Home Insurance Archives - Page 22 of 25

Part Two – How to choose a tree removal company in Atlanta

July 20, 2018June 28, 2017 by Frank Cheshire

Every spring, you might have tree cutters drive through your neighborhood. A guy might jump out and point out dead trees and then offer a good deal to take them down right away. You might wonder how they can afford to do it so cheaply. In Part Two of our article on how to choose a tree removal service, Bob Delbridge of 404-CUT-TREE gives us the answer.

In Part One of our article, we discussed the benefits of hiring an arborist. We also talked about how to find a tree service you can trust and the benefits of talking to a tree service before buying your next house. In Part Two, we’ll discuss the importance of making sure the tree removal company has both general liability insurance and workers’ comp insurance.

Why does a tree removal contractor need proper general liability insurance?

Tree contractors that don’t carry insurance can quote a cheaper price to remove your tree than the insured competition. So, Bob warned us that you need to make sure that the tree contractor is properly insured before letting them work on your tree.

There are two kinds of insurance that you should look for. The first is general liability.

Bob told us, “First, you need to see proof of liability insurance. It’s very easy for a tree to fall the wrong way and hit your car or house, or for a branch to crash through your window or ceiling. But many tree guys don’t carry insurance. Remember, your home insurance policy and umbrella policy will NOT cover you for damages incurred from an uninsured tree cutter you hired.”

Bob went on to talk about his experience. “I would guess that less than 30% of the prospects I give tree removal estimates ask if I’m insured,” he said. “Even worse, only about 10% of those actually check up on it to see if it’s valid. That means that about only 3% of homeowners are checking if tree cutting services are insured or not.”

But is checking if they have insurance enough?

Bob told us, “There are different quality standards of insurance carriers. There are A, B and C carriers. The A carriers are the healthiest insurance companies. If you’re hiring a contractor, then you need to check out the quality of the insurance they have. A C-rated insurance carrier will have cheaper tree-cutting insurance. An A-rated carrier is well capitalized and will be able to pay on big claims. Don’t be a statistic. First, ask for proof of insurance. Then call the insurance company to prove it to yourself.”

Why does the homeowner need to make sure that the company has workers’ compensation coverage?

Bob had an interesting take on this question. By Georgia law, a company isn’t required to have workers’ comp insurance if they have less than three employees. This means that many of the small tree cutting services in Atlanta may not have workers’ comp.

Should you be concerned? If it’s not required by law and all…

Okay, let’s paint a scenario.

You hire a tree guy with the lowest price. They are lower in part because they may not have workers’ comp insurance. You feel good because you got a good deal on cutting your tree down. However, while taking down the tree, there’s a terrible accident. The tree cutter’s assistant is killed.

Here’s what happens next.

“The injured party or the family of the deceased may hire a lawyer, and they go after the employer,” Bob said. Unfortunately, the tree service in our example doesn’t have workers’ comp. Who will pay for the lost wages and medical bills of the deceased assistant, plus pain and suffering? Guess what the lawyer goes after next? The assets of the employer. But what if the employer doesn’t have enough assets to cover a million-dollar claim?

Bob told us, “The lawyer may look to go after the assets of the homeowner.”

We asked Bob if this has happened here in Georgia. “Yes. In Georgia, a case can be made that the homeowner is the employer of last resort.” He then told me about an incident where the homeowner was sued for lost wages since the contractor’s helper died. The poor woman wound up losing her house.

Couldn’t the homeowner fight that case? “Sadly, lawyers tell me that it may cost anywhere from $25k to $50k to defend yourself in a case like this,” Bob said. As you can imagine, that money alone could bankrupt many people. “I always suggest hiring a company that has workers’ compensation insurance. By the way, this is for any kind of contractor you may hire. Please don’t limit this to tree cutters only.”

So, the advice here is to select a tree service that has workers’ compensation coverage. By the way, if you’re willing to take your chances to get a cheaper price, keep this in mind that arborists do a very dangerous job and so have a higher fatality rate than most other professions.

We hope you have found this series on selecting the best arborist and tree removal service in Atlanta to be helpful, and again we want to thank Bob Delbridge of 404-CUT-TREE. If you have a question for Bob he can be reached at his website. Remember, we at Atlanta Insurance want you to be educated so that you make good financial decisions for yourself and your family.

Need car, home, renters, life, or business insurance? Great! We can help with that. To get a free quote for the type of insurance you’re looking for, all you have to do is fill out our quote form or give us a call today!

Part One – How to choose a tree removal company in Atlanta

July 13, 2018June 26, 2017 by Frank Cheshire

Millions of dollars are spent every year in repairing homes that are damaged by trees after storms or heavy rains. Dead or rotting trees are dangerous because they can fall and seriously injure or even kill someone. Georgia’s got a lot of trees, and many Georgians have a dangerous tree in their yard right now.

In this two-part article, we interviewed Bob Delbridge of 404-CUT-TREE of Atlanta. Bob had some great tips for hiring a tree removal service. He also pointed out some situations in which you should hire a tree removal service that you might not have thought about before.

Today, we’ll tackle the following topics:

Why it’s important that the company has arborists
Why you should talk to a tree removal company before you buy your next house
How you can find a tree removal company you can trust

Bob was in a corporate sales and marketing career for 25 years, but at age 50 he knew he wanted to do something else, so he started a new business. “Looking out the window, I saw all of the trees we have in Atlanta,” he said. “I realized that people will always need help with their trees. I found and bought a small tree company that was for sale. We’ve now been in business for 15 years.”

What are some questions that a homeowner should ask before choosing a tree removal service in Atlanta?

Bob’s first suggestion was to ask them if they have arborists that will cut the tree down.

Back up a second – what’s an arborist? “Theoretically, anyone that cuts down a tree is an arborist,” Bob said. “Certified arborists have three years of experience in the field working with trees. They also take a tough national exam. Very few arborists are actually certified. Learning about trees never ends. So, certified arborists have to take several hours of continuing education each year, just like a CPA does.”

Bob continued, “However, from the viewpoint of an arborist, there is a huge difference between a tree cutter and an arborist. A tree cutter’s first thought is, ‘How can I cut this tree down?’ On the other hand, an arborist’s first question is, ‘How can I save this tree?’”

Bob said, “Two or three times a week our team will give an estimate to cut a tree down and will ask the question, ‘Would you like to save the tree?’ The client stops and says, ‘What do you mean? Do you mean I can save it? I have had two quotes already and no one else told me I could save the tree.’ We then go ahead and tell the client that for only $250 we can treat the tree and the odds are very good that we can save it.”

So, be sure that the tree cutters that will be working on your yard are arborists. Ask if there’s anything they can do to save the tree if that’s what you’d like to do.

Why should you talk to a tree removal company BEFORE buying your next house?

Bob said the best advice he can give Atlanta home buyers is to look before you buy. “Did you know that home inspectors are not trained to see if trees are healthy?” he asked. “Can you imagine buying a home with many dangerous dead trees on the property? That happened to a young couple that called us. They just bought a house and wanted help with a few dead trees in the yard. How surprised they were when we pointed out fifty dead trees in their yard instead.”

They asked for help, but it was too late. These trees were a hazard and needed to come down. This oversight wound up costing them $12,000. That’s an expensive price to pay for a house that you just purchased.

We asked if it’s still necessary to contact an arborist before buying the property if there’s only one dead tree. Bob answered, “Yes, it’s still a good idea. For example, one time there was a dead tree that cost $15,000 to remove.”

Ooof! We asked Bob how on earth it could cost $15,000 to remove one dead tree.

“The $15,000 tree removal required a huge crane to be brought in to manage it,” Bob explained. “Many of Atlanta’s small postage-stamp-sized yards don’t have a way to safely take a tree down. Now you can see why we suggest calling an arborist before you buy the home.”

By the way, Bob told us that it only costs $75 to have a tree professional look at the home you’re thinking of buying. $75 seems worth it for peace of mind.

The lesson? Find a trustworthy tree professional. Then be sure to include them in your home purchase decision.

How can a homeowner find a tree service they can trust?

“The old saying “buyer beware” applies to all purchases,” Bob said. “This includes hiring a tree-cutting service. First, recognize that you are not a professional . Unfortunately, there are many ways for a tree contractor to pull the wool over your eyes. It comes down to character and integrity.”

That’s great – but how can we tell that a company has a character and integrity?

“The best way is to talk to their past clients,” Bob said. “For example, some of my clients have hired me five or six times over the last 15 years. You want to talk to repeat customers. That tells you a lot about a tree company. For example, our motto is, ‘We want to be the tree company you would refer to your mother.’”

Why chose this motto? “Many of the referrals we get are for parents and older family members. They happen to trust and often do not get two or three estimates to compare. This means our clients are counting on us to take care of their family members,” Bob said.

“Now when I first bought the company I didn’t know the tree business yet,” Bob explained. “I hired a bunch of hotshot salespeople to work for me. They were overcharging customers to get bigger commission checks. This didn’t go over well with me since we wanted to be the tree company people referred their mother to.”

So, what did Bob do? “We came up with the idea of doing Job Cost Reports for every job,” Bob said. “If we make more money on the job than we thought we would, we send the client a refund check. This prevents the sales team from overcharging. Each month, we write anywhere from two to ten refund checks. They average anywhere from $25 to several hundred dollars each.”

The biggest refund check Bob’s ever mailed out? “The biggest refund check we mailed out was for $1,500. The funny thing is that I sold the job! The lady called me and asked if I made a mistake because she just got a check from us for $1,500. She told me she couldn’t believe it and would be telling everyone on her tennis team about us.”

So, the lesson here is to talk to past customers. You want a tree company that has both character and integrity to work with, don’t you? Trust your gut. If something doesn’t feel right, then keep looking for a tree removal contractor you can trust. We also suggest looking at online reviews. These, however, don’t replace talking to real customers.

We hope you’ve found this article on how to choose a tree removal service to be helpful! Special thanks to Bob Delbridge of 404-CUT-TREE for his time and advice. In Part Two of this article, we’ll discuss the types of insurance that a tree removal service should carry. Thanks for visiting Atlanta Insurance!

Need home insurance? We can help you build a home insurance policy that’s specially tailored to your needs and risks. We’ll get you a free quote, too – all you have to do is fill out our quote form or give us a call today.

Can a drop in your credit score hurt your home insurance rates?

July 7, 2022June 23, 2017 by Frank Cheshire

Your credit score has an effect on your home insurance rates.

Everyone knows that filing claims can cause your homeowner rates to go up. But the latest news shows that your bill paying habits (and your credit score) could work against you too.

You probably know that your credit score can affect your mortgage rates, right? The better your credit score, the better the mortgage rate that you can qualify for. But what about your home insurance rates? You might want to hold onto your hat.

The latest reports show that paying your credit card bills late can hurt you when it’s time to renew that home insurance policy next year. While you might wonder what your credit score has to do with your insurance rates, underwriters tend to think it’s pretty important. In fact, the industry will often use a credit-based score to calculate your rates. That means that you level of debt and your late payment history count. Bottom line: paying those credit cards late will hurt you insurance-wise.

How much are late credit card payments costing you?

Are you the type of person that pays your bills on time? Well, that’s good! You’ll be rewarded. But if you struggle to pay your credit cards on time, that’ll be reflected in the rates that you pay annually.

Let’s find out what kind of an effect a drop in your credit score can have on your insurance rates. The latest study from Insurancequotes.com tells us that a drop from an “Excellent” to a “Fair” credit score can cause a 36% increase in your premiums. Yikes! And that’s just the “Fair” rating. What about a “Poor” credit score? Prepare for an average increase of 114% on your premiums. That’s more than twice what people with excellent credit will pay.

Now here’s the scary part. Every insurance company is different and every state is different. Some poor folks wish they were only paying 114% more! Depending on your state, you might be paying a stiffer penalty for your low credit rating.

What about here in Atlanta? Drum roll, please…

The same study from Insurancequotes.com shows us that overall, as far as premiums go, Georgia ranks 22^nd out of the 50 states. But Georgia currently has 132% higher rates for people with poor credit than for people with excellent credit. So, for example, a person with excellent credit might have a $1,000.00 homeowner’s premium in Atlanta. His neighbor with poor credit would pay a $2,320 premium for the same house next door.

Wait a second, that doesn’t seem fair!

Well, it might seem that way. Insurance companies and lenders make their decisions based on statistics. Since they’re the ones taking the credit risk, they get to make the rules. They point to the fact that the statistics don’t lie. It seems that a homeowner’s credit history helps to predict the likelihood of filing a claim. However, that doesn’t mean you can’t do something to help yourself.

How to get lower home insurance quotes.

Remember, every insurance carrier is different. That means you need to shop around! We encourage you to reach out to an independent agency like Atlanta Insurance to get a few quotes to choose from. Why do we suggest an independent agency? Certain agencies are “captive” agencies. In other words, they only work for one insurance company. On the other hand, an independent agency, like Atlanta Insurance, can provide free quotes from many of the top carriers in the nation. This means you have more quotes to choose from.

So, if your homeowners rates have gone up, it means it’s time to shop. Every dollar you save is a dollar earned that can go towards taking care of your family.

How to clean up your credit score and save some money.

If you want to raise your credit score, there are quite a few things that you can do. Doing this proactively will help you next year when it’s time to renew. Here are a few suggestions to protect your credit beginning now:

1. Set a budget.

A budget is a “four-letter word” for many people, yet setting a budget is the key to taking control of your finances and your credit ratings. Some people use the old-fashioned envelope technique. This means setting up an envelope for each of your monthly expenses. Then you pay the envelopes weekly as you get your paycheck. At the end of the month, each envelope will ideally have the money to pay the bill. This means we need to get tough with ourselves.

2. Make your lunch at home.

It’s amazing how many people buy breakfast, lunch, and coffee every day at work. This could easily add to $500 a month on your credit cards. That’s money that could go towards paying the credit card bills. It may not be glamorous, but eat breakfast at home. Make your coffee at home and put it in a thermos to drink with your brown bag lunch. Remember, saving $500 a month is equivalent to saving $6,000 a year. Now that is glamorous!

3. Pay your bills on time.

This requires self-discipline. If you can, use the auto-pay feature so that you pay on time every month. If you can’t, use “auto debit” then set an alarm on your phone to remind you every month when the bills are due.

4. Stop using credit cards.

Just because you have them doesn’t mean that you have to use them. Pay them off one at a time and stick them in a drawer. If you must use them, set a few family rules. For example, in my home, we don’t put anything on the card unless we can pay it off in full by the end of the month. If you have to carry a balance, keep it minimal.

5. Consumer credit counseling.

Talk to a credit professional to set up a plan that will help you to raise your credit score. There’s no shame in asking for some help to figure out your finances.

Some final encouragement.

Nothing worthwhile is ever easy at first. So stay focused on the prize. Raising your credit score could cut your home insurance rates up to 50%. It will also allow you to get lower interest rates on your credit cards and for any future mortgages. This will save you many thousands of dollars over the life of the loan.

Hang in there, Atlanta. Set a budget. Reach out to a consumer credit counselor. Then contact your local Atlanta Insurance agent to get you affordable home insurance quotes to choose from.

If you’d like to get a free quote for your home insurance, let us know! Fill out our quote form or give us a call and we’d be happy to help you build an insurance plan that’s specifically designed for your family.

Part Two – How to choose a landscaping company in Atlanta

July 13, 2018June 21, 2017 by Frank Cheshire

It's important to choose the right landscaping company to work on your lawn.

Avoid landscaping contractors that cut corners instead of grass

If you’re ready to create your backyard oasis let’s dig right into today’s article about choosing a landscaping company!

In Part One of this series, we shared the benefits of hiring a horticulturist to do your landscaping. We also talked about the importance of finding someone that cares about your yard as if it was their own.

In Part 2, we’ll discuss some consumer education tips to make sure you actually get what you pay for. Brooks Hutcheson of Hutcheson Horticultural discussed the following helpful questions to ask a potential landscaping company with us.

What are some common ways lawn maintenance companies cut corners when spraying for weeds?
How do some landscapers cut corners with mulch and pine straw?
What should you look for after they mow your lawn?
Do they send the same crew out every time?
Are the workers happy with their job?
Do they have landscapers’ insurance for their business?
How can you keep broken windows from happening?

What are some common ways that landscapers might try to cut corners without the homeowner knowing about it?

Spraying for weeds

“Let’s say you hire someone to manage your weeds so you have a green lawn,” Brooks said. “This is a trick that some lawn guys use to cut corners. They will spray a broad application weed killer for your yard. Then they tell you all the weeds will be dead in a few days. Now this will kill some weeds…but not all of them. So, you’re stuck with these mysterious weeds that never die even though they ‘sprayed’ them.”

The lesson? Different weeds may require different weed killers to do the job. Check your contract. If it merely states they will be applying a “broad application” weed killer, it may not be enough. As a reminder, keep your pets indoors and make sure no one walks barefoot in the grass for 24 hours – these pesticides are very toxic.

Pine straw and mulch

“Let’s say you get a bid for a landscaping company to spread pine straw and mulch in your yard,” Brooks continued. “First, make sure they specify in the contract how many bales of pine straw and how many cubic yards of mulch you will need. So, for example, let’s say they give you an estimate for 30 bales of pine straw. To cut corners they may only install 25 bales instead. It’s the same with the mulch. Perhaps they told you it would take 5 cubic yards, but they only install 3 instead. This happens often, unfortunately.”

How would a landscaping company get away with this? “They’ll install the ground cover thick in the front where you’ll see it,” Brooks explained. “However, they’ll lay it thin in the corners and in the shade where you’re most likely not going to look. By the way, the industry standard for mulch is laying it three inches deep.”

The lesson? Make sure your contract clearly states how many bales of pine straw and cubic feet of mulch you will be receiving. Make sure it also lists that the mulch will be installed three inches thick. Then take your ruler and go measure in the corners!

Mowing your lawn.

Any tips for knowing if a lawn crew is doing a good job? “Watch the workers as they do your lawn,” Brooks said. “When they’re done, does it look like they flew through your yard so they could get to the next job? Or do they care enough to take care of the little details?”

Here are a few telltale signs to look for:

Are there lawn clippings everywhere?
After they mowed, do you see lines of grass that they missed?
What about against the fence, stairs, and in the corners where the lawn mower can’t reach? Did someone go back with a weed whacker to clean up?
Did they blow your lawn out so that it looks manicured?

Do they send the same crew out every time?

We asked Brooks why it’s important that they send the same crew every time. He shared, “Think about this. Instead of having new people that do things inconsistently and have to learn your lawn when they come, we provide the same crew for you every time. This way they know your yard. You explain how you want it only once. Then they’ll do it like you like it every time. Simple, but the customers LOVE it.”

The lesson? You know how many people like to have the same barber or hair stylist do their hair every time to make sure that it looks its best? Why not have the same lawn crew work on your lawn every week too? Just like with your hair stylist, insist on getting the same lawn maintenance crew that understands your yard.

Are the workers happy with their jobs?

Brooks added this bit of wisdom about choosing a landscaping company: “Would you rather have grumpy lawn guys or people that love their job working on your lawn? Happy workers take pride in their work… AND your yard. On the other hand, disgruntled employees complain about their boss to the clients. This is bad business. Instead, you want lawn maintenance crews that love their jobs. This tells you that their company takes care of them and appreciates them. Why should you care? Because it’s reflected in how they treat you as the customer and how they care about your yard.”

Do they have landscapers’ insurance for their business?

It only takes a push mower and a pick-up truck to start mowing lawns in your neighborhood. Unfortunately, many of these hard-working guys are handing flyers out without having any insurance. How can you protect yourself? “Look to work with a lawn service with an LLC or a Corp listed as part of their business name,” Brooks said. “By law, they need liability insurance. Ask for a copy of their certificate of insurance. It should be kept on file. Keep this handy in case there’s an accident.”

What kind of accident can you have mowing lawns? “Lawn mowers are famous for picking up rocks and shooting them out at a hundred miles an hour,” Brooks said. “This can easily break a window in your home. They also can crack your car’s windshield or dent your car door. If they have insurance, you can call them and make a claim. Most landscapers will gladly pay for things like that out of pocket to avoid their rates going up.”

Lawn mowers are actually very dangerous. In one recent year, over 83,000 people – many of them children – were sent to the emergency room because of them. Sadly 75 people die a year in lawn mower accidents. This doesn’t even include the number of people that have a foot or arm amputated.

The lesson? Ask to see proof of insurance. Make sure it’s up to date. Keep your children indoors while workers are working on your yard.

How do you keep broken windows from happening?

“It starts with caring about the customer,” Brooks said. “For example, every lawn mower has a side that it shoots the lawn clippings out of. We educate our staff to point this away from the house and cars. We also train our workers to do the same with leaf blowers. Here’s another pet peeve of mine: train your workers to watch for traffic. Let’s say your next door neighbor just washed their car and is heading home. If the lawn guys are blowing dirt, clippings, and leaves into the street they dirty your neighbor’s car. It’s bad for him, bad for you, and bad for business.”

Brooks’s last piece of advice? “When interviewing landscapers, go with your GUT! Don’t shop by price alone. What kind of feeling do you have about the company? Remember you want a company that cares for your yard like it’s their own.”

Thanks again to Brooks of Hutcheson Horticultural. If you have a question for Brooks feel free to reach out to him on his website here. We hope you found these tips on how to choosing a landscaping company helpful. You work hard for a living. You deserve a beautiful backyard that you can spend hours relaxing in with friends and family. Choose a landscaping company that will design a horticulturally sound yard that will give you years of pleasure.

Want to talk about home insurance and get a free quote? Great! Fill out our quote form or give us a call today and we’ll help you build an insurance plan that will protect your family.

Part One – How to choose a landscaping company in Atlanta

July 14, 2022June 19, 2017 by Frank Cheshire

If you’re looking to choose a landscaping company to turn your yard into your own personal Garden of Eden, then you’ll enjoy today’s article! We interviewed Brooks Hutcheson of Hutcheson Horticultural in Woodstock, GA for this two-part article. He’s going to share lots of great tips to help you find the ideal landscaping company.

In Part One of this article, we’ll talk about what a horticulturist is and why you want one to work on your lawn. We’ll also talk about some of the things you should look at before hiring a landscaping company.

Brooks explained that Hutcheson Horticultural is a family business. “My dad is a horticulturist that started a landscaping business,” he said. “It gives us an edge. How many landscaping companies do you know that have a university-trained horticulturist on staff? I grew up helping my dad with the business. When I got out of college, Dad offered me a job. Today I am the client relationship manager. One day I’ll run the company. I love this business – and I’m in it to win it!”

What is a horticulturist and why should you want one working on your yard?

That may be a new word for some of us. Basically, horticulture is the science of growing plants. It also includes the study of plants and landscape/garden design and maintenance.

In other words, not all landscapers are horticulturists. It requires getting a bachelor’s degree, having several years of work experience, and successfully passing a state licensing exam.

How does having a horticulturist on a landscaping team make a difference? Brooks told us, “We’re horticulturally sound. What does that mean? It means that some landscapers plan things on how they will look in your yard. It sounds good in theory. However, it often causes problems.”

On the other hand, when a landscaper designs things that are horticulturally sound they take the following questions into account:

What’s the pH of your soil like? Do you have chronic lawn issues? Have your soil tested. A horticulturist will pinpoint your soil’s pH level and identify any missing nutrients. They’ll also prescribe the best course of treatment, for example spreading limestone if the soil is acidic or sulfur if it’s overly alkaline.
Is your soil too compacted?
Do you have drainage issues?
Is there the right amount of sun or too much sun?
Is there too much shade? Shade-loving plants seek the shelter provided by nearby trees. In turn, these plants protect the forest floor from erosion with their thick tangle of shallow roots.
Will the chosen plants actually be able to grow and thrive in your yard?
Will the different plants be able the thrive side-by-side?
Do you have a vegetable garden? Which vegetables thrive when planted next to each other? Which vegetables suffer when you plant them too close to each other?
How close should your vegetable garden be to your flower garden? For example, did you know that beans and potatoes do poorly when planted too close to sunflowers?
How much mulch should you put around the trees? Here’s a tip: Sometimes people pile the mulch so thick around the tree they create mulch volcanoes that will slowly kill the tree.
When is it the right time and wrong time to prune your trees and bushes?

If you’re going to spend money on sod, shrubs, plants, bushes, and trees, you might as well hire a landscaper that’s a horticulturist to make sure that your lawn and garden are designed to thrive.

What are some things a person should look for before hiring a landscaping company?

“Look for someone that loves what they do!” Brooks said. “If they love landscaping like we do, it’ll come across when they work on your backyard. When we bid a job, we treat the project like it’s our own landscaping project. In other words, we never cheat customers by cutting corners. We always look for ways to give more than we were asked to do.”

How do you find someone that loves their job to work on your yard? “Ask for referrals from friends, family, and colleagues,” Brooks suggested. “Landscaping is one of those services where you want a reference from someone that you know and trust. In fact, word of mouth is the biggest way we’ve grown our business. You want to ask them not only about the work [the company] did for them… But how much did [the landscaper] care about them?”

“This goes back to giving more than you are under contract to do,” Brooks added. “For example, we have a big HOA contract here in Kennesaw. We are under contract to do 3,000 bales of pine straw two times a year. We also regularly mow many acres of land for them. Now here’s the point: we look for ways to provide value above and beyond what our contract requires. Recently our workers finished earlier than expected. Looking to take advantage of the extra time they had, they cleared out all of the underbrush in the wild space on the client’s property. That’s what you want – someone that goes above and beyond what is expected of them. Someone that cares about the project like it’s their own home.”

How about on-line reviews? Brook told us, “The best place for honest on-line reviews is Google, Angieslist and Home Advisor. In fact, Home Advisor has bulletproof reviews, in my opinion, because they qualify the contractors beforehand. However, I still believe in the importance of talking to referrals face-to-face or on the phone so they can share their story of how much the landscaper cared about them.”

And that concludes Part 1 of our series on what to look for in an Atlanta landscaping company! In Part 2 of this series, we’ll discuss the common ways landscapers may cut corners on your project. We look forward to seeing what Brooks of Hutcheson Horticultural has to say on this!

Need insurance? Great! We can help you out with that by getting you a free quote for your home, auto, life, business, or renters insurance. Just fill out our quote form or give us a call today!

Part Two – How to choose a water damage restoration contractor in Atlanta

July 13, 2018June 14, 2017 by Frank Cheshire

The alarm clock rings and you jump out of bed…onto a slushy rug and wet slippers. Yikes! Talk about water damage!

In the first part of this article on how to find the best Atlanta water damage restoration contractor to work with, we discussed why you want to work with an IICRC company. We also talked about the importance of learning how to turn your water off now instead of waiting for an emergency. Finally, we discussed who you should call first. If you missed Part One, not to worry – you can read it here.

Today, In Part 2 of this series Ron Vodjani of One Call Home Preservation, Inc. helps address these areas:

What’s the best way to check that the contractor has insurance?
Why should you immediately take a picture of your belongings?
How can you protect yourself from insurance fraud?
Why should you be home when the insurance adjuster shows up?
What are the advantages and disadvantages of letting your restoration company handle all of the insurance paperwork for you?

What’s the best way to check that the contractor has insurance?

Ron shared from his own experience, reminding us of his water damage restoration disaster. “I asked the contractor if he had insurance and he told me that he did,” he said. “He even showed me a copy of it. Later on, when there was a problem, I needed to call his insurance company. They told me that they’d never heard of him. When I asked about the name of the company listed on the insurance policy, they gave me the man’s business number. I called the man and he told me that sometimes he lets his friends use his insurance. In other words, my contractor didn’t have his own insurance policy.”

The lesson? Ron tells us to make sure that the name on the insurance policy matches the name on the truck, the contract, and the workers’ uniforms. He also suggests calling the insurance company and double checking it for yourself. You can never be too careful.

Why should you take a picture of your soggy belongings immediately?

Ron told us about his experience as a consumer on this issue. “The contractor told me not to worry about anything. They would move all of my wet belongings for me. I wouldn’t have to lift a finger,” Ron said. “It sounded good to me, so I let them do all of the work. They picked up all of my personal belongings and took them outside. That night, it rained, but they never put a tarp over my things! The company lied and said that was how all my belongings looked already. If I’d taken pictures of my belongings and how they stacked them outdoors, I’d have been protected. Since I didn’t do this, many of my personal items were ruined.”

So, the lesson here is to take a picture inventory of all your belongings if you have water damage. You can use the free “Know your Stuff” app that was designed by the Insurance Information Institute. We’ve also got a Home Inventory checklist that you can download here . Smart consumers take inventory before they have a flood. But even if you don’t have an inventory before the water damage happened, taking one ASAP after the flood can still help you.

How can you protect yourself from insurance fraud?

Ron told us that some unscrupulous salesmen ask you how much your deductible is. Then they tell the unwary homeowners not to worry about it, and that they’ll work it out for them. All they have to do is to let them do the job. “What happens next is that they take the real estimate and then ADD on the price of the deductible and present it to the insurance company,” Ron said. “In other words, they’re overcharging your insurance company to make up the difference. This is insurance fraud.”

There is no such thing as a free lunch. If someone offers to do this for you run the other way, no matter how tempting it can be. It just isn’t worth it. Remember, insurance fraud—even of the unintentional variety on your part—carries a stiff penalty with it.

Why should you be home when the insurance adjuster shows up?

Some homeowners don’t want to be bothered with taking a day off when the insurance adjuster comes. This could be a big mistake. Ron told us that one reason why you want to be there when the insurance adjuster meets the water damage contractor at your home is to keep the contractor honest.

He shared the following story: “Before I had my own remediation company, I was used as the cleaning crew. I witnessed some scary things. One time, the contractor told the insurance adjuster that all of the first-floor beams were burned and needed to be replaced after a fire. Sometimes, depending on the damage, the beams can be scraped and “sistered” with a fresh beam next to it. This time, however, the beams were so burned that they needed to be replaced completely.

The adjuster agreed and authorized funds to be released for this. The homeowner was not there for this conversation. The contractor merely scraped the beams and offered to finish the basement ceiling for free as a bonus. The homeowner agreed and the new drywall ceiling hid the evidence that the work was never done. This is insurance fraud and raises everyone’s home insurance rates.”

Be there when the insurance adjuster shows up. This way you know what the insurance company is paying to be done to repair the water damage. You’ll know what to expect and you’ll be able to make sure the right work is being done safely.

What are the disadvantages of letting your restoration company handle all of the insurance paperwork for you?

Let’s face it: you’re busy. Sometimes a restoration company will tell you that all you have to do is sign on the dotted line and they will handle all of the insurance negotiation and paperwork for you. This could be tempting. There are some advantages to you as the homeowner. You don’t have to miss work. They make all the calls. They handle the headaches, the paperwork, and the inspections.

“To be honest, I like to do business this way,” Ron told us. “That way I can be assured I’ll be paid at the end of the job. Unfortunately, I’ve been taken advantage of by some unethical homeowners in the past and never got paid in full. Be that as it may, I still believe that the consumer wins in the end when they handle the paperwork themselves.”

We asked Ron to explain.

“It all comes down to control of the money,” Ron said. “When you sign over the paperwork to the restoration company, you don’t see the invoices and you lose control of the money.”

We asked Ron to tell us why it’s so important for the homeowner to see the contractor’s invoices to the insurance company. He told us, “When I was the consumer during my flood remediation, the contractor had the equipment at my house for 2 full days. However, they billed the insurance company for 13 units for 3 full days. This meant the insurance company paid 33% more than they should have. This is insurance fraud and hurts us all when our rates go up.”

He continued, “When you sign over the paperwork to them, you have no clue of what they’re billing the insurance company. Retaining control of the paperwork keeps you in control.”

We asked Ron why it’s important for the consumer to control the money if they’re only going to give it to the contractor anyway. Ron answered, “What if you’re unhappy with the job that the contractor did? What if it was shoddy workmanship? What if they never cleaned up after themselves? What if they billed for more work than they performed in your home? If you control the money, then you can hold back payment until the work is completed per the contract and to your satisfaction.”

Basically, whoever controls the money has the power. If you’re so busy that you don’t have time to manage the details, be sure to find a restoration company that you can really trust.

We hope you found this interview helpful. We want to thank Ron Vodjani of One Call Home Preservation, Inc. for sharing all of these secrets to choosing the best Atlanta water damage remediation company – although we hope you never need them! Please remember Ron’s suggestion that your first call should be to your home insurance agent if you ever have a sewer backup, burst pipe, or leaky hose. Our agents are standing by to assist you every step of the way.

Want to get a free home insurance quote? Give us a call or fill out our online quote form today and we’ll help you get the coverage you need at the best possible rate!

Part One – How to choose a water damage restoration contractor in Atlanta

July 13, 2018June 12, 2017 by Frank Cheshire

4 things you need to know before selecting an Atlanta water damage repair professional

Just suppose you got back from vacation and found three inches of water in your home. What would you do first? Hopefully, you’d call your trusted home insurance agent! But what would you do next? Would you use a Yellow Pages to find an Atlanta water damage restoration contractor? Or maybe jump on Google or ask for suggestions on Facebook? For today’s article, we interviewed Ron Vodjani of One Call Home Preservation, Inc. of Woodstock Georgia. He’s got some great tips to help you to protect your rights as a homeowner.

We caught up with Ron and talked about a few things…

What is the IICRC?
What’s one dangerous mistake contractors that are not IICRC certified might make?
How can a homeowner turn off their water immediately?
What is the most important call a homeowner needs to make when they have water damage?

Ron has been in the home improvement industry for many years. But back in 2007 something happened to him as a consumer that would change his entire business focus. Ron had a flood in his home. He called a water damage contractor and had a pretty bad experience. Ron decided to learn this business from the ground up. Then he built a water damage remediation company so that his clients would never have to go through what he experienced.

We started this interview by giving Ron a hypothetical – he’s got a family member who lives out of state. They call him in a panic because they’ve got a flood from a broken water pipe. There’s no way that he can go to help them in person. What’s the best advice he could give them as a homeowner to help them protect their interests?

What’s the IICRC?

“The first thing I would encourage them to do is to pick a water restoration pro that has been certified by the IICRC,” he said.

What does the fancy acronym stand for? “It stands for The Institute of Inspection, Cleaning, and Restoration Certification,” Ron told us. The official website tells us that the purpose of the IICRC is to set and promote high standards, ethics, and practices for the inspection, cleaning, and restoration service industries. According to the website, “As an ANSI-accredited Standards Developing Organization (SDO), the IICRC has led the way in establishing the main industry standards and reference guides for professional carpet, upholstery, and fabric cleaning, water damage restoration, and mold remediation.”

Ron noted that this means that the consumer wins because the correct kind of work will be done based on the type of water damage there was. We asked Ron to explain that a little bit.

“First of all, I want to tell you up front that the majority of water and mold remediation companies are real professionals. However, here’s something to think about. All it takes is having a truck and a few dehumidifiers for a person to call themselves a water restoration company. That’s scary.

“For example, when I had my flood back in 2007, the contractor showed up with 13 humidifiers because they knew that the insurance company pays a set price per dehumidifier required. They put 3 of them in my closet alone! I felt ripped off because all of my circuit breakers were tripping. They also tore up my wood floors because they understood that the more they tear up, the more they get paid. After I went through the IICRC certification program, I learned that they handled it the wrong way. I was determined to build my company based on the IICRC principles.”

Can you give us an example of dangerous mistakes contractors that aren’t IICRC certified might make?

“Sure,” Ron answered. “There are different categories of water damage. There’s Category 1, 2, and 3. They’re not all treated the same. For example, Category 2 water is considered “gray” water, perhaps from a leaky washing machine hose. On the other hand, Category 3 water is sewage water. So, if a toilet backed up, you couldn’t simply disinfect, mop up, and install a dehumidifier! Instead, there would be special restoration steps that are required so that the consumer is protected from health risks. Someone who’s not certified may not know that and could unintentionally threaten the homeowner’s health.”

“Another mistake had to do with my hardwood floors,” Ron continued. “The IICRC calls for dehumidifiers being used for 2 days before making the decision to see if the floors need to be replaced. The bad contractors I used returned the next morning and tore up my floors before giving them a chance to dry out. This meant my insurance agency had to pay the bill for all new hardwood floors. This is bad for everyone because it makes your homeowner’s premiums go up unnecessarily.”

The lesson for you? Make sure that the professionals you choose are IICRC members. Look for the logo on their website. The official website tells us that IICRC Certified Firms have earned the right to display the IICRC logo as a symbol of quality. To achieve IICRC-certified status, firms must meet a rigorous list of standards in business ethics and professionalise. According to the “Benefits for Consumers” page on the website, all IICRC certified firms must:

Give accurate information to the customer and act with honesty and trustworthiness.
Require a formally trained technician that has passed all necessary tests for all jobs.
Have a continuing education program so that technicians keep up with the latest changes in the industry
Have liability insurance to protect all parties in case there’s an accident.
Have a written complaint policy and agree to Better Business Bureau or similar judgment to resolve conflicts, and accept the conclusions or recommendations that are reached.

Can you see why Ron recommends that you only work with an IICRC-certified company?

Do you know how to turn the water off?

If you discover a water leak, the first thing you need do is turn it off. The longer the water flows, the more damage you’ll sustain. The odds are greater that you’ll have mold problems later on.

So here are a few million dollar questions for you:

Do you know where your whole-house water valve cutoff is?
Do you know how to turn the water to your washing machine off?
Do you know where the shut-off valves for your toilets are located?
Can you turn off the water to your water heater tank?
Can you turn off the water to your dishwasher?

There’s an old Ben Franklin quote that says, “An ounce of prevention is worth more than a pound of cure.” This really applies to the water shut-off valves in your home. To figure out how to turn things off, first visually inspect each of the appliances mentioned above. Usually, you can spot the shut-off valve when you look for it. Still not sure? Check on Youtube for video instructions or ask a friend who’s a plumber or handyman to point them out. Worst comes to worst, you can call a water damage pro. Ron says he gets calls all the time and is glad to walk people through the steps. He offers it as a professional courtesy whether he gets the job or not.

Don’t wait for an emergency to figure this out. Take 20 minutes and walk through your home and figure out how to turn off all water-based appliances right now. In an emergency situation, your head will probably not be screwed on tight. Learn where the shut-off valves are now and teach your family how to turn off the appliances, too.

Call your insurance agent first.

Ron told us that your first call should always be to your insurance agent. “They’ll schedule a time for an adjuster to come look at your home’s damage. They also have a vendor list available with approved water and fire remediation companies listed for you to call. This saves you work. Now, you don’t have to use their vendor list. You can use your own contractor if you’d like. However, their companies have been checked out already. They have proper proof of insurance, they use the insurance pricing guidelines, and they’re most likely IICRC companies.” If you want to search for your own contractor, then be sure to check out their reviews carefully.

The lesson? Your agent is an ally. Call them and they’ll walk you through the steps to help the claims process go quickly and smoothly.

We hope you found Part 1 of this series helpful. In Part 2 we’ll discuss how to protect your personal belongings as well as how to avoid being the victim of insurance fraud.

8 tips for what to do if there’s a power outage

August 23, 2020June 9, 2017 by Kate Betts

Living near Atlanta, we’re lucky that we’re not faced with too many natural disasters. We get the odd tornado warning (and actual tornado – remember 2008?) and sometimes some ice during the winter, but we typically don’t get hit by hurricanes, mudslides, wildfires, and the like. But even so, we’re not immune to power outages. Though we may not get hurricanes, we still get severe storms with heavy rain, which can knock out the electricity. We also have very hot summers. The heat puts a strain on the power supply as the air-conditioners blast away, and that strain can also cause a power outage.

Anyways, the point is that you need to be prepared for what to do if the power does kick off all of a sudden. It’s important to stay safe and be prepared – there are some things that you should and should not do if you’re suddenly plunged into darkness when a power outage strikes.

1. Don’t play with matches.

Use flashlights. Repeat: use flashlights. Candles have a nasty habit of getting knocked over and catching things on fire, as if you didn’t already have enough to deal with! You don’t want to risk any singed fingers or hair. Plus, candles are messy.

2. Power down.

If the power goes out, it’s a good idea to unplug your electronic devices. This might seem counterproductive. The power’s already out, so why bother unplugging things or turning them off? Well, you want to protect them from potential frying from a power surge.

3. Keep the fridge shut tight.

To keep your food cool and edible for as long as possible, keep the doors to your fridge and freezer closed. Try to avoid opening them if you can. The goal is to keep your food fresh by trapping the cooler air inside.

Note: If anyone in your family takes medication that needs to be kept refrigerated, it’s a good idea to talk to your doctor or pharmacist ahead of time about what you should do if you have a power outage. Next time you’re at an appointment, try to remember to ask them.

4. Be smart with your generator.

First rule: keep the generator outside. Generators can throw off carbon monoxide, which can be deadly. Don’t put it in the house.

Second rule: be safe when you’re using the generator!

5. Stay informed.

Use a radio that’s powered by battery to listen to any updates about the power outage.

6. Mind the weather.

Power outages tend to happen at the least opportune times. Do what you can to stay comfortable even if the weather is not great.

7. Take care of the pets.

Your pets still need clean, fresh water and kibble. Make sure to give them what they need during the power outage – they’re probably confused by the commotion! Fido will thank you.

8. Keep things fun.

If the power goes out, remain calm. Don’t panic at the loss of electronics. Believe it or not, there are fun things to do that don’t require electricity or wi-fi – who knew? When the power goes out, break out the old board games and have at it. You can dig out a book you’ve been meaning to read and use a flashlight. You can draw or doodle. You can do crafts. You can play charades. You’re not going to waste away from lack of computers and cell-phones. These devices will betray you and run out of battery sooner or later.

If you live in Atlanta, you know that power outages happen. When everything goes dark, don’t panic. Stay safe. Try to keep informed about what’s going on, don’t light any candles, and don’t bring the generator inside. Use the time to have fun and bond with your family. You’ll find a way to stay entertained.

Got home insurance questions? We can help! Give us a call today to talk to our agents about finding the best insurance at the best rate. We like free things, so we’ll even get you a free quote if you fill out this form.

Source:

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/10/11/kostigen-column-blackouts/16983135/

Part Two – How to choose an irrigation company to install a sprinkler system

July 13, 2018June 7, 2017 by Frank Cheshire

Imagine if you spent a good amount of your hard-earned money on a sprinkler system…only to find out that it doesn’t work. It doesn’t water your lawn the way it’s supposed to. In Part One of this article, we talked about why it’s important to find a company that communicates well with their clients. We also talked about why it’s so important to make sure that the company does a water pressure pre-test before designing the system. If you missed Part One, no worries – you can read it here.

In this article, Phil Sarros of Sarros Landscaping is back with more helpful sprinkler tips. We picked his brain about the following questions:

What can be done if my pressure pre-test shows I have high water pressure?
What can be done if my pressure pre-test shows I have low water pressure?
Why can’t I save money by buying cheap components?
What’s the right size for sprinkler pipes installed underground?
What are some common flexible line and irrigation head mistakes to avoid?
Should I install a rain sensor?
What are some common service issues?
What is not covered by a warranty?

Let’s dive in!

What can be done if my pressure pre-test shows I have high water pressure?

Phil told us the answer may be a reducing valve. This limits the flow of water so that your equipment isn’t harmed.

What can be done if my pressure pre-test shows that I have low water pressure?

“Your system would be designed very differently,” Phil said. “Instead of a standard front-and-back zone that most sprinkler salespeople sell, we may need to add more zones for you. We also would need to limit the number of heads on each zone to maybe only four per zone.”

Won’t this cost more money? “Yes, it will at first because it’s designed for the low water pressure problem you might have,” Phil said. “This way you will have enough pressure for optimal water coverage.”

What if someone is willing to take the risk to save the money? “You pay to have it done right or you pay every month in a higher water bill,” Phil explained. “For example, a two-zone low-pressure system may cost you $400 a month to water your lawn for an hour. On the other hand, by installing four zones you only need 20 minutes to water daily. Your water bill will be closer to $175 a month. That’s savings of $225 every month.”

Take the time and do the math. If you have low water pressure, you might spend an extra $300-$400 for extra zones and heads. However, you’ll be saving $225 a month on your water bill. It’ll pay for itself after two months. Now that makes good business sense, doesn’t it?

Why shouldn’t I save money by buying cheap components?

Remember, you always get what you pay for. “There’s a huge variety of both cheap and expensive components that you can buy,” Phil said. “If you’re just looking at the bottom line, you’ll choose parts that are cheap to save money. You will also be unhappy with the performance as well as the lifespan of the parts later. Reputable sprinkler companies don’t buy their parts at Home Depot or Lowes. Instead, they invest in components made by professional companies like Hunter or Rainbird, for example. Yes, they cost more upfront. However, they’re also more durable and will last longer, too.”

So, it’s a good idea to make sure the contract specifies the name brand of the heads, timer, and components that will be installed.

What’s the right size for pipes installed underground?

Why is the size of the pipes so important? “Your contractor will install a thin-walled irrigation pipe that distributes the water underground to your sprinkler head zones,” Phil explained. “Some contractors will try to cut corners and install a three-quarter-inch PVC pipe to save money. You do not want three-quarter-inch pipes! You’ll never get the water flow that you need. Instead, you want one-inch pipes for all of your underground distribution to ensure you get sufficient water.”

Make sure that the contractor will use one-inch thin-walled pipes for your underground plumbing. Make sure this is included in your contract’s scope of work.

What are some common flexible line and irrigation head mistakes?

“Each irrigation head, whether it’s a spray head or a rotating arc head receives water through a flexible tube. The flexible tube will then tie into the main one-inch waterline pipe,” Phil explained. “The rule is only one head per flexible line. Some sprinkler guys will put several sprinkler heads on one flexible line to save money and labor. You do not want this to happen. It will cost you a lot of water pressure.”

Phil had another tip about flexible lines. “Another rule is never run more than 5 feet of flexible line to an irrigation head,” he said. “Some irrigation guys will run 20 -25 feet of flexible lines to the heads. This saves them time, labor, and money on materials. It’s easier to run a thin flexible line than a one-inch-thick rigid sprinkler pipe. You don’t want this because it will severely reduce the water pressure to your heads. They won’t be able to water your yard as designed.”

To add to your list of things to include in your contract: there should only be one head per flexible line and no flexible line runs exceeding five feet.

Should I install a rain sensor?

A rain sensor is usually not included in a basic irrigation system installation. What does the rain sensor do? Imagine a full-time gardener whose job is to water your lawn. You instruct them to never water the grass while it’s raining, or right after it has rained. You get a full-time gardener for $150 when you invest in a rain sensor. Think of all the water it will conserve! It will more than pay for itself within the first season of use.

This is a $150 upsell that is worth every penny because it will lower your monthly water bill. So be sure to ask for one.

Inspect the trench before they fill it up with dirt.

This seemed odd at first. We asked Phil to explain his reasoning on this. Phil said, “Remember, after all of the irrigation pipes are installed the trenches are backfilled with soil. What does that mean? It means that all the evidence of the work done is now buried underground.”

Make sure that the contract gives you the right to see the work installed before the trenches are covered up with dirt.

Here’s what you should look for:

Check to make sure that one-inch PVC was installed.
Make sure that there are no runs of flexible line longer than five feet.
Ensure that there is only one head installed per piece of flexible line.
Make sure that the sprinkler line is buried 6-12 inches below ground so that it doesn’t get damaged during gardening work.

What are some common service issues with sprinkler systems?

The standard warranty for a new sprinkler system is one year for parts and labor. Phil recommends getting this in writing. Implied warranties are worthless because everyone seems to, ah, forget things later on.

This is another reason to talk to the homeowner references on the phone like we discussed earlier. It’s important for you to know how the company responded to warranty issues. How long did it take for the company to show up? Were they on time? Was the problem addressed to the homeowner’s satisfaction? This also reinforces the benefits of hiring a local installation and maintenance company to install your sprinkler system. This way they can drop by on the way home from the shop.

What’s not covered by a warranty?

Phil told us that one of the biggest problems people have is broken sprinkler heads. The culprit? A renegade lawn mower. “Please understand that your warranty doesn’t cover damage by third parties,” he said. “Instead, your sprinkler contractor will be happy to repair this on a time and material basis. You might want to ask for what that hourly charge is before they do the work so that you’re not surprised later.”

That concludes Part Two of our article on how to choose a company to install your sprinkler system in Atlanta. We hope that you find this information useful in your quest for a green lawn. We also want to thank Phil Sarros of Sarros Landscaping for this interview. You can visit the company’s website here.

How to choose a contractor to pressure wash your driveway

July 13, 2018June 6, 2017 by Frank Cheshire

If you’re tired of the dirty mold, mildew, and oil stains on your driveway, then listen closely…

For this article, we interviewed Jared Harris of Blue Monkey Pressure Washing to get his tips for how to choose someone to pressure wash your driveway. We talked about:

How dangerous a pressure washer can be in the wrong hands.
Why your driveway will look AWFUL in only 3-4 months if the contractor you hire to pressure wash it skips any of these four steps.
The minimum amount of liability insurance you should require from your driveway washing company.
What important department do 99% of pressure washers not have for their business?

Jared begin pressure washing back in 1995 and selected the name “Blue Monkey” because he says it’s easy for people to remember! We asked Jared to tell us what our readers should look for in a service that will clean their concrete driveways.

He listed a few tips:

Check that they have proper insurance
Look into their customer service record
Ask them about their process – insist on an experienced technician
Research the company

1. Let’s talk about the importance of proper insurance.

Jared advises that pressure washers should have a $1 million liability policy for their business. In fact, he said it’s the standard for the pressure washing industry. He also suggested looking at a copy of the insurance policy to make sure it’s valid and up-to-date.

Why is insurance so important? Here’s a list of possibilities that could happen to your house when you hire the wrong driveway pressure washing company. A pressure washer in the wrong hands can:

Blast paint off your siding and trim.
Blow stucco off your exterior.
Blow your brick mortar joints out.
Kill the plants in your garden.
Cause streaks on your finish.
Remove the sand face from your bricks.
Remove the finish from fancy doorknobs.
Wreak havoc inside your house if there is an open window.
Hurt your pets or children.

What about accidents with ladders? “Thankfully you don’t need a ladder to power wash a driveway,” Jared said. “However, sometimes a homeowner will ask you to wash their roof while you’re there already. The good news is that 95% of the time no ladders are required to wash a roof. This limits the danger of someone falling off a ladder, or a ladder falling on a car or your house. But an inexperienced power washer may not understand this. Take the time to hire an experienced contractor.”

“The chemicals used to clean your driveway and decks are very slippery,” Jared said. “That’s why we always place caution signs when working at the customer’s home. All it takes is a visitor slipping or one of your children slipping and [they could] fall down the stairs.”

This is another reason to make sure that the service you use to pressure wash your driveway has liability insurance.

2. Ask them about their method for cleaning your driveway.

What chemical will they use? “If they are not excited about telling you, then be wary about hiring them,” Jared said. Being an educated consumer is your best defense when working with contractors.

Jared continued, “Did you know that concrete can be damaged with a high-pressure water stream? Some concrete is softer than others depending on the concrete, sand, and water combination. The problem with do-it-yourselfers that use a Home Depot pressure washer is that a 3000 psi, three gallons of water per minute machine does the exact opposite of what you want your machine to do. For example, let’s talk about mold. Inexperienced concrete washers will try to blast with a high-pressure stream of water. Mold is not killed with power but by bleach chemicals. You want to provide a high volume of water with low pressure to get your driveway clean. You want to kill the mold… not blast it.”

Another question you should consider is the temperature of the water they’ll be using. “While hot water is usually not necessary to wash your house when the temperature is 60° to 70°F, hot water does come in handy when cleaning concrete,” Jared said. “Your concrete is full of mold, mildew, and dark oil stains. Hot water allows us to use less chemicals.”

Jared explained, “Most people think of concrete as being hard. Did you know that concrete actually acts like a big sponge? Mold spores collectively darken your concrete, turning it gray, black, and green. It’s embedded in your concrete so it cannot be blasted out by water. If you try to do so, it’ll damage the surface of your driveway.”

Jared shared four key pressure wash steps to clean a concrete driveway properly:

Pre-treat the driveway with hot water, then apply chemicals and let them sit for 10 to 15 minutes.
Surface clean the driveway and check for mold spores.
Rinse with water.
Post-treat any mold spots that are giving you trouble.

Why is it important to do all the steps? “Either take your time now or your driveway will look bad again within three or four months from now,” Jared said.

That leads us to the next question.

3. What kind of customer service do they offer?

“Most power washers are a one-man show,” Jared said. He explained that many people just pressure wash for some extra cash. What are the odds you’re going to be able to get someone to talk to you when you have a problem then? What are the odds of getting them to come back to fix something that was not done correctly?

“That’s why we have a real customer service department. They address all customer problems and concerns. You get to talk to a real live person that will return your phone call. So, you should hire a driveway pressure washing company that has a customer service department.”

4. Take the time to research the company.

Look for their online reviews. Check Google, Yelp, or Angie’s List. What you want to look for is how attentive they were to detail. Did they follow through on what they said?

5. Any tips for those that might be inclined to do it themselves?

Jared warned, “Remember to use eye protection since you’re working with caustic chemicals. Wear safety boots so that the chemicals don’t leach through your sneakers and burn your feet. Never point the pressure washer at someone else. Water at high pressure speed can act like a knife and cut through your skin.”

It’ll cost you $85 to rent a pressure washer from Home Depot. Then you’ll have to buy the right chemicals. After learning the facts and dangers associated with it, many see the value in hiring a professional driveway cleaner to pressure wash their driveway. If you would like a free quote to power wash your concrete driveway in Atlanta, please feel free to contact Jared through his website.

We hope you have found these tips helpful! Look out for more articles in our pressure washing series on our blog.

Need insurance? Great! We’ve got a lot of it. Home, auto, renters, business, life – take your pick! Just fill out our quick quote form or give us a call today and we’ll help you get the coverage that you need at the best possible rate. We’re here to help!