Aerating Thatching Co

Thatching service involved two men working for approximately 1 hour, leaving a massive amount of thatch for me to clean up. Thatching job was not complete (approximately 6-9" at edge of lawn all the way around not touched by the machine that I had to thatch by hand. I also had to extensively hand-thatch the area they had done after the pile of thatch they generated was cleaned up). Aerating, fertilizing, seeding involved two men working for about 30 minutes. So about 3 hours of labor in total for $300. I then spent about 10 hours of back-breaking labor finishing the job and cleaning up the mess. The lawn had never been thatched, to my knowledge, so the amount of thatch generated was to be expected. The amount of hand thatching I had to do to treat the edges and finish the job in areas their machine had not adequately done was not expected.

We contacted Stewart on his website just before we departed for the weekend, assuming we'd get a call back early the following week. When we returned, he had phoned back a couple of times and actually been out to the house and left a card as he was in the area. We connected early that next week and he was out a couple days later and aerated both our front and back yard. He also gave us some tips of additional things we could do ourselves to improve the overall health of our lawn. I appreciated the fact he didn't try to "upsell" us on additional services as so many providers do these days. A couple months later and our lawn looks the best it has in years. We will definitely be using them again on an annual basis.

I sent Emails 3 times with no answers( the site said this was the best way to get in contact, NOT so). I called 3 times and after 10 days, he called back. He came out to give me the price to do the work. This is a classic Bait and Switch. His advertising states to do the thatching, aerating, seeding and fertilizing it would be $250 for lawns under 3000 sq ft. My lawn is around 2000 sq ft. He quotes $380 total. I asked why and he said because my lawn had some curves in it. NOWHERE on his web site does it say starting at $250. It just says the price for under 3000 sq ft. We set a time and date and they showed up to do the work. Stew's employee started thatching and appeared to do a good job until we started raking up the thatch . Yes, you have to do the raking. It will cost you more to have them do it. The yard looks like it has a border of moss around it. When I asked about it he said I would have to rake it out. How professional is that? When they did the aerating, he missed some area. I sent a Email about it and never heard back. I have done some patch work in areas where grass did not grow. I would say this was caused by the seeding and fertilizing not being done as well as it should. I would bet that I am not the only one that has been given a price higher than what is on his web site. To be fair however, 3/4 of the yard looks much better.

Stewart arrived at the appropriate time and began aerating right away. Afterwards he took the time to discuss problems he noticed with the lawn, then he gave me some general suggesstions to resolve the issues.He provided a very good service with some professional information to boot.

He never showed up and did not call. I'm not sure what happened. It's possible it was a miscommunication on my part. But for me, the fact that I was not called is a deal breaker. I'm pretty disappointed because he seemed reasonably priced and had the equipment do do the job and was available right away. Even if the mistake was mine, I expect to be called.

I emailed Stewart via his website two days ago and then gave him a call this morning to check-in. I'm on the Eastside and out of Stewart's primary service area, but he still makes his way occasionally to Kirkland. He answered the phone right away and told me I was on his list to call back today. He said he was actually on his way to the Eastside today, and he was able to stop by within a few hours. Stewart arrived around noon with one other employee who actually did the aerating. While the other employee aerated, Stewart spent 10+ minutes patiently talking me through tips on how to seed my lawn. He even looked at the grass seed that I had purchased and offered some specific thoughts on the mix I had bought. He was not the tiniest bit pushy and didn't even suggest that I use his service for seeding as well. Overall, A+ service. The lawn was completely aerated in about 30 minutes, and I got some helpful advice for free :)

Here in the NW we have a lot of trouble with moss in our yards. I hired Stuart to thatch my very large yard in an effort to get ready to put down additional top soil and overseed the grass. He, along with his helper, thoroughly thatched the front and back yard (and my neighbor's back yard as well) in approximately an hour. Even though he was very busy, he worked me into his schedule (on an evening when I could be there) to beat the rain that was due to arrive on the weekend. I felt the price was very fair price for the excellent work they did. I will definitely use his yard services again in the future as needed.

excellent- in and out - short notice - I like it

Stewart was quick to respond to my initial call and came out the next day to do the actual work. He came promptly when he said he would be here. The work was done in a timely and professional manor. Stewart gave me lots of tips and ideas on how to improve our lawn. We will definitely use this company again.

I spent a bunch of time studying Stewart's website and videos; what a resource! He is extremely knowledgeable about lawn care. My lawn was in trouble with moss and shady, soggy areas where I was having trouble getting grass to grow. He showed up on time and started by explaining in detail the work that would be done. First up was the aeration. Compared to other companies that have done aeration for us, Stewart's job was the most thorough and careful that I have ever seen. The machine generated tons of plugs. Then, he fertilized and seeded the entire lawn (<3000 sq ft). After that he offered to shoot a video, using my camera, where he would explain his analysis of the yard including lots of recommendations for improving the quality of the lawn. The video is about 10 minutes long and has lots and lots of useful info. Finally, he cleaned up and answered all of my many questions. To fix it right, Stewart recommended that the soil in my back yard needs to be replaced and some drainage issues need to be addressed. He recommended another landscape company that does this kind of work. Depending on how long we stay in the house, I may or may not pursue this. My only problem with Stewart is that we live too far apart. I am on the edge of the area he normally services; he has to drive a long way to get to my house. As such, scheduling an appointment is hit or miss. If not for that I would definitely be an ongoing maintenance customer.

I contacted Stuart just before 3pm today re:the dire need for aerating my poor lawn. I left a message with all my info. Within 15 minutes he returned my call. I asked if he came as far north as South Everett and he said he did. He told me he could come from North Seattle today and get the job done. I was surprised that he could come on such short notice but readily agreed to his proposal. He asked that, while he was on the road north, if I would fill out my contact info on his website. I did and within 35 minutes he was knockig on my door. I showed him the yard spaces that in were in need of aerating and he and his co-worker got right on the job.When done, he came to the door and I asked him some questions about the need and type of fertilizer to apply and when to thatch. He gave me the answers I needed, I gave him a check for his services, and off he went into the rainy day to be a lawn hero for someone else! I definitely would call him back for fall thatching and reseeding.

Gave an honest appraisal, did a good job. Dramatically improved my crappy lawn. Will have him back in the spring

I've used a nationally known lawn service for more than a year, paying $60 a month for them to fertilize my lawn, and it still did not look good. It was brown and patchy. So I cancelled them. In comes Stewart, who I met when he was working on a neighbor's lawn. He's a pro. He came and evaluated my lawn and immediately saw that because my house is brand-new, the lawn was put down on CLAY -- and that he didn't want or need to sell me monthly expensive services. Love that he actually took the time to look at it and point out all the problems and why they were happening. He actually recommended *another* company that would come out and put organic compost on my lawn and said not to have them come until October. Meanwhile, he aerated and re-seeded my lawn and told me to water for two weeks twice a day for about seven minutes. I followed his "prescription" and VOILA in the dead heat of summer my lawn is GREEN and amazing-looking. I did not want to write this until I saw results and I SURE DID. I love that he says he only needs to come out seasonally, not monthly. Love that he's local, and honest.

The experience was excellent! I entered what I was looking for on the Aerating Thatching Co website which was very convenient. In less than 24 hours I heard back from Stewart. He came out to look at the lawn right after we talked. Besides aerating I was thinking I might also need thatching and overseeding. Stewart convinced me that that wasn't necessary at this time and suggested that if I still wanted to do the Thatching and overseeding that I wait until September....I really appreciated his honesty. We agreed on a price for the areating and he got right to work and did an great job.

After reading reviews of different companies on Angie's List, I placed the call to make an appointment with Aertating Thatching Co. to have my yard aerated some time in the coming weeks. Stewart Armour returned my call within an hour and was out that afternoon. After the job was complete, he took the time to discuss why my yard needed fertilizer and what kind to use. The whole event (usually a big deal renting the equipment, lugging it home, etc.) was so fast and easy, I've put it on the calendar to have our yard aerated annually.

I called Stewart to aerate my lawn. He called me back within ten minutes and was at my house a 1/2 hour later aerating. He immediately showed me the problems with my lawn and told me how to fix them (moss, barespots, weeds) He and his assistant got the job done very fast and did a great job. And for less than it would have cost me to rent an aerator. I will definately call him again!

I emailed using the Angie's List "Contact this Company" web form asking for an estimate for lawn aeration and dethatching. About a week later I received a call from the owner and we setup an appointment for the next day. I was told that this was the busy time of year and he was starting in north Seattle and working his way south that day, but he would stop by my house sometime in the late afternoon to do an estimate. I stayed home all day and he was a no show. No call, no email, nothing - just didn't show up for the appointment. I wasted an entire Saturday afternoon and evening just waiting. Very disappointed as he was highly rated on Angie's List.

Great experience! I had the aeration, overseeing, and fertilization service done along with the organic fertilizer. I felt that Stewart was professional and very punctual. I would highly recommend his service and I will call on him in the future.

Excellent. Have been going to Stewart for years - he is the master.

They were pretty good. I spent $40 on that service. They did a good job. They were professional and quick to come out.

After we called for an estimate, Stewart Armour ( Aerating Thatching Co.) arrived to do an estimate. My wife explained that we wanted an aerating and thatching job done on our lawn. We agreed to the estimate and he quickly went to work on our lawn. He completed both the aerating and thatching jobs in a few hours. He was very professional and thorough in his work. He also gave my wife advice on what to do with the lawn this summer and this coming fall. We were very impressed with Stewart and would clearly hire him back in the future when needed.

We called to find out when the job could be done and how much it would cost. We set the appointment and were pleased that the scheduling was so flexible. When we came home from work, the lawn had been thatched and aerated and we had the big job of cleaning up all the thatch.

I left a message on the company website the beginning of the week. Stewart called the next day and set up a time to come view the lawn and give me an estimate two days later. He showed up about 5:00pm, inspected the lawn and provided an estimate. I accepted, and his assistant pulled out the power rake and went over the whole front lawn in about 45 minutes. I spent the next two days raking the lawn to remove the thatch before they returned to aerate the lawn and fertilize & overseed. It only took about three weeks for the new seed to sprout and start to fill in the bare patches. The rain during that time helped keep my lawn watering to a minimum.

Stewart responded immediately to my initial email and remained prompt and punctual with all followup. My yard is very old and in need of a lot of help (bare spots, dry, ruts, etc). His one service and using some of his suggestions, have improved its condition. He also told me of services that weren't in my best interest - I appreciated his honesty. I'm a little late submitting this report but wanted to give time to see any noticeable difference. I'm pleased to report that my lawn is in much better shape. In fact, I hope to have him back this year in hopes of improving it more. Thank you Stewart!

After a couple of calls Stewart called me back when he was in the neighborhood. I thought he was just going to look but he wanted to start right then. Normally I would have balked at this but since he had good references on Angies list I went with it. He thatched the lawn and left telling me to give him a call for the aeration and overseeding when it was raked. Once his employee started thatching I was alarmed as it looked like he was really tearing up my lawn but Stewart assured me thats just how it looks, and everything would be fine. After we raked it I was really upset because then you could clearly see that not only was the lawn thatched but it had large bare spots and actual ruts cut into the ground. I called him to come back mostly to see if he felt all would still be fine, he aerated and overseeded and said it would just take awhile to grow in but all was well. Very little new grass came in and there was no extra effort paid to any of the large bare spots. After a month or so we could see it would never be the same. My husband mowed it once and said it was worse than mowing a pasture it was so full of ruts. I wanted to try and fix it but he didn't think we could except to till it under and start over. We ended up putting over a cubic yard of dirt back into the ruts and low spots created by Stewart, it was slow, on your hands and knees work, trying to get the lawn smooth again. After we reseeded and composted, the whole process took us 2 weekends just trying to correct the problems created by Stewart. We had to purchase seed and compost spending about 150.00 and will have to buy new topsoil to replace the dirt we used to fill in the ruts. Our lawn is still worse than it was before Stewart came but much better after our attempts to fix it. This experience was a nightmare, I wouldn't recommend him to anybody.