Cannot speak to their service, but they are very poor at communicating and keeping a schedule. They cancelled us 3 times at the last minute with reasons that they had an accident or an emergency. Maybe it's for the best. read more

I was a little skeptical and reluctant after reading other reviews, and I concede that Michael's personality was a bit abrasive and different from some contractors. However, I had already had two other estimates and knew what work was needed on a significant size job, so I knew he wasn't trying to sell me on more work than required. His pricing was very competitive and significantly less than at least one of the estimates. His crew, including Franklin, his lead worker, as well as a brick mason and helpers to build the scaffolding, arrived on time, were very respectful and took every step to keep the work area clean. I was very satisfied with the work, and his office was responsive and provided me with all requested documentation, including MHIC license, proof of insurance, completion photos, and a Certification that all repairs were completed and our warranted. I would hire his company again and recommend his work to others. David P. read more

Don't waste you time with a free inspection. The owner was rude and sexist to my wife and spent all of 10 seconds looking at our 3 chimneys. He barely looked inside and didn't go on the roof. Somehow in his thorough inspecting we need 5500 or repairs. He called me while at work to tell me.... Even though my wife conducted the appointment and was present to whole time. He wouldn't talk to her! How are these people still out there read more

This company was great to work with. We had them clean our chimney. The quality of work was good- the cleaner, Leon, was very efficient and thorough. He was polite and cleaned up the fireplace area when he was finished. I highly recommend them to clean your chimney. Pat read more

We had our brick porch repointed and our flue and dryer vent cleaned. All of the work was excellent. We would definitely hire them again.

Requested a sweep. Had to do an inspection first so I scheduled it. They called the night before and changed the time. Not a problem. However they did not show the next day and I never received a call. read more

I had an appointment with A Step In Time Maryland for a free inspection. The owner showed up waving a large flashlight which was used in an intimidating manner and proceeded to shine it through my picture window. I opened the door and he yelled "Sit down! I have bad news for you. To the best of my knowledge, he did not go up on my roof nor did I see ladders on his truck. How do you do a chimney inspection without ladders? Again, he was yelling, telling me that I DID NOT have a liner in my chimney and it was unsafe for me to use my wood stove insert. I had the receipt for my liner purchase as well as the Warranty on the liner. He told me the company that I had install the liner was no longer in business. This was NOT a true statement. He was rude, obnoxious and unprofessional as well as dishonest. I had the original company come out and inspect my chimney. I asked them to take pictures of the liner which clearly show an intact liner with no needed repairs! He also said I needed my dryer vent cleaned which he DID NOT inspect. He thought my laundry room was in the basement when in fact it is on the main level of my home and I had cleaned it the week before. Needless to say, I DID NOT hire them to clean my chimney and wood stove. Would I use A Step In Time Maryland again? NO WAY!!! read more

I saw a coupon and made an appointment to have the chimney swept. The company owner called me the day of the appointment from outside of my house, referred to me as sweetheart, said he wouldn't do the service, and rudely told me he came out several years ago and quoted $4,500 for a repair and without the repair, he wouldn't sweep. I am the homeowner. I have no recollection of talking with this company and I have no idea if I was even the one living here at the time he claimed to have given someone a quote, but regardless I hung up feeling like I was the idiot. I knew I needed to find someone else. The next company I called was professional, swept the chimney, and quoted me $500 for a simple repair. They took pictures and emailed me the report along with a quote. I won't be calling Step in Time again. read more

Dude shows up and parks in my only spot in my driveways as I am returning from a long night at the hospital. (Late covid times) Never had contractors park in the driveway, especially for a suspect "look over"/"inspection". I just want to park in my driveway. I parked on the street... Anyways this dude hops out of his truck and walks around the property with a large spotlight. Then, he rings your door bell and knocks on the door with said spotlight. When greeted he walks you around the house in a very paranoid fashion. I did not know if this guy was on drugs or if it was his best paranoid acting to get you to agree on doing more work. I WISH I COULD UPLOAD THE SECURITY CAMERAS!!!! This dude would go viral! Anyways, Lots of what he asked about was cosmetic and he didn't know what he was talking about. I nodded since I had other ppl working on it. Deep down, I felt bad for all the naive ppl he must have up-charged and scammed. Long story short, After him totally trashing the exterior of my house, that was just bought and was inspected twice a year ago. He knew I wasn't playing along with him. Then he asks, "so what do you want done?".... I told him chimney sweep for 99$, as his coupon and ad in the clipper showed. He then walked into my house with no booties on and looked at my chimney for less than 30 seconds and said, call my number again and we will set you up. Make sure you have your coupon! The house walk over took 10 minutes and the whole interaction about the chimney sweep. Less then a minute. My wife calls to schedule the appointment and was greeted by the companies secretary. Who said he would not sweep our chimney until we got other work done. My wife was like no.... He agreed you have to be mistaken. **this is another part of the scam** They later agreed and schedule a date. We waited in between our vacations. Get a call the night before and they had to cancel!!! Mind you this process has taken a month. In the end we said, That dude was sketchy AF. His tactics were also sketchy. His office was sketchy. It's The end of July and we are looking for a good chimney sweep company. Please DM me! Stay away from step in time. Just don't waste your time! read more

Please do yourself a favor and DO NOT do business with A Step in Time. TL;DR My husband and I were originally pleased that after scheduling the initial chimney inspection we received a confirmation call the day prior. The owner of the company, Mike Shipe, showed up on time but our positive experience ends there. When I opened the door, Mike was standing several feet away (not uncommon in a post-COVID world) and was holding a large flashlight. He turned the flashlight on and as I was saying that I was going downstairs to bring my husband up for the inspection he came charging in, walked immediately to the fireplace, shined his light up (without even opening the doors) and then said he needed to see the chimney from the outside of the house. This is where things got truly bizarre. In an almost manic or intoxicated manner, Mike continuously talked at us throughout the "inspection". I can't even recall everything that was said, as some things were almost nonsensical. Upon seeing our cats he began pitching his spay and neuter clinic in Aruba (you read that correctly). When my husband and I sort of laughed, not really knowing how to respond and thinking he surely must be joking, he almost seemed offended. He continued to pitch the spay and neuter clinic throughout his short visit to our home, even saying that they'd send us an animal from Aruba for free once it was fixed. It was bizarre. On his way out, Mike mentioned that we might need our dryer vents cleaned. We took him to the basement and he confirmed that yes, we would need them cleaned. We naively agreed and he told us to call the office on Monday after 8 to set up the chimney sweep & vent cleaning. We were scheduled for 10/23 between 8 am and 12 pm. My husband called Mike around 10:30 to confirm that they were still coming. Mike was short with him and said "thanks for the call" and hung up without actually confirming anything. A couple hours later my husband called again. Mike said they were running behind, that they had 13 chimneys to sweep and they'd be there as soon as they could. Several hours later (now past our window) my husband called a third time. Mike picked up, did not say anything, and theN hung up. After this experience I decided to write an email to Mike to express my displeasure. I've copied it below. The attached screenshots are his responses, which were written entirely in the subject line of the email, not the body. My email: "Hello, Unfortunately I am writing with great displeasure at my experience with A Step in Time. We were told your company would be at our house between 8 and 12 on Sunday, 10/23. After waiting through the 4 hour window we were disappointed but understanding when we called and were told that things were running behind and we would be waiting longer than expected. Upon waiting several hours after 12 pm my husband called again and was hung up on. While I'd like to go to social media with this experience I wanted to offer your company the courtesy of an opportunity to explain why we were not given a phone call or any explanation whatsoever as to why no one showed up to our house to sweep our chimney. We found this unprofessional and disrespectful of our time. We are not interested in doing business with your company again, but do hope you take this feedback to make a more pleasant experience for future customers." To top things off, my husband called a new company and mentioned that we were not happy with our experience with Mike. The owner of the new company validated us, stating that Mike is a "creep". Do not book with A Step in Time! read more

A Step In Time Maryland - Chimney Sweeps Near Me - Bowie, Maryland

See all

Again they failed to show or call for our scheduled appointment. I would never recommend or use their services again. A very poorly run business. read more

Scheduled a appointment two weeks ago, never showed up, they had me for a totally different date and time. I specifically wrote down the date and time and specifically requested a Friday because I knew I would be working from home. If you choose to use, call everyday to confirm date and time. Would not recommend them at all. read more

We were scheduled to have them work on our fireplace. They canceled twice and didn't show up on the rescheduled day (without a call to let us know). They did not respond to our calls. We rearranged our schedule to accommodate this 3rd attempt at service. Their business model is horrendous with no respect for their customer. We do not recommend this company. read more

We scheduled with Michael over a month ago and he was a no show for our Saturday appointment. We called him and he answered the phone to assure us that we were on the books and that Kathy would be in contact with us. Kathy never called and Michael ignored all phone calls for the remainder of the days. Michaels business card is also very shady with five different contact numbers. Do not recommend. read more

Words cannot describe how happy and satisfied I am with the completed work and the customer service I received from A Step in Time. Starting with the owner Mike who was very thorough in describing the work that needed to be done and how the work would be done, not once did he hesitate answering my questions via in person or when I called with additional questions. Then I met the worker and I was not disappointed . They w ere respectful , thorough, and very professional. I can go on all day with facts to support how satisfied and thrilled I am with this company. Through and through it is a professional business. I cannot wait to get the next project underway. They are 100% hands down a stand up company! read more

My very old brick home was being torn to shreds by bees, but after finding A Step In Time, the owner Mike did a thorough site visit.  His team of professionals Miguel and his crew repaired, restored, and replaced brick and mortar from top to bottom of my old home. Very satisfied with the work done and the price was nothing to complain about either. Winning. Will be hiring again for other brick projects. Thank you! David read more

This company did some chimney work for my sister -in-law in September. Mike came out , gave her an estimate and he said pay when the work is done. Although the technician was on time, worked hard to get the job done, was professional, respectful and almost finished the owner Mike, calls and starts yelling and cussing at my sister in law ( who had recently lost her husband) about paying him. She kept telling him the agreement was she would pay when the job was Finished, but that was Not Good enough for him and he continued to yell and cuss. She recorded to entire Conversation and told him she was Doing so. I don't know if he is like this with everyone or just with women he thinks he can bully. Do not use this Company. Be start read more

I wish I would have read the reviews before booking this company. Is there a way to give zero stars?? I can't even tell you the name of the guy that came out for our inspection because he never introduced himself. I'm assuming it was the owner - short, bald and the most condescending attitude you'll ever encounter. We scheduled an inspection for our chimney as we just moved in and wanted to get a clean bill of health before starting our first fire. As soon as I open the door he had a look of annoyance on his face. Didn't even say hello when I said hi. Comes in and rattles off two questions "Do you have any other fireplaces in the home?" and "What type of heat do you have?" I answer both questions. He pulls the screen off the fireplace, looks up and immediately lists 3 items that need to be fixed. With no explanation. Puts the screen back up and says show me the furnace. I take him downstairs where he goes to look at our pellet stove. I said the furnace was the other direction and he says "I know." Well ok...then why did you ask if you're so smart? And I didn't ask you to look at the pellet stove so let's go to the furnace. But instead he pointed out the line from the pellet stove is a little loose. Again, not something I was asking him to look at. We get to the furnace and we have a boiler in the same room that was disconnected and capped off. He immediately wanted to know about it and I said we don't use it. He then starts picking apart the pipes in there saying their wrong and that this is why we should have called him before buying our home. His attitude was making my skin crawl so I said "I think it's time for you to leave." He says "Fine. I can't help it you can't handle me pointing out what the home inspector missed." I said "It's not that. It's the way you're talking to me. It's your attitude. You're condescending. And this is a terrible customer experience." He started trying to explain why buying a house without CALLING HIM FIRST is wrong and I cut him off and said "Please just leave." He stormed out the front door and said "Don't call the company again." Don't worry pal - I'll never be calling again and I will surely tell everyone I know to avoid A Step In Time like the plague! read more

I am kind of baffled by the negative reviews. Our experience has been great. We called the company because neighbors recently used them to recap and repoint their chimney and said their experience with them was good. We needed the same kind of work on an all masonry fireplace. Mike (the owner) came out and, yes, he's a mile a minute of energy and, yes, he will proudly tell you about his dog rescue in Aruba. But his knowledge was spot on. As far as the people that complain about his "flashlight" and quick looks... heck, even I knew "about" what was needed. So I didn't think a person of his experience needed an inordinate amount of time to be thorough. And for the inspection and explanation phase, he used a pair of binoculars and a laser pointer to show me things that I wasn't aware of. I went into this knowing I wanted it fixed right... Is he the cheapest? I don't know. But his prices aren't outrageous. The star of the show, though, was Miguel and his crew. I'm not sure how many crews Mike runs, but Miguel is great. He's young, but very skilled. And the crew seemed experienced. They showed up on the days they said they'd be here, worked very hard all day, and cleaned up the mess of bricks that came from demolition and rebuilding the top portion of the chimney when the job was done. Mike was also here that first morning and showed Miguel a few other things he'd notices with our front walk and stoop/stairs and asked if Miguel could fix them since the mortar was already going to be onsite. This was unexpected. I'd not asked for it and, frankly, neither Mike nor Miguel had to do this. I'm very grateful it was done. They didn't have the stainless steel cover for the chimney the day the project was done, but they installed a black one. Miguel ensured me he'd ordered the stainless one and would be back to install it when it arrived. True to his word, I got a call about a week later that it was in and he was sending a couple of guys over to do it. They were done in no time and I didn't have to make any additional phone calls to ask about the status... a rarity, it seems, in home repairs today. In summary: - Showed up for the estimate on time. I understood what to expect and Mike required no deposit. Just a written estimate and a handshake kind of deal. - Crew showed up on time and used quality materials. Miguel even explained the kind of brick being used and made sure the color was as close a match as possible. - Crew put up and took down scaffolding without damage to house. They went around the yard and picked up all the bits of brick from demo. - Crew power-washed everything and applied a brick sealant the next day after it dried out. - Entire outside chimney was re-pointed. - They raised part of my sidewalk that had a "settled" and filled in some cracks on the sidewalk and base of my stoop... all at NO EXTRA CHARGE. - Showed back up without having to be called to replace the incorrect chimney guard with the correct one. - Heck, they even used their own garden hose when they power-washed the chimney and sidewalk and when mixing the mortar (which please the wife tremendously!). Nope, I will accept Mike's high energy that a couple of people complained about any day of the week. I completely disagree that he came across as arrogant. That wasn't my experience at all... he just bounced in subjects and did tell us about the animal rescue a couple of times, but I made sure to ask questions for things I wanted clarified about the chimney repair and he answered every single one. In return, I got good and timely work at a fair price. And Miguel... well, he's just awesome. Hard worker and 100% professional. I will take that combination over unreliable contractors and shoddy or overpriced work any day! read more

Scheduled an appointment for an inspection/cleaning and the day of the appt I called mid-morning to see if they were still coming due to sprinkles and a storm heading north. Was told but the company yes, they will out between 1 and 3 today. I look at the clock and it's 4-so I called back and they want to reschedule. Ah, it's not even sprinkling here for the past few hours. I do r recommend a company that is not good for their word. No mention they wouldn't come if it was damp outside. Will call a more responsible company. Beware! read more

I attempted to schedule services, on the first visit I was told someone knocked on my door and left. second attempt involves the person showing up an hour late, sitting in my driveway yelling at someone on the phone, then just left. Awful business values and I will not ever contact them again! read more

We had a stone wall damaged by a delivery company and contacted Mike to repair the wall. His crew did a fantastic job repairing the wall. It actually looks better than when it was first built 25 years ago. We highly recommend A Step in Time Maryland. Profession workmanship. The crew cleaned the job site of all debris before then left. read more

Very Rude and Unprofessional! I needed an inspection/quote for my chimney. When I go the call to set up a time and date Mike was very rude and short with me. I still went ahead and set up a meeting with him because I heard he did good work. We had an inspection set up for 7-7:30 am. I never received an in-route call. When I called at 7:30 he said he was 25 minutes out. At 8:15 he was still not at my house. I called again, they claimed no one was home and so he went to his next appointment. I was home and awake since 7. He never showed up and they never contacted or apologized for the no-show. read more

Michael showed up on time and reviewed our need for miscellaneous stone and concrete work all around our house. During his visit he made several recommendations that I had not considered but clearly were needed. He gave me an estimate on the spot and the next day set a date for the work. The five-person crew arrived on time and began the work. Both the stone and concrete work were carried in a highly competent and professional. They worked hard all day and into the late evening hours in order to complete all the tasks. We were thoroughly happy with the end product in all areas accomplished. I would highly recommend this company. read more

More than just chimneys. A Step in Time is a small business and they are capable of much more than chimney maintenance. I called them to clean out my laundry drier vent because a bird found its way inside. For a reasonable price and flexible scheduling, they removed the nest and put a protector in my vent. Yes, you will learn about all their other services if you make an appointment for a free inspection. They had no problem coming to Harford County, MD early in the morning or late in the afternoon. I didn't feel pressured to make a decision. My neighbors seemed impressed by their work. read more

Do not hire this company. I would give them 0 stars if possible. The owner called me about 45 minutes prior to my scheduled appointment. I initially missed the call but called back 6 minutes later and was sent to voicemail. He instead texted me saying that since he could not get ahold of me, I was going to have to reschedule. I responded saying that he did indeed get ahold of me, we are communicating right now, and the appointment still isn't for another 45 minutes. He then proceeds to call me and starts screaming at me about how he tried to call me the night before (which I do not have any missed calls or indication that this is true) and that since I didn't answer his call this morning (I returned his call 6 minutes later) that somehow it is my fault that he is an hour and 45 minutes from my home. I told him I would not tolerate being screamed at and that I no longer wish to carry out the scheduled service. After hanging up, he texts me from his work phone saying "You are a rude little twit" following by an addition text. This guy is an idiot. What a terrible way to run a company and speak to customers. I have screenshots of the interaction and am happy to share them with others to ensure no one else hires or has to endure this fragile man's outburst. I typically do jump to leaving public negative reviews, but truly would not feel comfortable having this person in my home. read more

Great experience. From the initial estimate by Mike to Dave's visit to measure and today's install of the chase cover, this has been a great experience. Very thorough and professional. Had dryer vent cleared and chimney swept as well as the cover repair. And, learned later Mike had scanned for my senior discount. Chase cover has lifetime warranty too. Thanks to all members of the staff. read more

Mike came out today and did a detailed inspection of our chimney and explained in detail all of the work that was required and why. He was very informative and gave us a very competitive quote for the work. Would recommend! read more

Don't fall for the Valpak coupon. This guy often didn't show up, barely returned calls, did shoddy work, and when he said he was done, he hadn't done the ONE thing I called him about initially. Then the things he did do failed. I moved because of a fire, and now I'm afraid to use my fireplace in my new place. read more

The people that work at this company are extremely unprofessional. They missed 3 appointments to install a Chase Cover, incorrectly measured and ordered wrong parts. When we tried to get answers from them about why we cant get the part installed, they became very rude. They swore at us, and threatened to come over to my house and fight me. Please beware! this is a company that you do not want to do business with!! DO NOT BUY ANYTHING FROM THEM!!! read more

A Step in Time? More like a step in HELL! Do not bother with them. We had an appointment for a chimney cleaning, but after 2 no-shows (one with a really wild excuse), and finally showing up almost an hour past the appointment window the third time today, he took a quick look at my fireplace and pointed out a few things, then started to leave. I asked if he was going to clean the fireplace and he said that the appointment was for an inspection. I said that I made a cleaning appointment not an inspection, so he calls his receptionist on speaker phone to "prove" that I made an inspection appointment... supposedly they always say they do an inspection before a cleaning, but that was definitely not the case. I told him that this was the third time I'd waited around for him and now he wasn't going to do what I had made the appointment for? He started yelling at me so told him to get out and locked the door behind him. This man is the most unprofessional person I've ever dealt with. I only wish I had read the other reviews before wasting my time with them. read more

Waste of my time. Mike showed up on time, walked to the fireplace, ask how old the house was and said the the chimney cap needed to be replaced. I should find some home improvement company to replace it. The free inspection is a sales opportunity - I needed the chimney swept, but Mike wasn't interested apparently. read more

Wish I had read the other 1 star Yelp reviews before I called them. Inspection was initially cancelled and when he did come was a manic sales job. Then they cancelled the $99 cleaning the day before. Don't need to work with a company like that. read more

Called for a inspection and sweep if needed. Didn't call before hand as requested. Only person who slowed up was a salesman didn't even have a ladder. I wasn't home but he gave me a list of what needed to be done thousands of dollars of work. They said they would come back for the sweep but wasn't worth it even if it was free. Gave two stars instead of one because he seem like a nice guy but was full of shit, never got any pictures read more

No call cancelation. Wish I had read the other reviews first before counting on them for a chimney cleaning. Maybe it's a scam, maybe it's just bad business, but stay away either way. read more

Would not recommend this company. Receptionist is rude when answering calls and they don't stick to scheduled times. Complete waste of time for my family read more

We had a great experience with A Step In Time. We'd been unable to use our chimney since we moved in 3 years ago due to the high quotes we were quoted from multiple companies to repair our chimney. I'm so glad we now have a safe, functioning chimney and that we found a company who could fix it for an affordable price! The owner, Mike, did our inspection. He was very knowledgeable and efficient at diagnosing the issues with our chimney. We then worked with the company's scheduling office to make an appointment for our repairs, which we were able to have done only a few days after our inspection. We received a reminder call and the technician arrived promptly at the scheduled appointment time. He was courteous and knowledgeable. After paying for the work down, we were emailed a certification for the work done and working order of our fireplace. I highly recommend A Step In Time! read more

This review is for "A Step in Time" and specifically Michael Shipe for Oct 2020. DO NOT USE THIS COMPANY. When you call for an appointment they will tell you that they must first do an inspection before they can set up your "$99" chimney cleaning. Then Michael shows up. He didn't even knock on the door; just called my phone and asked me to come outside. He then proceeded to tell me that safety was their first concern and that I needed to replace the B-vent (cover, pipe and base), which is basically the venting from my furnace. He was pointing this out to me from the ground. HE DID NOT GO ON MY ROOF, nor did he go into the attic crawlspace. He did look @ the furnace unit in the basement and said these vent pipes should be OK. He then asked if I had my dryer vent line cleaned recently. I told him yes. He said he would send me an estimate for the B-vent work; IT WAS $1200 to do B-vent, dryer vent and then he would include cleaning the chimney (my original request). Problem is that MY ROOF VENT WAS REPLACED 4 YEARS AGO because of a hail storm. I got an estimate from another chimney company that went on the roof and inspected it and said it was fine. Michael knew exactly what he was doing, and this man is not to be trusted. AS I said DO NOT GET LURED IN BY THEIR $99 OFFER ONLY TO HAVE THEM FIND SOMETHING ELSE WRONG. DO NOT USE THIS COMPANY. read more

My first and only experience with Mr Shipe was listening to him scream at me over the phone. Mr Shipe has zero customer service skills and it's unfortunate, guess he just had a bad day/night. Now i wonder if the repair was completed correctly & within appropriate codes. My wife arranged to have our chimney repaired while i was out of town. She had nothing but wonderful things to say about Mr. Shipe and imagine my surprise when i telephoned him with a question. Never did ask my question...this Step in Time is nine miles of bad road. read more

The owner came out and quoted me a price, the office staff quoted me the same price and I was invoiced the same price. I was shocked when the owner called me after the work was done yelling that I ripped him off and said that I owed him $400 more or he was going to send his lawyer after me. The one saving grace was that the person who came out to do the work was diligent and thorough. read more