The honey-do in Dayton List

All on my own, I managed to kill my mower (can’t blame the little brother this time). I tried to fix what I could- cleaned the carb, got a new governor spring, changed the filter, plug and oil. Nada.

But, I had forgotten about my post- about lawn mower repair (luckily my girlfriend reminded me):

Enter ad on Craigs list:

I am looking for running or non running lawn mowers, riding mowers, snow blowers, etc……. also looking for running or non running cars and trucks that people are giving away or selling for very very cheap, if you have any of these items or know some one that does, please keep my number and let me know.

My name is Mark 937-269-3649 Greatly appreciated, thanks for your time.

We also do minor repairs on lawn mowers, snow blowers, etc…….. Thanks.

I called. Mark and his brother came out to look at my 4 mowers. I told them I just wanted one to work- preferably the big wheel one I bought a few years back. It was raining- we were discussing price- and they started talking about a receipt- or me taking down their license number. I said if I can’t trust you to do this on a handshake, life isn’t really worth it.

2 hours later- they brought back the big wheel mower working. Swapped engines with one of the others- sharpened the blade. Still needs a new plug and filter- but- it’s running.

via Small business needs help and customers: Mower repair ^[1].

Called Mark and his brother again- and they came, picked up the mower, replaced the coil and I’ve got a working mower again. All within a few hours- and inexpensively at that.

They even said that a few of my readers had called them after the last post. Thank you. The brothers are also doing light mechanical work on cars- and staying afloat, but could always use more mower work, so if your mower isn’t working- give them a call.

Next up- tree trimming. The front of our house is a mini forest- with 4 trees. One is overpowering another and we need to get it trimmed back- and the branches hauled away. Once again- my girlfriend checked my blog- and called Dan Fugate for an estimate- also from my blog- as my mother thanked the neighborhood for recommending a tree service:

David – please thank Bob for posting all the recommendations for help with the tree. You were right – it was amazing. Shows how much we care about our trees in South Park. We called several people and decided on Dan Fugate who owns D&F Tree Service, tel: 937-256-5178. Michael Di Flora recommended him.

In addition to being a top-notch pro, Mr. Fugate gets points for personality and price. He says that word of mouth is always helpful so anyone who would like to hear more about him should feel free to call us: (You can e-mail me- david at elect esrati dot com if you want to chat about this)

By the way, he spotted the empty cottage next door and expressed an interest. Said he would like to come back and live in South Park. We’d love to have him as a neighbor.

via How a connected neighborhood works ^[2].

And, while I’m at it- if you think you have a bedbug problem in Dayton, call Reene Gonzalez of Militerriers ^[3]– 937-969-0898 who will bring out their bedbug-sniffing dog and locate the infestation so you can deal with it most efficiently. They bought three buildings in South Park and are working on them diligently, he’s active duty Army with 7 deployments to the sandbox- and the dog is amazing. (Full disclosure- they are a client of my firm as well). A neighbor came home from a NYC shopping trip- and thought she got bit in the hotel. She called Reene- and had been smart- leaving her luggage in her car- the dog came out- checked the house and the car and luggage for bedbugs- and found them in the luggage- saving a major infestation.

I also am going to mention my two favorite, reliable handymen. Bob Thade of Thade Construction- 937-256-5290, for doing any kind of remodeling, repair, fine carpentry (crown moldings, stairs etc). He’s worked with me on 5 properties and always done an amazing job at a reasonable price. This is a twenty-year-plus experience- and I can’t recommend him highly enough.

Lastly- when it comes to heating and air, Matt York of United Heating and Air is one of the smartest mechanical guys I’ve met. He’s licensed as a plumber, electrician, boilers, heating and air and probably as three other things. He works really hard, is reliable and will save you money. He’s also forward thinking- and has been doing geo-thermal installations, solar and even wind. Call him-937-239-5011. [Update Oct 2011- Matt seems to have fallen off the face of the earth]

If you’d like to recommend anyone else as if your life depended on it- as the best people to solve your honey-do problems, feel free to add them in comments- however, I ask that only those of you willing to put your full real name and real e-mail on the form- do so. I will not let this become a place for self-promotion or spam links.

With all that said- I’m going to go cut grass before the rain comes.