How My Wife Got Started in Air Duct Cleaning

This is a letter I wrote to a few Newspaper’s about Air Duct Cleaning Portland Oregon, specifically regarding my Wife, Michelle Doty. It’s a bit of a long read, but I’m so proud of the business woman she’s become, it’s truly amazing! Hopefully my friends don’t get think I’m pushing my biz too much on my personal page, this article is really about how I feel about my Wife. :

Our company started as Gas Piping & Ventilation specialists. It was a natural progression to offer Air Duct Cleaning Portland Oregon Services. Originally, we intended for our current male Technicians to perform this service. When one of our guys called in sick, Michelle filled in for the day as my helper on an Air Duct Cleaning job in BattleGround, Washington. Lol, she tore me apart! Why aren’t you hand washing the heating registers? Why don’t you clean the back of the Dryer when you pull it out to access the duct? Aren’t you going to clean the lint trap?! You should vacuum the carpet around each vent, wipe down the ceiling, etc.
I somewhat sarcastically replied, “Why don’t you start doing our Air Duct Cleaning!”. At the time, Michelle was only a part time partner in J&M Services. She quit her other job within a few months, hired a few other female technicians and never looked back!
Michelle still does the book keeping and all clerical duties for the Gas Piping & Ventilation division of J&M Services. The Air Duct Cleaning division is entirely ran by Michelle, our Female Lead Tech, Courtney and other helpers. She books all jobs, performs all bids and established all procedures & rates. Michelle has since joined several networking groups and really expanded out of her comfort zone. I’m so proud of my Wife and who she has become!
February marked our first year offering Air Duct Cleaning. With our amazing reputation the girls are building and Michelle’s nonstop can do attitude, we’ve doubled our gross in our first year. I’ve been surprised at some of the obstacles and old school way of thinking the women have faced, companies that have used our other services for several years balked at the idea of Female lead techs. We’ve been slowly winning them over, and hope to add a 2nd van by next Spring. Our online reviews, Angie’s list, etc are amazing, not a single bad review. Our girls do a better job and take the service to a higher level than I’ve ever seen. It’s not an easy job at all; the machines are heavy, often they have to crawl under houses and up in attics to inspect/repair ductwork.
The majority of companies offering Air Duct Cleaning locally are carpet cleaning companies. It’s not hard to modify their current machines for duct cleaning. They have no actual knowledge of how ductwork works, our background as Ventilation Specialists gives us a real edge in knowledge! The girls often help us keep up on our ventilation work as well, which keeps us all a family and gives them hands on training in proper duct work installation & troubleshooting.
I’ve also recently seen some bad press on Air Duct Cleaning in Portland Oregon. I’d like to offer my opinion on the subject. For one, we would never offer a service we didn’t feel was beneficial! After having Air Duct Cleaning performed on our personal house years ago, it stuck in my head that we could offer this service and do a better job. Just like any other service trade, a few bad eggs can give the whole service a rough image. Most companies have a time limit or maximum number of passes with the brush as part of their services. Often 2-3 passes isn’t enough. We keep going until the duct is all the way clean, no maximum passes, no time quotas or limits. When offering a cleaning based service, the end result is directly determined by the Technician.
It undeniably helped with our allergies at home. One of the most noticeable differences; the lack of dust around the corners of the vents and thruout the house for about a year after the job was done. Also, our furnace filters stayed clean much longer, as did the components inside the furnace. Dirt & Debris just sitting in equipment and ductwork accelerates rust and deterioration. There’s also the “Snowball effect”, in other words, once debris gains a foothold, it begins accumulating faster & faster. This is especially true for Dryer Vents. Dryer vent cleaning should be an annual service for everyone. Clothes dry faster, appliance last longer, and in many cases the homeowner avoids a serious fire threat.
Our girls are amazing! All our Techs are great people! We also treat our employee’s better than anywhere I’ve ever seen. We look out for the personal things that are important to them. We’re not scared to become attached, camp and do non work related things together. We truly consider J&M to be a family! Michelle influences me in so many ways. I had a business background prior to starting J&M, Michelle did not. I just can’t believe the strong person she’s become. We are truly 50/50 partners. Lol, she even dreams about work now, which she used to get irritated at me about (waking her up with a new idea). Air Duct Cleaning has become a mainstay of our business & a source of pride!