Chelsea had a fairly specific reason for turning to ServiceSeeking.com.au when it was time to remove the old evaporative cooling ducting from her double-storey home in Victoria Park, WA. She wanted to find a local business she could hire at a competitive price, and preferred supporting smaller, family-run businesses where possible.
She found Ben from Statewide Air-conditioning and Refrigeration through the platform.
The job involved removing the ducting and ceiling vents from four bedrooms, as well as one vent positioned above the staircase. The external roof-mounted unit was staying in place, while Chelsea planned to patch most of the resulting ceiling holes herself. The staircase presented a different problem, as it wasn't safely accessible for her to finish herself.
It was a job where comparing businesses mattered. Chelsea said ServiceSeeking was “better” than other ways she had tried to find local businesses because she could compare prices while also discovering smaller operators.
“I could find small businesses usually run by families, which I prefer to hire. The price is also more competitive since I can compare what I find on ServiceSeeking vs Google.”
The process also saved her time. Rather than spending hours searching through Google results or dealing with what she felt were high platform fees elsewhere, Chelsea found it easier to have businesses contact her after posting the job.
“The ease and cost of the service. Airtasker felt abusive with taking a large cut from both the worker and the client. Google was so time-consuming. People contacting me made it so much easier.”
For Chelsea, that convenience became particularly useful once Ben took on the work. He removed the old ducting from the four bedrooms and tackled the more difficult vent above the staircase.
The staircase hole also became part of the job. Chelsea had expected to patch the other ceiling holes herself, but the location above the stairs made this one difficult to handle safely. Ben patched it on the same day as the removal.
In her review, Chelsea noted that the work was completed carefully despite having recently had new carpets and tiles installed.
“Ben did fantastic work at our small double-storey home, removing our old, obsolete evaporative air-conditioning ducting.
He removed ducting from four bedrooms plus a very tricky one over the staircase. The resulting ceiling hole from the staircase duct was too difficult for me to patch myself, so Ben impressively patched it the same day. We'd had new carpets and tiles installed just three weeks earlier, and he left everything clean and untouched after he finished, which is a real sign of how considerate, organised, and professional his work is.
The price was competitive, especially since he was one of the few able to patch the staircase duct the same day as the removal. I really didn't want to live with a hole covered by a plastic sheet until it could be patched, so that made a world of difference (I patched the other four on the same night) for peace of mind.
I'm incredibly happy with his work and would highly recommend Ben at Statewide Air-conditioning and Refrigeration.”
Chelsea said the experience left her happy to have found a family or small business she could support while keeping the cost affordable.
That experience has also shaped who she would recommend the platform to. She has already mentioned ServiceSeeking to her sister in Melbourne, who has work planned at her home in the next year or so.
For Chelsea, the useful part was being able to put the job out there, hear from businesses and compare her options. In this case, it led her to a local contractor who could handle both the straightforward parts of the removal and the awkward bit that needed extra attention.