Sorry to say I have joined the ranks of those not wanting to reach out to Jim for any future services. I was a fan and had recommended him to a number of folks following his services here three weeks ago. A call back with a problem was another matter. Jim talked down to us like we were school children, and talked over us rather than say he was busy and would call back at a later time. Sent Jim photos of the problem heads and never heard back. Bottom line I researched the problems, removed the garden heads he installed myself and replaced them with a $7.00 package from Ace. I guess he is just to busy to engage n good old fashioned customer service. Glad for those that are pleased with him. Unfortunately we are no longer one of them. Just as a quick update Jim did reach back out yesterday. Said for some reason the pictures sent did not reach him until 2 days later. He was apologetic and offered to come out and fix problem. U fortunately I had taken care of it myself two days previous. He was polite and wanting to help.. Just wanted to provide update of what happened in my instance.

Negative Experience
 

We had a negative experience with Jim also. We called him due to the positive experience of others on Talk of The Villages. We weren't experiencing any problems but we wanted someone to check out everything and set the zones as they should be set. He was very abrupt and spoke quickly regarding the settings. We asked if it would be possible to write down the zones and times. He ripped a flap off of a cardboard box in our garage and wrote down zones and times. We later observed that a couple of the zones/times didn't match what he had written down. We called to ask if he could stop by at his convenience and double check the zones/times. We weren't upset or rude, just a simple request. He was very irritated and said he would walk us through it over the phone. We were new to The Villages at the time and weren't familiar with the system, which is why we sought his expertise. He stopped by and corrected the zones/times to match what he had written but he made us feel that we were demanding and too stupid to do it ourselves. He acted as if he was doing us a favor by even doing this for us. Perhaps he was having a bad day but we wouldn't think of engaging him again. I find it interesting that some portray those of us who had a problem with Jim as being people who could never be satisfied. I am glad that others had a positive experience and respect their opinion. I hope those of us who had a different experience will be respected also.

I'm not an expert but have some irrigation experience...
What a lot of people don't understand there is a setting on your irrigation control
called seasonal adjustment..which should be set at 100%..before setting any length of watering
Once you turn your control to run it may depending on rain sensor adjust to as much as 50% of the original setting
In Jim's defense his writing down times of each zone were most likely correct at time of setting.When you viewed the settings
with lack of understanding of the system lead you judge that he was wrong

bump. Great post.

That's interesting that you mention the seasonal adjustment. In fact, he suggested that this wire/feature should be disconnected...which he did. Thanks for that thought but that doesn't explain what happened; he simply made a mistake. The fact is, he was rushed, abrupt, and rude. That was our experience with him. His many positive customers ensures his continued success and I respect their opinions. The opinion of those of us who had an unsatisfactory experience should also be respected.

Disconnecting that blue wire disables the Solar Sync function. Be prepared for a very heavy water bill while it's disabled. :read:

Jim just did my system-job well done-will have him again if needed!!!

Very well stated! :thumbup:

Probably the best benefit of this site, is the feedback of its members on businesses, services and experiences...whether it be good OR bad.

We are all free to make our own judgments as to the veracity of the person posting their opinion/experience (whether positive or negative), but those who automatically label a posters experience/opinion (especially when they have not had any actual dealings with that particular business or person) from EITHER perspective...are the ones who are suspect as to their agenda and should just stay quiet IMHO. :shrug:

Just as a quick update Jim did reach back out yesterday. Said for some reason the pictures sent did not reach him until 2 days later. He was apologetic and offered to come out and fix problem. Unfortunately I had taken care of it myself two days previous. He was polite and wanting to help.. Just wanted to provide update of what happened in my instance.

:shrug::shrug::shrug:

Is this very old?
 

This is the end of July.
We've not run our sprinkler once in two months, it is manually shut off, and our lawn is great.

It is a balancing act. Too much fertilizer. Using the water soluble stuff that lasts for two weeks or so, will require more water. That sudden growth will cause fungus and insect damage.

What type of grass do you have?

I do not like " knocking " anyone figuring most people are entitled to a bad day. Nevertheless I asked Jim to come to my villa to fix a broken head in the back and inspect the rest of the heads to see if they were working properly. We have a lot of heads since there is one on each plant. The replacement went fine but two days latter my wife noticed a head not working in the front where it would be obvious it was not and we found two more the same day in the same condition. She fixed them. For that reason we would not do business with Jim again.

We've been doing business with Jim for years...he's always been very courteous and knowledgeable. We'll continue to use him.

I've hired about 3 or 4 different people/companies and had one come out for an estimate, all recommended on TOV and I would never recommend them or hire them again. When I spoke to the owner of the business, he didn't care. More of a 'too bad for you and he's our best painter'. The guy that was so nice to come out for an estimate, never called back..... Amazing!