Complaintsfor256 ProWash, LLC

• Initial Complaint

  06/11/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Paid 256 ProWash $600 in October, 2023 to pressure-wash house at ***********************************************. The chemical solution drained from downspout to underground drain line to pop-up valve in from yard. Splash-back damage also occurred at other areas, as well as damage to garden statue. At least two attempts were made to contact 256 ProWash but received no response. The delay in submitting complaint was because damage was done when normal dormancy of zoysia began and not noticed until yard began to green-up this Spring. Estimated area of damage is estimated to be about 200 sq. ft.

  

  Business response

  07/23/2024

  - Grass was not dormant when I preformed the house wash. 
  - I preformed a house wash, not a roof wash. When performing a house wash, theres hardly any water that gets inside of the gutters because Im not spraying anything on the roof. If there is ever any over-spray, it only gets on the shingles and is not enough to fill up the gutters, much less run from a downspout to a pop-up valve. 
  - When you first contacted me to get an estimate, you called me on the phone, so I know you have my contact information. ***** said you have made multiple attempts to contact me to remedy this but instead of contacting me directly, you went straight to BBB. I do not actively monitor my BBB emails because theyve always been promotional/informational emails, so I did not see your message until this complaint process was started. 
  - If your grass had somehow become in contact with our cleaning solution, you would have seen visible signs of it within a few days. It would not have taken months to show up, especially since Zoysia grass wasnt even dormant in ************* yet. The first freeze wasnt until November 1, 2023. 
  - ************* had an unprecedented ice storm in January 2024. Ice storms can kill grass through a process called ice encasement. When a lawn is covered by a thick layer of ice, it can limit the exchange of air with the atmosphere, which can deplete semi-dormant grass of oxygen and cause toxic gases to build up around the plant. The ice causes the cell membranes to rupture, possibly killing the grass. Areas with poor drainage are more susceptible to crown hydration. A hard freeze can freeze the ground as well as the blades, which means the roots can't circulate and irrigate water anymore. This makes it harder for your grass to recover from a freeze and often will kill the grass. Even I had patches of grass that were killed from the ice and was told by my ********* Specialist that their company had seen this on hundreds of their clients yards

  Customer response

  07/29/2024

   
  Complaint: 21828569
  
  I am rejecting this response because:
  
  BBB member has denied all responsibility for damage to spots on zoysia lawn caused by chemicals in his pressure wash.

  He wrongly claims that I did not contact him before the BBB complaint was filed. I sent him two letters by ***** May 15 and June 3. Also, at least one email, and a final letter by **** certified mail July 17.  I have proof of those letters/texts.

  Next, he implies that overspray on gutters was not sufficient to drain to the pop-up valve on lawn. My lawn service person, a horticulturist, asserted that residual chemicals sprayed directly into or oversprayed into gutter were sufficient to mix with rain water even days later to cause lawn grass damage. His experience suggests that bleach in the pressure wash causes most problems such as this.

  In addition to the pop-up valve discharge in the front yard, other areas were damaged by the overspray. Except for cedar mulch, pea gravel, and concrete areas directly adjacent to the house, remaining zoysia which was adjacent to house and garage was killed by overspray up to 5 feet away. I did not notice the kill areas until the lawn began to green-upin early spring of this year.

  He alludes to an unprecedented ice storm in January 2024.  Actually, the worst plant-damaging conditions occurred in December 2022, when the temperature stayed around zero for several days. This, of course, was almost a full year before the pressure wash job. My zoysia lawn was not damaged in that severe weather period, and certainly not in the brief period in 2024 he refers to.Neither did neighbors experience any lawn grass damage during that most extreme weather. Accordingly, I reject his claim that my lawn was covered with a thick layer of ice and his theory on ice encasement, rupture of cell membranes,etc. That is pure speculation on his part. The lawn was not covered with a thick layer of ice. There is not a level spot on my entire lawn. There was no way for water to pool up to allow ice to form.  All dead areas are suspiciously located at points where overspray occurred.  I do not know of anything else that could have caused that type of lawn damage.

  In the 39 years I have lived at this address I have never experienced damage to zoysia due to weather. Nor have my neighbors. USDA puts Huntsville in Plant Hardiness Zone 8 (based on average minimum yearly temperature from *********). This is an ideal zone for zoysia grass.

  One shrub, a sky pencil *****, was damaged but not completely lost.  Also, he accidentally broke a ceramic garden ornament. I am not seeking compensation for either of those.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  **************************

  

  Business response

  08/21/2024

  8-21-2024  ********** with BBB spoke with ************** today. He's is 100 percent sure his house cleaning chemicals did not kill your grass.  As a good will gesture, ************** is offering a $200.00 refund to help offset the cost of replacing the  dead grass. 

  Please let BBB know if this is acceptable with you.  *******************

  Customer response

  08/26/2024

   
  Complaint: 21828569
  
  I am rejecting this response because:His good faith offer of $200 is not acceptable.  The estimate for lawn repair is $1500. If he can find another provider to do the job for $200 I would consider it. If he is unable or unwilling to make it right I will pursue other options. 
  
  Sincerely,
  
  **************************

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