Calculating Material Costs

[Beth n Rod 1,279]

Calculating Material Costs

By Russell Cissell, Extreme Solutions

An important part of any business plan is a system of estimating based upon solid formulas. There are many factors that must be considered in developing the formula that is going to optimize your profitability. One important factor is going to be your choice of materials. It’s not enough to know only the price of the materials, you must also be aware of the cost per job. The following examples will demonstrate how to determine the cost of any material you use. Further it will be broken down to a cost per square foot.

Example #1

Cedar home about 15 years old: Homeowner says the previous owner had some kind of solid colored stain but it was too light. Homeowner applied two coats of dark Behr solid on top of the other stain one year ago. The finish is badly molded in the shaded areas and failing in spots with high sun exposure. There are some signs of cracking and peeling. Total surface area to restore is 1,620 square feet.

Conclusions: Strong possibility that it was not prepped properly before the application of the existing finish. Cracking is caused by pressure created from the build up of water vapor trying to escape. Completely strip to bare wood and apply penetrating finish that will allow the vapors to escape.

Product Selection: HD-80, Citralic Acid Brightener/Neutralizer and Extreme Solutions Wood Tux Sealer.

Process: Apply HD-80 full strength and keep wet for 15 – 30 minutes. Pressure wash with low pressure (1,000 to 1,500 PSI) cold water and rinse. Apply Citralic Acid Brightener/Neutralizer and allow dwelling for 10 minutes and rinse. After sufficient drying time, apply Wood Tux Sealer in one heavy coat. Wood moisture content should be 12% or lower.

Material Cost: HD-80 10.8 Gallons $25.92

Citralic Acid 10.8 Gallons $17.82

Wood Tux 10.8 Gallons $192.24

Total $235.98

Divided by a total of 1,620 sq. ft. = 14.56 cents per sq. ft.

Example #2

Cedar fence about three years old. Homeowner says the fence was built three years ago and sealed with TWP 101 semi transparent sealer. Finish is faded in sunlit areas and is starting to show signs of mold infestation in some shaded areas. Total surface area to restore is 1,200 sq. ft.

Conclusions: Finish is showing signs of ware consistent with product performance expectations. Strip to bare wood and apply penetrating finish.

Product Selection: EFC-38 (Half Strength) and Extreme Solutions Wood Tux Sealer

Process: Apply EFC-38 at a 50% concentration, allow dwelling time of 15-20 minutes. Pressure wash with low pressure (1,000 to 1,500 PSI) and rinse well. After sufficient drying time apply Woo Tux in one heavy coat. Wood moisture content should be 12% or lower.

Material Cost: EFC-38 4.0 Gallons $9.60

Wood Tux 8.0 Gallons $142.40

Total $152.00

Divided by a total of 1,200 sq. ft. = 12.66 cents per sq. ft.

Example #3

Wood deck over ten years old. No apparent signs of a sealer. Wood readily absorbs water. The deck is shaded by large trees and gets very little sunlight. The deck overall is badly discolored however shows no signs of rot. Total surface area to restore is 750 sq. ft.

Conclusions: Lack of sunlight and damp conditions are conductive to mold and mildew infestation. Remove top layers of wood that are infested, brighten wood to restore natural color and apply a penetrating sealer with anti-fungal agent.

Product Selection: EFC-38 full strength, Citralic Acid Brightener/Neutralizer, Extreme Solutions Wood Tux Sealer.

Process: Apply EFC-38 full strength and allow to dwell for 5 to 10 minutes. Strip with medium pressure (1,500 to 2,200 PSI). Apply Citralic Acid. And allow to dwell 5 to 10 minutes and rinse. After sufficient drying time apply Wood Tux Sealer in one heavy coat. Wood moisture content should be 12% or lower.

Material Cost: EFC-38 5.0 Gallons $12.40

Citralic Acid 5.0 Gallons $8.25

Wood Tux 5.0 Gallons $89.00

Total $109.65

Divided by a total of 750 sq. ft. = 14.62 cents per sq. ft.

To calculate the cost of any other material that you use regularly, simply make a chart like the one below. Start with your price per gallon. Divide that by the coverage and you will have the cost per square foot.

Product Price Coverage Dilution Cost per Sq. Ft.

Wood Tux $17.80 per gallon 150 sq. ft Full 11.86 cents

HD-80 $2.48 per gallon 150 sq. ft.Full 1.6 cents

HD-80 $2.48 per gallon 300 sq. ft. 1:1 (50%) 0.8 cents

HD-80 $2.48 per gallon 600 sq. ft. 1:3 (25%) 0.4 cents

EFC-38 $2.48 per gallon 150 sq. ft. Full 1.6 cents

EFC-38 $2.48 per gallon 300 sq. ft. 1:1 (50%) 0.8 cents

EFC-38 $2.48 per gallon 600 sq. ft. 1:3 (25%) 0.4 cents

Citralic Acid $1.65 per gallon 150 sq. ft. Full 1.1 cents

[Guest rfitz]

Beth,

I am not doubting your figures, but, you are probably closer to the 100 sq ft per gallon on the cleaners, strippers, and briteners, and probably less due to the fact, that you have to keep misting with product, not water, to keep the chems working, so to be safe when I figure a job, I estimate the cleaners, strippers, and briteners at 75 sq ft a gallon, and I have found that to be a true and accurate assessment of how much chems I use...

So for an example, a 1000 sq ft deck with a typical cheap stain on it would require 13.5 gallons of HD-80 at $4.00 a gallon =$54.00 and citrolic acid 13.5 gallons @$2.00 a gallon = $27.00 and wood tux 5.75 gallons @ $20.00 a gallon =$115.00 add another $35.00 for misc. and you have $231.00 just in materials, this is a more realistic figure on what it will cost you to successfully complete this deck...

[Beth n Rod 1,279]

Rob,

This article is by Russell Cissell, of Extreme Solutions. They are his figures not ours. We have found them to be... circumstance accurate, and have been working with his products for several years now ourselves.

In many cases you don't need to use product at full strength. It depends on what you're removing, your level of experience, and if you have let it dwell long enough not to have to reapply the products.

Products that have multiple coats and are harder to remove will cost more per square foot to strip, and that's a fact regardless of what product you use.

The article was intended as a guideline or starting point. Circumstances vary, and each professional should have a basic understanding of how material costs work so they may calculate their own, based on the parameters of the job at hand.

Good luck on all your jobs! :)

Beth

p.s. Wood Tux is $19.00 per gallon x 5 = $95.00 per 5 'er FYI.