| Hiring a lawn contractor |
By: Rebecca Herrera
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By Rebecca Herrera, Director of Operations, Better Business Bureau of Southern Colorado
As a homeowner, you take pride in how your lawn looks during the warmer months. Do you have the time to perform lawn maintenance or will you hire a contractor?
How can consumers find a reliable contractor?
A useful tool in searching for lawn contractors is to contact the Better Business Bureau of Southern Colorado and check the company’s reliability report. The report will state how long a company has been in business, if there are any complaints, and how the company handled those complaints. Consumers should obtain several proposals from lawn maintenance companies. Referrals from people you know can also be helpful.
If a company is going door-to-door soliciting business, that is usually a “red flag.” Use a reputable company with history in the community. Avoid making checks payable to individuals. Be wary if the company requests consumers leave money in the door or under the doormat for lawn service. Never pay in full for a service before seeing the final results. If a representative of the company fails to show up at the scheduled date and time, contact the company. Consumers who feel they are being put off may want to consider using another company’s service.
Which lawn services are needed?
A popular lawn service is aeration. If lawn soil is compacted, it may not be receiving adequate air to thrive. Lawn aeration solves this problem by pulling up plugs of soil and allowing water and nutrients to reach grass roots.
What about businesses that offer lawn treatment services to kill weeds and pests? Consumers must weigh the options. Such treatments are usually chemically based. Potential problems could include run-off into water supplies, loss of landscaping such as shrubbery and flowers, and neighborhood objection to the use of chemical treatments. Homeowners may have to keep children and pets inside for 24 to 72 hours while the chemical dissipates. On the other hand, the convenience of the service, provided the results are a healthy weed-free lawn, may be worth the price of lawn treatment.
Being an educated consumer may lead to the grass being greener on your side of the fence.
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