In August of 2020 I needed a new lawn.. I searched , researched, got a few bids and ended up choosing Roto Tiller Guy. He was everything his bio, web page & positive reviews describe him to be and that is the reason I am here, 6 years later, looking to hire him for another property. I looked through emails and old paperwork and finally found him. I initially wanted to review a few months after his installation of my lawn (2020) but life took over and I forgot. Here I am 6 years later, enjoying the St. Augustine that Roto Tiller Guy gave me looking for him again and finally writing a review. Since my review is so overdue I went the extra step and found pictures of my lawn (before and after) and will post them here. It's the least I can do. See you soon Roto Tiller Guy!!! read more

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Hi my name is Ricky Brown from LB Area, I called Mike the Roto TillerGuy about 5 mins ago to have him come out to fix my sprinkler system. But Mike suggested that I send him a picture of my sprinkler system(Controller) and he would help me program it to save me from having to pay $275.00 just for him to come out. Well Mike did exactly what he said. He help me figure out what the problem was and it was with my wiring. As I was taking with Mike on the phone while I was messing around with my wires, my sprinkler system came on. Thank you Mike for saving me $275.00 dollars, I would recommend everyone go to this wonderful man with all your sprinklers problems or if you need a system put in. Mike you are the epitome of honesty and integrity. May our God bless your business beyond measure for Honesty. read more

Mike installed new grass and a new sprinkler system for me. He is a very good communicator and kept me informed on each step of the job. The soil was expertly prepared and cleaned of rocks and roots so my new grass can develop healthy roots. I love my new lawn and sprinkler system, it looks great! I highly recommend Mike the RotoTillerGuy! read more

My new sprinkler team! After sending an inquiry about sprinkler services, I promptly received a phone call from Mike. I appreciat that he first tried to help me trouble shoot the problem over the phone, but I quickly realized this was going to take a professional, and someone was able to come out within 24 hours. Leo listened to our concerns and pinpointed the problem. In the same visit, he found the pipe that had burst and replaced it with a new one. I will be using RotoTillerGuy for any future issues. read more

Great company. Deshawn was efficient and prompt. Mike was knowledgeable and able to execute a solution to our problem within 24 hours of first contact. Thank you. read more

We loved working with Mike, The Rototiller Guy! We needed to start from scratch on our irrigation - but since we can do all the trenching and laying PVC ourselves, we only needed the valves installed and connected to our Rachio system (all of which is above our pay grade). After watching his YouTube video on valves (very informative), we decided to go with the brass valves which are attached to copper plumbing. They are not much more expensive over plastic and last much longer. We were lucky in that Mike had an apprentice with him during our installation so we got a course on how to install copper plumbing. We do a lot of DIY stuff around the house, and now we have yet another skill! He is very willing to educate and answer all your questions. His communication is excellent - and his website is so clear that you know exactly how much it is going to cost before you book him. No surprises! His prices are very reasonable. Mike's just an all-around good guy who takes his work and customer service seriously. I cannot recommend enough! read more

We had a broken sprinkler near our driveway. I called Michael in the hopes of him coming out to take a look and repair it. After describing the issue, Michael told me he would be happy to come out for a fee, but if I was up for it, he would be equally happy to walk me through doing the repair myself for no charge. I decided to attempt the repair and Michael was beyond helpful. He walked me through each step, including sending me links of products to acquire at home depot. At each stage of the process, if I hit a snag or didn't understand something, Michael called me back immediately and cleared it up. I was able to repair the sprinkler myself with Michael's guidance and $15 in parts from home depot. I have never experienced this type of service from a business professional. To say that Michael is both honest and knowledgeable is an understatement. He provided excellent service without charging me anything. I no doubt would recommend RotoTillerGuy to anyone with a landscaping/irrigation issue and I will look to him in the future for any more substantial work I need at my property. Thank you RotoTillerGuy! read more

I got my estimate on the website and via email and Mike was quick to call and schedule the job. Mine was a small roto till job and since I'm renting, I went with seed instead of sod. Mike and his team showed up on time and did a wonderful job being sure to let me know how often to water and provided other tips on keeping my new lawn looking great! Once the seeds germinated and began to grow, I sent Mike a photo to ask if it was okay to mow yet and he called me immediately to give me advice. I would recommend them to anyone in need of a new lawn no matter the size. read more

As a new homeowner, it feels like something costly breaks every other day. I generally feel like every contractor I talk to is trying to get as much money as they can with the least effort. Not Mike and his team. They went out of there way to solve my problem for free. That was refreshing. They educated me about my system and spent the time to solve my issues. At the end of the day, I felt the price was fair, the time spent was well worth it and I would use them again in a Heartbeat!! read more

This is the second time I called for Sprinkler Irrigation issues and Michael walked us through the process of evaluating the electrical and the valves on the phone. He was able to diagnose the problem and advise us without a dime out of our pockets. I highly recommend him as he is extremely knowledgable, willing to give away free advise and pleasant to work with. I can say I've never met hm in person because he has always been available to advise on the phone for no fee at all!!! So very rare these days. Great value for $000 dollars! read more

updating my review because mike took the time to help me troubleshoot another issue with my sprinkler. he is worth his weight in gold!

Very nice and honest business. I called with some issues I'm experiencing with my sprinkler system. He asked me to text him some photos and tried to troubleshoot with me over the phone instead of scheduling a visit which would be a minimum charge for 3 hours. Tells it like it is and helpful over the phone. Much appreciated. read more

We had a clear idea of how we wanted to transform our backyard, but no idea how to make it happen. Mike was the perfect person for the job. At every decision point, he explained our options, the pros and cons, and the associated costs. We asked him a ton of questions, and he patiently answered them all. He and his crew replaced our entire irrigation system (which had rotted out), removed a bunch of weeds and other junk, tilled and fertilized our entire yard, and laid down sod. They were prompt, professional, friendly, and beat everyone else we spoke to on price. I can't recommend Rototiller Guy enough. They're the real deal. read more

The most important thing to know about "the Rototiller Guy" is that you may never see him. And if his website-generated quote for your lawn seems to good to be true, that's exactly what we found it to be. The owner said he wants to sell this business and thinks he can get more money for it if no one goes to jobs sites to give estimates so that he can tell prospective buyers that his company "runs itself." Unfortunately, it doesn't. The damage and negligence by "the Rotertiller Guy" was so bad that we had to sue him in Small Claims Court where a judge ordered Mike to give us our money back (because he ignored regulations which require him to supervise and control the job site). And court records show he is no stranger to court. Mike did have a good team who came out, great guys who work hard, but even they couldn't make up for his lack of oversight and communication, and we were shocked to hear Mike scold them over the phone for HIS mistakes. I just saw another Yelp review saying that Mike suffers from "smartest guy in the room syndrome (but without the qualifications to back it up)," which was our experience too. If you do hire him, you should know what his website doesn't say: that he basically expects the customer to watch the job site every moment and be very knowledgeable about lawns. Because if you're not both, when mistakes get made or damage is done, this is not a guy who will take responsibility. read more

Good honest work desired? I highly recommend you not look in the direction of rototillerguy.com 1. Work is subcontracted out, you aren't hiring the person you speak with. 2. The subcontractors did not fulfill customer agreement with contractor, expectations not met as agreed. 3. Subcontractors attempted to charge significantly "up-charge" by mismeasuring the yard the day of the work (re-measured with me for 3rd time near original sq ft). Our experience with RototillerGuy.com: To begin, the contract pricing was based upon a crew of four at a rate of $220/hr. The task in contract was to pickax the ground, rototill, spread amendments, rototill a second time, smooth it out. The reality was a 2 person crew, that spent Day 1 fulfilling the pickax task. Day 2 is where things really broke down, including their equipment. The 2 man crew cut corners by spreading the compost before tilling the ground as agreed, and layered amendments on top to appear "mixed". The Details: Created the estimate on the web site, spoke with the owner, and agreed to the terms. The first workday I get a call that my estimate of square footage is off. The owner calling from Las Vegas per subcontractors' input stated an adjusted measurement up by 350+ sq. ft. We didn't agree with attempt to charge more and measured again with the crew on hand. The re-measure, with myself and crew, came out at near original sq ft +65 sq. ft. Owner insists on an adjusted estimate for the added +65 sq. ft. which was then requested by owner to be printed and verified with crew. Note: Website difficult to use, print capability not evident, "automatic" email doesn't work, owner emails manually or solved delay in another manner. About the price - it said very clearly that it was based upon a crew of four doing the work, justifying in the owner's mind the $220/hour rate for any additional work. At no point was the crew more than two. They said the other guys "didn't show up". The estimate clearly says that the process is pickax the ground, rototill, spread amendments, rototill again, smooth it out. Day 2 started with the crew of two showing up with pickup trucks filled with compost. They spread this on top of the pickaxed ground and said they would till it so it was all mixed up well. Not the case! In the above photo they are spreading out the compost without having tilled the pick-axed chunks. They assure me that those chunks will be chopped up nicely in the one tilling they will be doing. Didn't happen. And then the end of day, with hours lost to a rototiller that kept breaking, first the drive belt, and the first replacement didn't fit so they had to go out again to get the right one, second the starter cord. Around 5pm the crew says they are done and the boss wants to talk to me. I had questioned his invoice as fewer crew were used and the tilling was done incorrectly. Nasty conversation with the absentee owner who was not at site, at any time, verbally stating all work was done per contract. I paid the $3000. invoice and they left. Only to find more problems. Further inspection of the work, revealed that horse manure had just been scattered over the top of everything after they had "finished" the one-time tilling. After they left, going through the yard, after picking out visible clumps, I grab a shovel and begin the process of forming the ground to the elevation I want and find that a great deal of the original pick-axed clumps are simply buried under horse manure, the compost. See photo of one area I found, turning over the soil hoping to blend in the layer of horse manure left on top: I expected these to be chopped up by the rototiller as they were in the central part of the yard. These clumps are all around the lower edges of the yard, about 80' x 6'. Further text contact with owner, requesting they return and make good on work, he refused to do so. End of story - since rototillerguy.com refused to make good on our agreement. I then had to complete the job that I had paid to have done. I rented a rototiller and got done what they didn't. In addition to having to blend in what wasn't done, I found an area about 3' x 9' and about a foot to a foot deep of pure horse manure. It was just covered by about 6" of dirt and had created a new taller area in the yard. Good honest work desired? I highly recommend you not look in the direction of rototillerguy.com Added after seeing rototillerguy's response: I have to rebut RotoTillerGuys claim noted in his response to my review. Specifically he states that they rototilled "again, again and again." There was not even one "again". There was only one rototill after adding the compost on top of the pickaxed yard, and a poor job at that. I do write favorable reviews of good workers, most recently for 24 Hour Painting Services on Google reviews. I would have liked to been able to do the same for rototillerguy, but cannot. read more

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I called Michael about needing my sprinkler system repaired. He stated that the service call would be $275, although he offered to walk me through the repair on the phone for free. I took up his offer and Michael talked me through a repair that lasted over thirty minutes. Michael also assisted me with knowing the functions setting up the timer properly. I must say, I feel elated not having to pay anything. Much thanks to Michael. I'll keep you in mind for my next landscaping need. read more

Very helpful. Called because I needed some advice. I told him what I was doing and he just talked me through the problem. H we could have come to my house and charged me to fix it. Saved me money. Great guy read more

As numerous other reviewers have pointed out, Mike suffers deeply from smartest-guy-in-the-room syndrome (but without the qualifications to back it up). In his arrogance, his communication problems are your communication problems, and his mistakes are your mistakes. There are no conversations with Mike, only battles. All one needs do is read his responses to other negative reviews, and I'm sure whatever he's about to respond with to this one, to see a highly defensive, tunnel-vision driven and narcissistic individual. Hands down the worst labor professional I have ever encountered. read more

I definitely recommend this business because they were responding my work request on time and completed my sprinkler job very good. Their services was excellent and I was very happy with them. read more

Quick review: Immediate. Thorough. Competent. Detailed Review: I called Mike on two occasions. The first was for a broken sprinkler valve. His guy walked me through everything in case I wanted to do the repair myself in the future. He was quick, thorough and competent. The second was to resolve the noisy, banging pipes (AKA Water Hammer) running under my house. Although he couldn't do the job (his company's insurance didn't cover him for working under the house), he explained what it was and what to expect from a plumber. read more

For a great Lawn see Mike. He comes in, he sees the problem he explains it and then he has his team come in. They till the land make sure the irrigation is working, prep the soil with good manure, lay the turf, and voilla you have a great lawn. All I had to do is keep it wet and cut it. read more

RotoTillerGuy - A full lawn what more do you want! - Landscaping Near Me - North Hollywood, California

Like I said in my original review, Mike doesn't listen or apparently comprehend when he reads. He's also a liar. All he did is blame me the customer for everything. I underestimated everything, hours, tonnage, etc. Only job I've ever had done where I had to do the estimate. I thought that was the job of the contractor to estimate the job, but apparently 25 years in the business you don't learn jack. He says he doesn't have a clue on any of this, yet you are expected to be able to give an accurate estimate. For one lie, his employees have not been with him as long as he stated, I ASKED THEM. Or are your employees liars? Then, I"M THE ARMCHAIR QUARTERBACK? All Mike does is sit in his truck, doesn't supervise or give any guidance to the "apprentices". I told him what I wanted and what I expected. It's his job to make sure that happens, not mine. What the hell am I paying you for? These clowns did a terrible job of laying the sod. Another lie, he claims to rototill 6" to 8" deep. He didn't do that at my house because if he did, he would have ripped up every sprinkler line out there. They are only 4"-5" deep. Explain that 25-year man. I hope all of us honest reviewers put your terrible ass out of business. You're pathetic. Can't even be a decent human being and fix things you F'd up or didn't complete. read more

Very honest and knowledgable. He mentioned the good, the bad, and the ugly. He said that what I needed was a roto tiller or a disc tiller behind a tractor and that I could hire someone in my area more cheaply. read more

I called Mike for an emergency irrigation/sprinkler issue. Instead of charging me to come out, he helped me temporarily solve the spewing water and gave me instructions on how to figure out what kind of issue (plumbing v irrigation) we were encountering. If the issue is that of one that Mike can help with, I will definitely be having him come out. So helpful when he did not even have to be!! read more

We had a leaking sprinkler head causing a constant puddle in the yard and Mike sent out an excellent technician who quickly diagnosed and fixed the problem. The pricing was straightforward and there were no surprise charges -- and best of all there's no longer a small pond forming in our yard at the expense of our water bill! read more

I really appreciate Mike going above and beyond. I work for a company that needed to have our sprinkler system serviced and he went out his way to help me identify which parts needed to be replaced and shared a YouTube on how to perform the work myself. I'm pretty handy and was able to figure how to do the work after seeing which parts to purchase and watching the video. He provided direct links from Amazon on where these parts could be purchased and explained the installation. I'm in sales and always provide great customer service so it's nice to see how Mike would do the same. Everyone wants to work with someone that is honest and goes the extra mile. Much appreciated! read more

We called up Mike after other places didn't consider our issue an emergency. A sprinkler control valve had become damaged and was starting flood our front yard. We told him our problem and he patiently walked us through how to find the root of the problem. After sending a few pictures, he informed us that it could be fixed with a quick trip to the hardware store and a few bucks. He believed that honesty was the best policy and that there was no need to spend extra money on what would've been a 10 minute job. Not only a good craftsman, but just a good honest guy. Thanks Mike! read more

Horrible costumer service and extremely rude. Some piece of shit who thinks he knows everything when he collects scraps for a living.

Mike answered the phone promptly and guided me how to take out the broken sprinkler head connector. He told me his prices which are fair and for free guided me to fix my own problem. Thank you again for your help. read more

Mike responded very promptly and provided great communication throughout the job... which is a rarity these days! Mike and his guy Gilbert did a great job in fixing a problematic sprinkler valve and adjusting my inflow water regulator pressure. I would definitely recommend his services! Thanks Mike! read more

I didn't get to hire them. I never to the chance. I spoke to Mike on the phone and wanted him to give me a bid on my sprinkler system and he told me "he doesn't get paid to drive around." and told me he wanted $145 just to take a look. Just to take a look? Take a hike Mike. read more

whew be prepared to spend a LOT of money. At $90 an hour several sprinkler head replacements will cost you over $1000.00. If money is no object, then these guys are for you - The work is well done! read more

DO NOT CALL THIS GUY, HIS ATTITUDE IS FOUL. Called Mike to see if and when he could come to my home to give and estimate. I gave him a quick rundown of what I needed & before I knew it he says " hold on, Im not gonna just drive around in LA traffic just to give you a quote!" He continued speaking in his ***tty tone, and folks I was done. HEY, Mr. Mike, try not to be mean and condescending to potential customers over the phone because of your hangups with quotes or...whatever. It's standard for us (pesky) customers to call and request that a business come out to see the site and give a quote then, or at a later date. As a businessman, calm yourself and explain your business process on how you go about quotes ect. Its redundant to be rude and nasty- Yelpers, I called someone else with no problem. From jump Mike was mad arrogant, rude and disrespectful. That was a red flag for me. read more

Mike was amazing. Our sprinklers wouldn't shut off and I couldn't find the source of the problem. My husband was out of town and because it was Mother's Day, my gardener wasn't available either. Mike was so calm and patient and walked me thru everything ultimately explaining exactly how to turn off the water source. He was able to identify the problem over the phone by talking and looking at photos without even coming to my property. He is very knowledgeable and was incredibly helpful on the fly! read more

Very professional sprinkler repair. On time and knowledgeable. Highly recommend RotoTillerGuy.

Extremely professional good quality workmanship Thanks guys we appreciated it Don & Cynthia

Almost a year later and my grass still looks amazing... Green as the rainforest during a monsoon. Greener then Bruce banner at the DMV. Green like a rowing competition of Oscar the grouch, and Kermit, vs master Yoda and Shrek down the Chicago river on st Patrick's day! You get it... it's pretty green. "Super green" if you asked Chris tucker in the fifth element... ok ok I'm done. Anyway rototill away man... rototill away. read more

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I have nothing against Mike personally, but to anyone who is unsure about hiring this company please heed my honest experience below. The first thing I'll mention is that although they didn't speak a single word of English, the laborers in my opinion did a really nice job and were pretty friendly too. I have much respect for them, as they are the ones who do the actual work. Mike on the other hand mostly just runs errands and "supervises", yet is probably making at least double or triple the money that they are...kind of a shame but I guess thats just how the world works. As far as cost, its moderately overpriced but not terrible. He has you buy the sod yourself which is good and he uses that as a selling point, but the other stuff he's clearly marking up pretty significantly. I do find it ironic that he claims to not do this just for the money, yet believe me if you work with him thats not the impression you'll get. Try testing him by asking if he'll include or do something very small for you at no additional charge, you're guaranteed a snide refusal. All the while he encourages you to give him extra free money at the end if they go "above and beyond", which makes no sense because there's no such thing as "above and beyond" when you're already Nickel and Diming for literally everything. Anyways, the other reviews saying that he's a difficult person and so forth in terms of communication/demeanor are not unfounded. In my opinion he displays characteristics of Narcissistic Personality Disorder, but only a Psychologist would really know. I won't say any more on that. One incident I faced was that Mike and his son (Mathew, who by the way is a cool guy) incorrectly measured my yard area, not by just a few feet but by 200 feet. With that he overcharged and then later, upon it being confirmed that they indeed had it too high, he became upset and refused to adjust the price even though the work done was the exact same had it been the right measurement initially. Of course he pins the blame on me for trusting that he (an experienced professional) knows how to measure. More than the error itself, just the way he handled it was pretty awful. A good, fair contractor wouldn't act or do business in such a manner. Lastly I find it noteworthy that on one night he started to send me some odd text messages...telling me that his ex wife was wrong to divorce him...that now she's the lonely one while he has a new girlfriend whom he bangs a lot etc. Keep in mind I DID NOT ask about his personal life at all, he literally just started telling me these things in the midst of a discussion regarding my project. Kind of random and weird if you ask me. If you hire this company, you can probably expect the job to turn out well...however be prepared for the challenges you might have to deal with in the process. I'll leave it at that. If you're reading this Mike, I hope you will treat people better in the future. Oh and by the way, thanks for giving me $100...my first payment to you was $4100 not $4200. But I guess by your own policy thats your fault, not mine haha. Maybe work on your math as well as your measuring skills! I'm teasing. Take care buddy. read more

Great review for the RotoTillerGuy and Team! Super responsive, was supportive in our decisions, explained how "stuff" works and reasoning behind their actions, and was upfront on cost. read more

I needed sprinkler valves replaced and was able to get it scheduled in one day and on a weekend as well. The work was excellent and a loud noise when the sprinklers turned off was resolved as well as receiving info on how to fix a noise in my toilet that occurred when the sprinklers were on. Highly recommend! read more