Every once in a while we like to spotlight a local company that is doing good and bringing value to our community. In this segment, we talk to RestorationEze owner Rusty Spoetzl about what it means to him to be able to make a living in this great city.

HP: Rusty, thanks for speaking with us. If you could, tell us what your company does.

RS: Thanks for having me! RestorationEze is a disaster recovery company, meaning we come in and fix properties when bad things happen to them. Most of our work is handling water damage emergencies, but we also deal with everything from fire losses to sewage backups and even stuff like meth lab cleanups and crime scene cleanups. We do the job no one else wants to do!

HP: Which brings me to my next question…why?

RS: I started out in a completely different industry and realized over the years that I didn’t have much satisfaction in my career. I was earning a living, but not really making a difference. But when someone has a basement flood and it feels like their entire life has been turned upside down, I get a lot of satisfaction out of being the company they trust to help them get things fixed. Some people probably think we’re just in the business of cleaning water damage or restoring homes after a fire, and that’s certainly some of the services we perform, but I really do feel like my main job is to help people get their lives back in order. For people that haven’t had a major incident like the things we deal with, it’s tough to understand just how emotionally devastating it can be. When bad stuff happens, what our customers really need is someone they can trust. Sadly, there’s a lot of water damage companies out there that can’t be trusted, so hopefully we can continue to build relationships over time and gain more of those customers’ trust.

HP: What advice would you give people if they’re dealing with water damage?

RS: There’s a couple of things people should know. First, you need to move quickly. Some clients call us a week later for whatever reason and that time we lost ends up causing a lot of problems. Sometimes it can even complicate a legitimate insurance claim. But the other thing they need to understand is that it’s their job to find a restoration company they want to work with. Too many people it’s their insurance adjuster’s job. That used to be the case, but the industry frowns upon that practice because there are too many conflicts of interest there. As a homeowner, do what’s right for you and your situation. The bill is going to be settled between us and the insurer, so just make sure you pick a company you trust will treat you right and do work the right way.

 

HP: That’s great advice! If a customer chooses RestorationEze, what should they expect?

RS: Well, first of all they can expect us to get our tails in gear and get out to their house whether it’s in the middle of the night on Christmas eve or there’s 2 feet of snow on the ground. In our industry, there is no time off and we understand that. Second, they can expect the work to be done according the right methods put in place by the IICRC. Nobody outside of the industry knows what that means, but the IICRC is basically the body that both provides the research behind water damage restoration to be able to properly instruct people on how best to handle it, but they also certify technicians out in the field. There’s a lot of companies out there that are happy to come out and cleanup basement flooding, but there technicians aren’t even certified and properly don’t know what they’re doing!