Seems like getting the big jobs can be great in that if you get month long projects all the time you can devote a crew to those, get a second truck and chipper, and devote another crew to all the residential projects.
Biggest job I have ever gotten was about 11,000 and took a week. Would love to get more of those.
Today we had a couple nightmares!
Shortly after leaving my yard, one of my guys backed the chipper into something which ended up bending the wheel well and popping the tire. In the meantime I run over there to help get the tire jacked up and out so the crew minus one can go to the job in my dually. Once they leave we realize they have the jack so they have to get off the freeway and come back. They finally get back and drop off the jack and leave. Then my foreman and I take off the tire and I shoot off to the tire shop, who replaces it quick. In the meantime I have my foreman changing the knives. While he;s doing this one of the knives falls off and gets stuck behind the bed knife. So when I arrive we take off the anvil to get the fallen knife out and while doing that I decide to reverse the anvil to get a better edge and end up breaking the little bolt you use to adjust it! Thankfully this is not vital, just annoying (it's not one of the bolts that cinch it down but the little guy on the opposite side you use to move the anvil when adjusting it.).
So while doing this and finally getting the chipper back in action we realize that the crew in the dually took off with the dump truck keys! They are already long gone so I call AAA to make me a new key. So finally after that's done my foreman is able to take off and go to the job by 9:45. I ended up having to postpone my morning estimates... I think my employees are conspiring to kill me! I guess when it rains it pours!