What ever you end up doing, DO NOT cash the check.

“environmentalist in June, and although air was fine, he recommended the cleaning -- and by a specific company. ”

First, was the environmentalist connected to the company? Or independant?

Duct cleaning scams are rampant.

https://www.angi.com/articles/3-air-duct-cleaning-scams-watch-out.htm

Ugh - that's terrible, chisue!

Maddielee makes a good point, so does Kris

Have you notified the person who referred this company to you?

I don't know I'd return the check, but I wouldn't have my bank process it, I'd hold on to it. Have you had any indication what steps Amex might take?

Honestly, I'm so sorry for your experience. That sounds like a job for our ServePro where they will go in and clean up after smokey fire or flood damage! A friend had them in after an electrical fire and they wiped every page of every book in her book cabinet - it almost sounds like you needed that.

How disappointing.

For that much disruption and inconvenience, while I am not ever litigation inclined, I'd be tempted to hand it to my attorney if necessary. Small community though and I'm sure his fees are not as high as a more populated area. He gave me phone advice a couple of times when settling my mothers estate myself and never billed me. I'm not usually one to stand on principal over convenient easy ending - this time I'd be tempted.

Thanks for the kind words.

I know better than to cash the check, thereby indicating we've 'settled'.

I'd guess that the environmentalist gets a kickback. I emailed him when the owner was so difficult and again after receiving the check. He replied the first time, saying he had talked to the owner. He relayed that one of the crew was 'new' and had 'forgotten' to vacuum 'his portion of the ducts'. (Do I care? No.)

The owner acts like WE are the problem.) The ONLY reason I hired this duct cleaning company -- at this inflated rate -- was because of the recommendation. The company owner is a very excitable man with lots of bluster.

maddielee -- Thanks for the link. I checked. This company is a member of the organization. Now I wonder if I should take that tack -- complain to them?

I have just now emailed a lawyer who helped us with a real estate problem to see what he thinks.

It's just *wearing* to have this drag on.

In addition, the eight large area rugs I'd sent out to be washed/blocked before the duct work have yet to be returned. At least they weren't here to get a dust bath.

What a pain in the behind. I'm sorry you're having to deal with that. I'm still waiting on the contractor who did the shoddy work in my bathroom and bedroom to sue me for non payment. They told me they would buy all the materials and then I would just pay them. But then they changed their minds and made me buy 99% of the materials and still tried to charge me nearly $15,000. They tried to threaten me with a lein against my house and still haven't done that either. My lawyer is dealing with another client having issues with the same company and they are leaving them hanging too. In the meantime, nearly $2000 is in an account with my lawyer, to pay them if we have to go to court. Nearly 9 months now.

Do not cash or return the check. Take him to Small Claims Court.

What a pain in the behind! I would have been furious to see that huge mess after they left. No wonder they got the heck out of there so quickly. I have learned to never leave workers on their own when it’s something like this. You have to keep watch periodically or else it seems as if mistakes can and will be made.

Good luck getting compensated for the clean-up and a refund for some of the ‘work’. I hope you made lots of photos documenting the mess.

Two truly objective HVAC contractors I've spoken to, neither of which are the kind that wear white shoes, advised that duct cleaning is not necessary.

Unfortunately, that's a perspective too late for you to consider. A second one, though, is that true advisers of any kind, whether in a trade or a professional, never "recommend" one provider for a need they don't handle. Three is normal, let the customer make their own choice. The guy that steered you to this one rogue probably got a kickback for the referral.

One last positive outcome is that you learned that your construction team was subpar. I know you've mentioned that portions of your house needed supplemental heating systems because the originally installed system wasn't working as expected. It was the same goof-offs that did a poor job of protecting the ducts from construction debris.

In your shoes, I'd maybe let the matter drop. Or, take the Bozo to small claims court and share your experiences on local NextDoor site.

Sorry for your problems, I hope you get them resolved to your satisfaction.

i almost got caught up in what probably would have ended up much like what you are facing! hired a "new" duct cleaning company that was just starting up and offering a special rate of $300. it sounded too good to be true and after trying to contact the guy repeatedly via phone, i finally sent him an email to cancel the appointment. my spidie senses were just telling me this was NOT going to end well. he finally called and begged me to give him a chance and that he would keep the appointment we had scheduled. i told him if he showed up here, i would be calling the police. that was the last i heard.

i also recently had a new deck put on the front of my place. i checked the contractors out, they had excellent reviews (yeah, i know, i know) and i even drove to some of their previous jobs to look at their work. things seemed on the up and up so i hired them. long story, short...they used UNTREATED wood, simply nailed boards together instead of using wood screws, the floor is uneven, the ramp is a disaster and the top rail has buckled in a few places. they have simply vanished into thin air. neither the BBB nor my state's attorney general's office can find them. $8000 right down the tubes. 😡

sorry you are having to go through this and i hope you get the results you want!!

@chisue - Not much to add, but I do hope you stick with it to get paid for your troubles. I would definitely notify the trade group, as questionable as the ”trade” may be.

@Ninapearl - Are you SURE that’s not treated? Looks like southen yellow pine to me, which at least here I think would be hard to find untreated. My parent’s deck is PT and I questioned using nails but the company assured them the ring shank nails would hold. Thus far they have, and t’s been a decade now I’m guessing? Obviously you have at least one board needing replacing!

Apparently, it's easy enough to fake being a legit business with bogus photos and reviews these days.

Did you sign anything before the work was done? We lucked out with a shoddy roofer some years back who sent some kid on a bike to do repairs, and then proceeded to make a big mess. They never pulled a permit and we never signed anything, so we never had to pay them a cent.

Duct cleaning is a scam every time assuming people use filters as they should. $40 per filter is highway robbery. If I were that company I wouldn't pay for them either.

Arcy, the replacement filters in my room sized air cleaners are $40 each. We have no duct work in this house. The heat is radiant in the ceilings.

In my former house, the whole house air cleaner (heat pump) had metal washable filters and I loved it - rarely had to dust. The air cleaner was Honeywell, the filters were run through the dishwasher! I'd used the same filters 25 years when we sold the house.

@foodonastump i've had several contractor friends, including my brothers-in-law, look at this and they've all said the only treated wood was the wood used for the deck floor. everything else is untreated. these guys were dishonest with me from the very beginning. they gave me an estimate on company letterhead as well as a receipt for materials on the same letterhead. however, they failed to tell me that BEFORE they started the work on my deck, they had been FIRED from that company. when i contacted the owner, he told me i was one of many who had these complaints. had i known they no longer worked for him, i never would have hired them.

in preparation for filing a complaint with both the BBB and the illinois attorney general's office, i tried to locate them (as had the previous employer to pursue embezzlement charges against them) but they had given me fictitious addresses and phone numbers. plain and simple, i was reamed to the tune of $8K and they have fallen off the face of the earth. neither the BBB nor the AG's office was able to locate them. even the sheriff can't find them to have them served.

So sorry Nina. Hope you get satisfaction.

meh, i've pretty much concluded that i'm simply out that money. i have, however, kept a detailed timeline from beginning to end as well as taking lots of photos of their subpar work. if the owner ever does succeed in having criminal charges filed and finding these charlatans, i am on the list of witnesses.

Wow thats awful Nina.

Ninapearl -- So sorry you got taken like that. $8K! Makes my problem seem minor.

I haven't heard back from the lawyer yet.

arcy -- The Aprilaire filters are 11 MERV and at least six inches thick by a couple of feet across. We've always bought our own for the HVAC tech to install. I've moved up our fall system checkup to get these replaced ASAP. The tech always asks if we really want him to change the filters annually because they are never very dirty. Right now they're filthy from the silt! (I think I'll hang on to 'the evidence'.)

Chisue, if you haven't done so, go ahead and post your experience with them - include your photos! - on Yelp and whatever other community review platforms you have in your area. It may help bring the owner to the table.

I have no experience, so I have no words of wisdom, but I send you my best and kindest words of healing

nina...I agree...untreated! I had a neighbor bragging she got a multi-level redwood deck installed for $5k. I said impossible! She brought me over and I said this is treated pine...stamped "red" on the decking and non-treated pine on the railing. About $1000 in materials. She was in disbelief...but took my advice and opaque stained the railings with the hopes it lasts 5 years.

So sorry this happened to you.

i'll be having this deck sealed before winter sets in. oh and that was another one of their "selling points"...they offer 2 sealings at no cost to the homeowner the first year after the deck is built. 🙄

in researching this after originally seeing this thread, it looks like scam "duct cleaning services" are rampant, especially on facebook. i'm glad i listed to my spidie senses!