Chimney Sweep of Castle Rock

This is a PSA for anyone looking to do business with this group. By way of introduction, I am business owner in Castle Rock and we have service guys who take care of our customers. If any of our service team told a client that something needs repair when it does not--they would be eliminated! Here's my story: called this group for a $99.00 inspection of my wood burning fireplace. We rarely use it. Our new renovation makes it more realistic that we will be using it so I wanted to make sure it was in good working order. The service guy shows up and within 5 minutes tells me that the chimney needs to be cleaned. "VERY DIRTY, it MUST be cleaned properly." I asked him directly, "Well, we rarely use it [maybe a dozen times in 5 years] how dirty can it really be?" Response: "Very, very dirty; heavy creosote, ash etc. It needs a deep cleaning." Well, I'm guessing most of you are like me and want to avoid a chimney fire so I said, go ahead. $99.00 good to go. Fast forward, 20 minutes and he hands me a bill for...wait for it...$699.00 WHOPPING dollars. The worst part for him: I was watching very carefully just how much soot and creosote came down the chimney during his 20 minute "deep clean." NOTHING came down. Some dust. No chunks of creosote. In total: less than a 1/4 cup of dust sat in my fireplace when he was done. He vacuumed it up very quickly and then began telling me, once again, how dirty the chimney was and badly it needed the cleaning. Just like the Grinch Who Stole Christmas, a wicked grin sprung upon his face as he deftly shifts the discussion and tries to tell me that our chimney needs caulking around the flashing. I formerly was in the trades[I put myself through college swinging a hammer] and I perform my own visual inspections of my roof and flashings etc. I had just done this two weeks ago. Let me tell you based on the construction of the chimney, roof and the flashing there is NO F'ing way I needed any repair work done up there. (Later, I did jump back up there to confirm this was true). At this point I am curious as to how far this rip-off scheme was going to go, so I asked, "Really? It needs to be re-flashed and caulked, eh? Just how much for you to do that?" Again...wait for it...another $699.00!!! Uh, $2.99 tube of caulk and 10 minutes of time and you are charging THAT MUCH?? Wow. The next day I tried to reach the owner to discuss this issue. He would not take my call and would only communicate through email. Hiding behind the email curtain, eh?? Come out of hiding and talk to your customers like a man! Wimp. How many unsuspecting or unknowledgeable victims do these parasites prey upon on any given day? Worse than some of the asphalt guys that drift into town every spring. This type of charlatanism should be met with pitch forks and torches. Run 'em out of town, I say! Do not use them or let them near your home! Dishonest, deceitful, and predatory. [now I'm off to report them to the BBB, and chamber of commerce]