“Colorado Cascade” not only doesn’t finish the job in fixing your sprinklers (which is why the valve was stuck on when you came back from vacation), but they don’t clean up after themselves very well (like leaving both your gates “down,” leading to one of them lying on a bunch of plants). And they charge you for return visits on the same zone. Get someone else to repair and blow your sprinklers.
“Residential Services” (a/k/a “Mile Hi Services” — never trust anyone who ez-spells “High,” “Light” or “Easy”) are those people with the annoying automated sales call about lawn aeration, etc. Even if your lawn is drying up and blowing away, do not use them. If you are not there, cash on hand, when they do the work (which they don’t mention at the time they confirm the appointment), then they will start calling you with an automated dunning message within a few days, twice a day, every day (UPDATE: Including Saturday Mornings), until someone in their accounting department notices that, hey, maybe they did actually send a check. They are rude and offer no unique service, so find someone else to do such things.
My son worked for Mile Hi for two days. His car was stolen from a “job site” and because he didn’t or should I say couldn’t give them a seven day notice to quit they have refused to pay him the $170 that is owed to him. What I have found out is that they hire these “kids” to do work as independents, charge the customer $35 and up and pay these kids $10 a yard. They are made to use their own vehicle, and told that the faster they are the more money they’ll make. They are VERY rude at the office. I have called numerous times…..no return phone calls. Any suggestions on how my son can get his well earned $170 and stop these people from using our young people to take advantage of all of us !!!??
Small claims court is probably the best answer, though I don’t know where Colorado labor law sits on the subject.
I have just been through a nightmare with Mile Hi Services. I put flags in marking my undreground dog fence every 2 feet. I gave them written instructions explaining what these flags were and to not aerate within a foot of them. Put the note with the check just like they told me to. Sure enough they went right over it numerous times along a 30 foot section. Haven’t been able to get anyone to call me back about it either. Wish I would have read your note a week ago.
Thank God I’m not alone! I am Mile Hi’s newest victim of lousy customer service. Their tech pulled out landscape edging and now I have to spend hours pulling up rock and weed block so that I can re-trench the line to re-install the edging. When I called to complain I thought I was on Candid Camera or something because the service was SO BAD. Amber, the manager, was rude and refused to tell me who owned this business or who her superviser is. I am kicking myself for not looking into this company before hiring them!
You might try calling “Call 7 for Help”. Looks like they have tangled with Mile-Hi a few times in the past http://www.thedenverchannel.com/call7forhelp/2015423/detail.html and http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/1421681/detail.html They might be willing to update the story for 2004 😉
Hi,
I understand all of your complaints and have done something about it.
I used to contract to Mile-Hi until I realized how they scam employees and mistreat customers. Thus, I have started my own aeration company with the hope of running those scumbags out of business.
It’s called Peak Aeration and our number is 720-219-9655.
We do things different from Mile-Hi and return ALL of our customers’ calls.
You will see our signs out this year. Feel free to call us and tell your friends.
Thank you,
Jeff Swanson
Peak Aeration
I had the same problems with Mile High Aeration. Destroyed a “invisible fence” line. Called with no return call. I’m going to small claims court over it.
A couple of comments. The owner is Florian McCann. His address is 2540 South Gray Court, Lakewood, CO 80227. He has had many businesses most of which have been dissolved. His last one (listed on the Colo Sec of State website was called “Mile Hi Metro Maintenance Inc.” It was dissolved too. I can’t be certain but I don’t think the Aeration company is operating legally (this is being written 3/28/05).
Another comment, I’ve had trouble with their phone system when I call their number 303-778-1000. I’ve gotten frustrated and pushed buttons and it seems to fill up their system??? Not sure why??? Oh well.
The Better Business Bureau has quite a write up on this company. Apparently they have a very large number of complaints that have not been resolved or responded to: http://www.data.bbb.org/denver2.asp.
They do business under several names, so check it out to make sure you are not duped into another one of their companies.
I have just put my number on their no-call list. They have 30 days to stop callling me. 12 complaints have been made to the Attorney Generals office concerning calls – they have been issued a cease and desist order. I’m counting the days until they stop calling.
Can’t stand the tape they put on the door. Am considering a class action suit with my neighborhood. The tape is destroying the brass door handles and the finish on the doors.
Bad service, annoying company. There has GOT to be someone professional out there…
They do business under several names, so check it out to make sure you are not duped into another one of their companies.
I have, more than once, hired a local firm and ended up getting billed by Mile Hi as the underlying company.
Not only did this company not pay my son or his friend approximately $1400 between the them – the owner verbally threatened them in a very unpleasant way. He will not give either of them a copy of the contract they signed. The owner handed out flyers to the workers using 4 letter words about putting the signs in customers yards (a $500 fine if NOT done) as well as flyers for getting paid $1 for every sign belonging to any other aerating company they bring in (that is stealing isn’t it.) The IRS does have a fraud hotline that you can call as this company is profiting from all of these workers (and possible not reporting it). If they are independent contractors – all of the money they do not recieve because the owner just happened to make up a new rule that day to fine someone – that is $$ he is pocketing and a loss for the independent contractor. I encourage anyone that is being ripped off by this very unprofessional business company to report them to any agency they can. Force in numbers just might work to get them off the yards of Colorado.
Even worse!
We hired someone to blow out our sprinklers last year. They said the work was done and my wife wrote them a check for $45. Yesterday I went out to turn them on and the main system head was cracked. Got Plumbline out and they fixed it – FOR $550! He said that the company that blew out my sprinklers should be responsible – so I checked the company that cashed the check and – you guessed it – Mile High Lawncare. Well I have done some research and found the following which makes me feel like:
a – I’m not the only one that has gotten screwed by this bozo.
b – I’m not going to see any of the $ for the sprinkler system.
Here’s a link to the letter he got from the FCC about his recorded phone calls:
http://www.fcc.gov/eb/Orders/2003/DOC-237936A1.html
BTW – I found that I have several sprinkler heads are broken now too! 🙁
Good luck!
I Live in Colorado Springs and am a victim of Mile High Aeration. I never received a bill and called 578-1010 number and left about 25 messages asking for an invoice. I never received a phone call with a person on the other end. Just the wonderful and annoying prerecorded message stating how they are going to hand my account over to collections. I haven’t checked my sprinkle heads, but I better find out if there is damage to my yard. I get 2 or 3 calls a day. I wish I would of never used them. Is there a way to get my name on the do not call list? I want them to deal with me in written form. I will never use them again. I have contacted the FCC and left my concerns and am waiting to hear back from them. It seems that they have been cited a few years ago with the prerecorded message issue. I feel like Vinnie is going to show up on my door step with the rest of the mob!!!
All I wanted is to get my yard aerated!
I had a bad experience with Mile Hi Aeration. I called yesterday to schedule an appointment and was scheduled for today between 8am – 5pm. My son got called into work early, so I called this morning at 20 minutes to 8 to find out the approx time they would arrive. I was told there was no way to tell me that, so I said I’d need to cancel. The girl on the phone told me that if I didn’t leave a note on the door, then they would still show up and do the work and I’d be sent a bill. I told her I had already left the house and was unable to leave a note, that I hadn’t left a check and my back yard was not accessible, so they shouldn’t do the work. She was extremely rude, telling me that if they did the work, then they’d send a bill, trying to tell me that it was their cancellation policy, and that I had called too close to the service (but she couldn’t tell me what time the service was???). I told her that if they show up and do the work after I called to cancel the service, then they were out, because I wasn’t paying for it. She hung up on me. Needless to say, I didn’t get my lawn aeration today. They are rude and very unprofessional. I think I’ll call the guy above to see about lawn care!
I called Aqua this year for a sprinkler repair problem (they being the only ones who could schedule something in a few days, rather than in a few weeks — turns out they were diverting their installation crews to handle repair work, too). They came out, fixed the problem with no problem. Definitely made me want to contact them in the future.
Hello! I am new to the area (well, not so new just under a year) – and I need to get aeration done for my yard. My neighbors use Mile Hi Aeration. I have recently had a very bad encounter with a lawn care company – a lot of the comments above could be about that company! I have sent complaints to the DA’s office as well as the Denver BBB about how these people operate but that’s another story. But it is because of this that I was looking up Mile Hi before setting an appointment. I am quite disgusted with the small fraud that businesses seem to get away with. I have a sprinkler system in my yard so now I am worried about that, too.
I live in Louisville (near Boulder) and I’d really appreciate it if anyone could recommend a reliable company for aeration services.
I had an issue with this company last week. Mile Hi aeration had their truck in the neighborhood. It was blocking the roadway for a few hours, so I called the company and they told me that the truck was broke down (no one even attempted to push this truck to the side). They said the driver should be with the truck, but I informed them that no one was there. She had nothing to say, so I asked her about the Chihuahua license plates on the truck. She said that they don’t require their employees to plate their vehicles in the State. I laughed when she said they have a 30 day grace period to get new plates because I have seen this truck several times this year (I think even last year) and it’s been way passed the grace period. Needless to say, we got no where on the phone. I asked her if she had her vehicle licensed in the United States and she said she wasn’t sure. I couldn’t believe it! I sent the company an email through their contact for and asked them about it. Apparently it’s the same lady who was on the phone and she said I called the company racist, which I did not. I just told this lady they hired a bunch of illegals. The truck stayed on the street for about 4 hours total. I called Douglas County to come tow it, but they drove by and saw the driver and left. I can only assume he had better things to do because this vehicle SHOULD have been towed. Around 5:30, the vehicle was finally towed off the street by a company they hired. I am doing what I can to report this company to the INS and other agencis, but I am not sure if I am contacting the right people. This company HAS to go!!
Boy, am I glad I did not hire this company! Just before the second snowstorm, we rented an aerator from Home Depot (just short of $50 with taxes, for four hours) and we did about 5 lawns in the neighborhood between us. We’re going to make this an annual event!
If you have folks willing to do the work, renting an aerator is a great idea. I also know of groups who’ve rented a compression pump to blow neighborhood sprinkler systems.
NOBODY EVER CALLS IN AND SAYS ANYTHING GOOD!!! THAT’S GONNA CHANGE! THE TRUTH NEEDS TO BE TOLD! “MILE HI LAWN AERATION DOES GREAT WORK”
I have had nothing but GREAT experiences from Mile Hi. I don’t understand why competitors would rather type a bunch of lies instead of go to work.
I have used Mile Hi aeration for 6 years now. I don’t know of another lawn aeration company that has even been in business for 6 years. If Mile Hi did poor work, stole checks, ripped off employees, etc etc etc as many of you say. Then why???? WHY does Mile Hi continue to grow and dominate in every service type they provide?
BRAVO MILE HI—KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK.
They have superior equipment and unsurpassed customer service at a price that I can’t even rent and do it myself.
Homeowners have a responsibilty to flag their heads and unlock their gates and put their mean dogs away. Do you think any of these could be reasons for a “no show” put your dog away for goodness sake. THINK PEOPLE!!! THINK
Would anyone be surprised that the IP address that “craigman” posted from goes straight to Mile Hi’s site?
I do agree that, for aeration (or any sort of yard service), people should make sure that their gates are unlocked and their pets secured. Flagging sprinkler heads is a good idea, too, for aeration.
On the other hand, posting as though you were an Mystery Guest and yet doing it from the Mile Hi system … is kinda lame, too.
Maybe that’s why they don’t finish the work! They’d rather type a bunch of… comments “instead of go to work.”
You get what you pay for. I have a lawn care business that does aeration as well. We are not as cheap as mile high but we get the job done right and fix any problems that arise b/c of our work. I would suggest checking out contractors before hiring them to work for you. If the price for aeration is around what mile high charges they most likely don’t really know what they are doing and are just doing it for a little extra income. When it comes down to it though most people are better off spending a little extra money upfront rather than spending the money later in repairs. Just think one or two damaged sprinkler heads and that great “value” suddenly is more costly than a reputable firm. Good luck and I hope the comsumer becomes more informed on this company.
I agree. The cheapest isn’t always the best. Find someone who does a reliably good job and keep feeding them business. It’s worth the investment.
I found this discussion via google while waiting for a return call from Mile Hi Aeration about a complaint I had. I guess I won’t hold my breath. I think I’ll write a letter to the local newspaper.
Thanks much to the host of this site. I was about to call Mile-Hi to get my lawn aerated and thought I’d research a bit first. I’m extremely glad I did. Thanks to everyone who posted their experience. I’ve got a very small yard, I think I might just go buy one of those hand aeration tools. It’ll take me a couple of hours and get me out in the sun for a bit.
My neighbors and I too have had numerous horrible experiences with Mile Hi Services – on gutter cleaning, window cleaning and lawn services. I have complained to the FCC about the calls I keep getting and filed complaints with the BBB and am shocked they are still in business. Last year I found the Erie Lawn Barber http://www.erielawnbarber.com – they are equitably priced and for two summers we have had great service. I have no affiliation with either company – just wanted to share my experiences. Buyer beware with Mile Hi!!
I worked for Mile Hi Services doing Lawn Aeration for about a month. They never had me fill out any tax forms and all of my checks were made out to my first and last name and then Services. I had to open my own checking account in order to cash them without having to pay like $5 every time I cashed one. The checks come about every two weeks and you’re only paid for the yards who had a check at the door when you aerated their lawn or who sent the check in before they cut you a check. I think they pay this way to get out of paying certain taxes. Does anyone now is that’s legal or not? In the contract they have you sign before working, it states that if you don’t give 7 days notice of your intent to quit then they’ll withhold your paychecks. This is how I got screwed out of $810 dollars. I asked my boss if I could move to part time work because I got a job at a Vet Clinic and want to go to vet school. I told him my days off and he was supposed to set-up routes for me. He never did. I called the morning of the first day that I was supposed to work and was told that they didn’t have enough yards to give me. The same thing happened the next two weeks. By the third week, they were no longer answering my calls. I think this is how they’re trying to get out of paying me. I’m going to mail a letter or resignation and then try and take some sort of legal action against them. I knew they were shady and luckily I kept track of every yard I did. 81 yards that I haven’t been paid for. I have names, addresses, and phone numbers. I intend on calling every one of these clients and telling them what happened and referring them to this site.
Mile Hi spreads fliers by paying homeless shelters to have homeless people pass the fliers out in Fort Collins, Loveland, Windsor, Westminster, and Greeley etc. I saw two vans pull up one day and about 15 homeless stepped out and the person in charge was paid a check for the 9 – 5 flying work. The manager for the Loveland Business at 909 Des Moines Ave., Loveland, Co which caters to Fort Collins, Loveland, Greeley, Westminster, and Windsor is Ron Ebersohl. They also do window cleaning, duct cleaning, and other things. They’re very good at masking the main company in Denver and work purely through quantity and not quality. We were always given 15 – 20 yards and were always told that we had to finish. I went back to a few yards on my own because I’m honest and hard working. If I didn’t go back, then they’d send someone else to finish the yard and they would get paid. It was written in my paperwork once not to do a backyard. I called and asked about it and Mile Hi confirmed it. The owners of the house called to complain and they sent another “Tech” out to do the tiny backyard and he got paid for it. They’re super shady. Has anyone had any luck collecting backed wages?
I come from the telecommunications industry, and based upon the solicitation techniques that Mile Hi has been using, I figured there had to be at least one legal complaint against McCann. So, take a look here:
http://www.fcc.gov/eb/Orders/2003/DOC-237936A1.html
If you receive a pre-recorded solicitation, mark down all the details and file a complaint with the FCC. It has been illegal since 1995. Also if you request to be taken off their marketing list, and you get subsequent phone calls, you can stick them with at least a $500 penalty each time.
Tried getting Mile Hi to blow out my sprinkler system…waited around for them all day on a Saturday (I have two dogs that would eat anyone who stepped foot in my backyard, so I had to stay home), and no one showed up. No call telling me they wouldn’t be here, just didn’t show up. I called them the following Monday, they rescheduled for Tuesday…again, no one even showed up. I called them back on Wednesday, they tell me they will make sure someone will come out on Thursday. Guess what? NO ONE SHOWED UP!!!! I would rather pay 4 times what they charge than waste 3 days waiting around for these clowns.
I’ll admit that we had a no-show this time the first appointment with Aqua to blow our sprinklers. They were very apologetic, had a plausible excuse, and were able to schedule something in a very narrow timeframe the next day.
Mile Hi offered to clean my gutters for $35. They canceled due to weather, so I cleaned the gutters myself. About three weeks later, I came home to find a bill on my door knob for gutter cleaning. I looked around and found some footprints in the snow where someone climbed up on the roof(there was about two inches of snow on the roof) and climbed back down without doing anything, because it was probably obvious the gutters were already clean. When I called Mile Hi to report the scam, some bimbo named Crystal swore at me. When I reported them to BBB, I found out they had around 500 unresolved complaints – spread the word to your neighbors and local news media when you see the signs pop up in your neighborhoods. That was a year and a half ago, and they still try to get money out of me. I am thinking of pressing charges for ?
I first hired Mile Hi for the convenience and the mass marketing the company achieves. In 2007, I contracted them to perform aeration and seeding. Weeks prior to the delivery date, I fertilized. Mile Hi came out and aerated as well as fertilized…NOT seeding as I contracted. The result was over fertilization and burns in the grass.I thought I would give them one more chance in the Spring of 2008. Over three weeks, they failed to show up (THREE TIMES!). Furthermore, I would sit on hold for over 20 minutes before speaking to a live person. After the third attempt to complain to their management (Crystal), I gave up. It seemed that I would be placed into her voice mail each time with no call back….ever. Additionally, emails to the company via their web page yielded no return follow-up/ call.Do not give this organization your time or money.
Put me in the “Mile Hi Services” is awful category as well. They did a horrible job aerating my lawn a year ago. I’m still getting calls from their autodialer, and I’m getting tons of spam emails from them. I see a couple of people have filed complaints regarding the calls made (I’m on the no call list). How do I complain as well?
BTW, this was my experience (on the rip-off report). Thankfully it doesn’t seem as bad as some of the others on here:
http://www.ripoffreport.com/reports/0/246/RipOff0246732.htm
I sure wish I had done some research and found this site before hiring Mile Hi Services. We hired Mile Hi to do the new liquid aeration in March 2008. The promotion they had going included free overseeding if you requested the new liquid aeration along with fertilization. There was also a guarantee that if we weren’t satisfied with the result of the liquid aeration after 30 days, they would come back and do a deep plug aeration for free. First, the guy who showed up to do the work had his wife and baby in the truck – very unprofessional. He was only here for less than 15 minutes. I gave them the check for services when they got here, went back in the house to switch out the laundry and when I came back out, they were gone. I somehow doubt that he aerated, fertilized, and overseeded our entire lawn that fast. The worst part is, after the 30 days our yard looked worse than it ever has. We called and sent e-mails over and over requesting them to come do the deep plug aeration because we weren’t satisfied with the liquid. The first couple times we called, they promised to have a supervisor call back – never happened. After that, they quit taking our calls and have never answered an e-mail.
Prior to this year, we used A Cut Above Land & Light (http://www.acalandscape.com/) and always had great results for a very low price. ($23 for aeration) We went with Mile Hi this year because A Cut Above was booked solid and we really wanted to get the aeration done early. Now our normally beautiful lawn is half dead and we are hand watering like crazy to get it back. We ended up having to set up an appointment with A Cut Above to have them aerate in hopes that we can fix the mess that Mile Hi made.
I used pluggz aeration for two years now in both spring and fall…and they are the best “hands down”..the quality and prices are by far the best…and it’s been the same face every season..(Kevin) this young gentleman is so polite and curtious to my needs and concerns and he is always careful with my landscape and sprinkler system.clean cut and a very bright and positive guy……CALL PLUGGZ! YOU CANNOT GO WRONG WITH THIS SERVICE…..[phone number redacted]
“Thomas,” is there a reason why your email is “kevXXferrell”? If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were the “Kevin” you waxed so eloquently about.
The owners of Mile Hi Aeration should be in jail. I hired them in 2000 for a small job — It was partially finished, shoddy work. I left payment for the worker. the worker stole the payment and I received automated calls to my cell phone daily until I paid Mile Hi a second time for their shoddy job.
10 YEARS LATER I am still getting automated calls to my same cell phone for their services. I don’t even live in the same state anymore. I think they are scum and would never use them again , ever. I called ten years ago to explain and they felt I was rude. I have ever dealt with such slimy scummy peopel in my life!
Believe the reviews! Stay away! I arranged an aeration over the phone. My yard is large and a plan was made to accommodate the service. The time/date was confirmed, we watered our lawn and marked all sprinkler as requested. The day of the scheduled aeration, no one showed up. I called twice during that day find out when the tech would be there and was assured he would make it by day’s end. He didn’t. No phone call, nothing. I called this AM to talk to them and was rescheduled for tomorrow–the employee apologized and offered $20 discount. About 30 minutes later, an extremely rude employee named Devon called (“I AM NOT RUDE!!” she yelled at me) to tell me they cannot aerate my lawn at all–it’s too big. She was very antagonistic and had a total lack of courtesy. Do yourself a favor–find a reputable company that will treat you respectfully. This is not the one.