I first contacted John Whyte of True North, for advice about correcting an ice dam that had formed on the aging gutters surrounding our home. John politely advised me not to try melting the ice, lest the melting and re-freezing cause real damage to the roof. "Wait until spring" he recommended. "We don't repair gutters, but if you need replacements, we'll be happy to discuss those".
The next day I had a quote in my mailbox. John had dropped by and finding we weren't home, visually worked out a quote using the front driveway view and general characteristics of the house. I now had a budget for my replacement option -- no pressure, no obligation.
When what passed for spring in April 2015 arrived, John contacted me again. Based on HomeStars reviews and the material John had earlier provided, I had decided to proceed, and we arranged an installation date.
That day was uneventful -- which is perhaps the best adjective you can hope for with any home renovation project. John's team arrived, checked in with my wife, replaced the gutters in a few hours, and departed, carting every scrap of the old gutters and with no trace of debris left behind.
About a week later, we had our first good rain. How odd it was not to see drips from every corner, and water running out only where it should. While no guarantee can exist against future ice dams, this will be a terrific start. I'm glad we invested in True North's service.