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Beth n Rod

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Posts posted by Beth n Rod

  2. Posted · Report reply

    Doing it for nothing is something I won't do.

    You are performing on someone else's property and if you aren't charging for it and it is not disclosed in a proposal, bid or estimate, you are liable for any and all damages that result.

     

    Hourly rates are for employee's and lawyers. Even plumbers and electricians don't give hourly anymore. They charge by the service.

    We don't give out an 'hourly' rate either. Due to the varying factors many projects will have, there is no way to really put an hourly rate on it considering there is so much more that go into costs.

     

    Rod

    Beth n Rod, Guy B and John T reacted to this

  5. Posted · Report reply

    In the beginning, I always timed myself to see how long it took to accomplish various tasks in different configurations.

     

    Once I had a grasp over production time and the typical amount of materials used (plastic, tarps, tape) I could then factor my costs based upon

     

     

    Time to complete the job plus set up, prep time and break down/cleanup became a number relative to the square footage of the job.

     

    If there were no steps and I had to use a ladder, I would add time to that by lowering the sqft/hour production rate.

     

    Materials are based upon their coverage rates minus 10-20% to account for spray lost and absorption variances on different species.

     

    Having to hand apply meant a different production rate which was obviously lower than spraying and back brushing/padding.

     

    Your hourly must include more than just what you make. It should include the employer contributions of F.I.C.A., S.S. and Medicare required.

    Figure out your typical service area. Take a compass and put the point on your location. Now, depending upon the scale of the map you are using, expand the compass to

    determine your service area (1/4"=1 mile for example) and make a circle. Anything within that circle should have a cost built into your labor costs. Ex; 30 minutes max/person driving to a job=labor x :30 minutes x # of crew.

     

    If you are thinking your labor cost would be $40.00/hour/person, you could be losing money. Many companies I am aware of won't leave the house for less the $1000.00/day

    Don't get me wrong, you don't want to base your costs on other companies, but the smart ones take All their costs into consideration before coming up with a price structure.

     

    What are you paying your crew?

    What are the required employer contributions? and the percentage/wage dollars?

    How long does it take to do the job?

    How many trips to complete each phase (wash/strip, Sand, stain/seal)?

    What is the mpg of your vehicle being used?

    How long does it take you on average to get to any point within your service area?

    What would be considered your 'extended' service area and what types of work would you accept beyond the regular service area?
     

    What are your insurance costs per month? Do the math and find out how much that is per day, per hour. 7 days a week. (yeah, we all work weekends when weather messes us up)

     

    Do you have office staff? How much are you paying them? This should be included in the costs for labor for the time the office work would take. Why? Because someone has to man the phones, take messages, file paperwork, send faxes/emails/snail mail and process the transactions relative to the job.

    The average customer requires: phone calls, emails or faxes to initiate, process and complete the transaction.

    They require time for consultation, follow up and intermidiate communications for progress of job and sheduling.

    This can range from 1 hour to several depending upon the customer and the complexity of the project.

     

    Doing this kind of analysis and costing can help you to arrive at a price.

     

    All the costs can be summed up in a sqft basis but make sure you know how much you can do, or better yet what your employee's WILL do. They aren't vested like you, so count on things taking a little bit longer where they are concerned.

     

    You could use a sliding scale to cost your services which means the $$$/sqft price may drop incrementally as the sqft goes up.
    We use this for decks mostly due to the fact that once you take out the prep, set up and break down, the production rate goes up as the work is being done due to the

    most difficult part being the rails. The floor is the fastest and easiest which makes up the brundt of the sqft overall. So the sliding scale comes in handy and keeps you from over bidding due to a set price/sqft.

     

    Enough for now.

     

    Rod

    ArchieMN reacted to this

  12. Posted · Report reply

    If you are just cleaning a gray deck that has no stain or sealer, you can actually do a better favor to the wood by using a percarbonate instead of the bleach mix for house washing.

    Yes, it will get rid of the gray but it also leave behind chemical that on the next wet weather cycle can become active again and degrade the wood.

     

    A percarbonate is oxygenated bleach. It has a life of 4-6 hours once mixed with water and applied. After that, it is inert and useless.

    This product is harmless to the wood afterwards and actually brightens it without the use of chlorine. It kills mold and helps to remove the gray wood fibers that are caused by exposure to the suns UV rays.

     

    Mind you, this can also work on decks having a sealer/stain in place as a maintenance cleaner which has little effect on the coating itself, but will help to remove dirt, mold and prepare the surface for maintenance applications of whatever sealer/stain is in place.

     

    This is basically an introductory to one small aspect of wood care  which does not give the topic of wood care the thorough explanation it requires but in the case of your question, it provides an answer to the basics of your question.

     

    Too much to go into here. It requires a class and about a week of your time both in a structured educational format and hands on work in the field to begin to understand the many facets of what one should know when it comes to wood care.

    I hope in the case of your question, I have helped at least in that regard.

     

    Rod

  24. Posted · Report reply

    When we first started out, I used to just hand roll all my hoses.

    But then again, I used to carry them from the front to the rear and back of each house/townhouse configuration we did.

     

    KILLED my back!

     

    Never got into the electric reels. Bought my first one in 2000, 200' Rapid Reel and it is still in service to this day.

    In 2004, bought a 3 stack by hosetract and it is still in use as well.

     

    When it comes to this topic, I think it is going to come down to: How much hose do you use on a regular basis?

    50' ? hand roll...easy-hand roll!

    100'? hand roll or reel?

    200'?   Yeah, you bet a reel!

     

    Rod

    cleanhoods reacted to this

  25. Posted · Report reply

    With all the hacks in the field it is no wonder they dumped them.

     

    Too much liability with people who get into the KEC and don't know what they are doing and leaving themselves wide open for a lawsuit.

    I don't think it has anything to do with easy money, it is a matter of the caliber of clientel.

    Restaurants have a huge liability on their own and to add someone who doesn't clean a system well to it would be a nightmare in the making.

     

    Insurance companies assess these types of accounts with loss potential. They are too great comparatively.

     

    Since we don't do hoods, I can't offer any alternatives.

     

    Rod

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