Provider profile
PuroClean of Fargo
Provider snapshot
What this listing says
Fargo-Moorhead homeowners who need same-day water damage or mold response from a locally owned PuroClean franchise where Tony Rickert handles jobs personally and coordinates with insurance.
Best for
- Fargo-Moorhead metro homeowners dealing with water damage from sump pump failures, burst pipes, or appliance leaks who need same-day extraction and drying.
- Property owners who want mold inspection and remediation handled through insurance, with the restoration company managing the claims process.
- Commercial property managers and business owners in the Fargo area who need a restoration company for recurring water damage, carpet cleaning, or duct cleaning work.
- Homeowners in Dilworth, Moorhead, West Fargo, or Glyndon who want a locally owned operator rather than a dispatched crew from a distant franchise territory.
About this company
PuroClean of Fargo is a PuroClean franchise serving Fargo, Moorhead, West Fargo, Dilworth, and surrounding communities in the Fargo-Moorhead metro. Owner-operator Tony Rickert grew up in the Fargo-Moorhead area and runs the business with a small crew that includes technicians Todd, Ricky, and Luke. The company handles water damage, fire and smoke damage, mold removal, biohazard cleanup, and ancillary services like carpet cleaning, duct cleaning, and dryer vent cleaning. Their Google category is water damage restoration, but mold work shows up in both the website and review history.
The website describes IICRC-certified technicians using HEPA filtration during mold remediation and antimicrobial treatments after removal. They mention containment measures to prevent cross-contamination during mold work. The company holds IICRC and EPA Lead-Safe certifications. Beyond those standard franchise capabilities, nothing on the website or in the reviews points to equipment or methods that stand apart from other PuroClean locations.
Tony Rickert is the visible face of this operation. He also runs a separate waste management company focused on sustainable disposal. Reviewers consistently describe him answering calls personally, showing up within hours, and staying involved through insurance coordination and project completion. Several commercial clients have used PuroClean of Fargo repeatedly, including a treatment center and a cleaning contractor.
The 5.0-star Google rating across 37 reviews is unusual. Every review except one is 5 stars. That is a strong signal for a small franchise operation, though the volume is still modest enough that a few bad experiences could shift it meaningfully.
Services
Service area
Based in South Fargo, ND at 3364 39th St S. Serves the Fargo-Moorhead metro including Fargo, Moorhead (MN), West Fargo, Dilworth, Horace, Glyndon, Barnesville, Briarwood, Prairie Rose, Reiles Acres, and North River. The website also lists Detroit Lakes, Lake Park, Rochert, Hawley, Audubon, Averill, and Rustad, which extend 45-60 miles northwest of Fargo. Confirm crew availability for those outlying areas.
Review consensus
Tony Rickert dominates the review feedback. Reviewers describe him answering calls immediately, arriving the same day, handling insurance paperwork, and staying involved through the entire project. Jeremy Stetz said Tony showed up within hours of a call to handle water removal and worked through the remodel with his insurance company. Pete Smith noted Tony has visited his home multiple times for duct cleaning and mold and moisture inspections, explaining processes and plans in detail. Above & Beyond Cleaning, a local contractor, called PuroClean the most capable company they have contracted with and singled out Tony. Moriah Anderson described Tony coordinating everyone to get a house back together after removal work. Tessa Albertson, a Local Guide with 56 reviews, praised timely water damage work and schedule flexibility. Casidy Heilman noted PuroClean answered the phone when other restoration companies did not respond. Amber Kragness described Tony removing bathroom ceiling mold and coordinating with insurance while working around a busy schedule. Jessika Ford praised Tony and his crew after fire damage restoration. Cody was named by Andrew Jacobs as knowledgeable and helpful.
1 found across 37 total reviews at 5.0★. One 2-star review exists (1 found across 37 total reviews at 5.0 stars). Dane Huotari reported scheduling a mold inspection with Tony after a sump pump failure, then waiting more than 48 hours with no one showing up. The reviewer was dealing with an active basement cleanup at the time. The owner responded five days later, stating the profile is fake and that Dane is a friend who did not post the review. The owner did not address the scheduling claim itself. Dane Huotari has only 1 Google review and is not a Local Guide, and the review received 0 likes. The conflicting claims make this incident hard to evaluate, but the owner's choice to label it fake rather than address the complaint is a data point about how this business handles criticism.
This is a small owner-operator franchise where Tony Rickert is the primary point of contact for nearly every job. That creates an unusually personal experience but also a single point of failure. If Tony is unavailable, it is unclear who manages client communication and project coordination. Several reviewers are single-review accounts, which is typical for referral-driven restoration businesses. The few established reviewers (Tessa Albertson with 56 reviews, Hershi Silva with 20, Pete Smith with 9) all left positive reviews, lending credibility to the overall pattern. The owner response rate on negative reviews is 100%, but with only one negative review, that rate is not statistically meaningful.
Tony Rickert (owner/operator — positive, named in approximately 15 reviews for responsiveness, insurance coordination, hands-on project management, carpet cleaning, duct cleaning, and mold inspection). Cody (technician — positive, named by Andrew Jacobs as knowledgeable and helpful).
Ask for Tony directly and confirm your appointment with a follow-up call or text the day before. The review record is strong but thin, and the one complaint involved a missed appointment. Get an independent mold test before agreeing to remediation since Tony's team does both inspection and removal. For water damage emergencies, multiple reviewers confirm same-day response, so this is a reasonable first call in the Fargo metro.
Keep in mind
- They do both mold testing and mold remediation. The same company identifying your mold problem is the one billing to fix it. Get an independent mold assessment before committing to remediation work.
- The one negative review describes a missed mold inspection appointment after a sump pump failure. The owner responded by claiming the review came from a fake profile. That response disputes the reviewer's identity rather than addressing the scheduling issue, which is worth noting regardless of whether the review is genuine.
- 37 reviews with a 5.0 rating is a strong record but a thin dataset. You have almost no third-party data about what happens when things go wrong.
- The service area list on the website extends to Detroit Lakes, Lake Park, Rochert, and Hawley, which are 45-60 miles from Fargo. Confirm response time and availability for locations outside the immediate Fargo-Moorhead metro.