I had this company clean my small one bedroom in Waikiki. I scheduled the cleaning one week in advance and the cost was bid at $95, which was $65 for the cleaning and an additional $30 for "flea and tick" treatment, which was required due to terms of my lease.
For the one bedroom apartment, approximately 400 square feet of carpeted area in a living room and bedroom, the worker completed the work in 65 minutes. That includes the set-up time. It would have been ten minutes less had I not complained about the speed that he did the work and the lack of detail over the traffic areas. As the job dries, the traffic areas appear less clean than when they were wet, so I would not use their services again. He also did not pre-vacuum or rake.
The worker ("Fred", a Brazilian) showed up 15 minutes early. By the time he filled his machine with waster and was up and running, it was about 15 minutes after the appointment was scheduled, i.e., thirty minutes after his arrival.
The first sign that I might not like the service was the immediate attitude that I would need to pay for stain "pre-treatment" and that it would be "guaranteed" to remove at least 80 percent of the stains. We have been in our unit for just over a year, so other than the usual traffic stains, there should not have been a "need" for pre-treatment.
He wanted an additional $20. I told him I wanted only what was included in the $95 bid and nothing more. He immediately wrote up a work order and made sure that the bottom said "stains no grant" which I guess was due to English not being his first language. Any way, I explained that I would help move the couch, bed and table as he worked around them. He put in an "air freshener" and said, after I started to object, that it would be free.
He worked judiciously for 20 minutes and was finishing up when I indicated, "aren't you going to go over the traffic areas any better? We "argued" for about five minutes while he explained the need for the "pre-treatment". I indicated that I had used many steam cleaning services over the years, and that traffic areas usually need a little additional time. He again wanted to argue for the need for additional stain treatment. I indicated that I didn't want to argue with him, but that $95.00 for 20 minutes of work and a single pass over the traffic areas was not acceptable.
Fred did admit that virtually all jobs needed the pre-treatment. I said that the bid price should have included everything and that no one likes to have additional "add ons" attempted when the work is actually started. He said that he did not answer the phones and give out bids. He did speak Portuguese on the phone, so his relationship with the boss is likely more than only as a paid laborer. He denied getting a percentage of the profits when I asked him directly. He said, "I will make you happy". He re-filled his machine and went over the heavy traffic areas once more.
Total "additional time": 10 minutes. He then cleaned his machine, called in my credit card, and left. I asked about the "flea and tick" treatment, and he said he mixed it in with the water while he cleaned. He used the typical "Ortho" Pest Control liquid that can be purchased at any store.
I didn't see how much he used, but a total additional cost of $30 seemed excessive!
I told Fred that I was unimpressed on how fast he moved through the job and he argued that he spent all the time the job required. I said that I should not have had to ask for the traffic areas to be gone over again, and he said that no one has ever been unhappy with his work or made a similar complaint re: the pre-treatment sale attempt. I asked, "Never?" He said, "Never." I told him I doubted it, because it would never be OK with anyone who was just expecting routine cleaning to be told that something in excess of the original bid would be "necessary" to satisfactorily do the job.
So, my overall rating:
Timeliness: 5 Stars.
Work Quality/Ethic: 3 Stars for how hard he worked/sweated, 2 Stars for amount of time spent even after my complaints .
Cleaning level: 2 Stars.
Price: 2 Stars. I actually got four bids, and this company was the cheapest by only $5. Given the attempt to add on for stain treatment, I do not think the value was there.
Cleanliness: 1 Star. He did not try to protect the couch legs from DIRECT contact with the wet floor, and I have to place wax paper under the edges to protect them from "wicking" up the moisture. Same thing with the mattress that was on the floor. He just moved it over the wet floor and left it there, even though he admitted to having been doing this type of job for several years California before moving here.
Business Ethic: 2 Stars.
Overall 2 Stars. The job got done and I hope that it is acceptable by my landlord. read more
