly purchased 32' ladder to have a look at the eaves above the 2nd storey. Sure enough they're completely full of debris as well (greater than 1" depth). It's worth noting that there are no trees at that height to deposit leaves so the only accumulation is caused by the aging shingles. I'm nearly certain Stephen will come on here to say that it's all new debris and that my roof was clearly deteriorating at the time he cleaned the eaves to a sparkle, but this amount of buildup is simply not possible in that timeframe. If you hire him, or any contractor for that matter, watch them like a hawk and insist on photos of ALL cleaned eavestroughs. I work hard to make money and I can't get away with this kind of shabby work. If you do too, then take my caution to heart. Maybe Stephen has done good work for others, but I was not so lucky.
- Approximate cost of services:
- $250.00
- What could this company do to improve their services?
- Any advice to offer fellow homeowners facing a similar project?
- Company Response
Sir, you found roof debris in your gutter 8 months after my visit. As I told you in November, your roof is deteriorating and gravel is falling into your eaves. That's what you're seeing. Of course there's gravel in the eaves. It's been 8 months of snow and rain falling on a dilapidated roof.
If I had cut corners you would've had flooding and clogs over the aggressive winter we had, but as your review shows, you didn't, because I did my job.
I can't apologize for being defensive when I work hard at being honest with my clientele. Why would I go to the trouble of driving back to Whitby only to do nothing, knowing full well you were going to check them after I left? As long as that roof is not replaced, you will continue to have debris in your eaves.
You'll notice all my other reviews on this website. I have no control of good or bad reviews. If I was the person you think I am, these reviews wouldn't exist.
I wish you all the best.