How much to charge?

[turnkey4099]

A guy asked me today how much I would charge to cut up a bunch of locust for him. Trees are all down and most of the brushing done. I would only be cutting them into rounds. I suspect that he would also want them split after he works at that for a bit.

My take on it is that an honest price for the work would be higher than anyone would pay. My first guess at it would be about $25 an hour but then you factor in the equipment, etc it sounds too low. I would have to charge by the hour as I can't even begin to guess how long it would take. I am good for about 4 hours at a shot on bucking with only a couple short coffee breaks.

Harry K

 

[YarraValleyDude]

If it were me I'd be charging $40/Hr depot to depot.

 

[savageactor7]

If I could cut it up in a day without killing myself I'd charge 150...and that's a 7hr day.

 

[Moss Man]

$20-$25 with saw and tools in hand isn't unfair. Stay busy and keep good track of work and breaks, all is fair.

 

[Ductape]

Simply for comparison...... I see a guy (or several guys) on Craigslist here offering to buck and split your downed trees for $25 /hr. with a five hour minimum. Personally..... I would think that if it were my equipment and gas, I wouldn't be working at breakneck speed for $25/.

 

[avalancher]

Funny you should ask, I stopped last night at a job, a neighbor reffered me to his friend from church.Same scenario, the trees are down and he just wants em cut up for firewood.I gave him my standard price of 28.00 bucks an hour, he jumped all over it.

 

[sbhooper]

I don't think that $25-$30/hour would be bad. The logs are down, so you are dealing with pretty straight forward stuff. I haven't done that type of job, but I have cleared some fencelines for $25/hour and I felt like that was too cheap climbing hills and canyons. I still came out OK on it, though, as I did not tear up any equipment. Breakdowns always change the equation, but you cannot plan every job on potential breakdowns.

 

[KsWoodsMan]

No matter how good the job pays it isn't worth anything if you can't get paid.

How much of your own firewood can you cut before you are ready to put up ?
If you can cut and stack a cord in a workday before you are ready to quit then charge him for a cord of wood or the going rate. You can't make it less profitable than working it for yourself or there isn't much point.

With the exception, that the money is today (bird in hand) instead of this winter when wood sells. If it turns out that $25 an hour is better than what you make then adjust accordingly or test the water with it. If he baulks at the price you set remind him that gas, oil, chains and the right equipment don't come cheap. You bought the equipment you have for better productivity than Wal-Mart tools offer.

 

[avalancher]

....any idea what your fuel cost, bar oil, driving time and wear and tear on your chainsaws comes to per hour?

Thats pretty easy, drive time is less than ten minutes away.As far as fuel and bar oil for the saw, even running wide open with the 357 I burn less than a gallon an hour of fuel, less than half that of course in bar oil.
I have estimated that continuosly cutting with the 357xp I run in the neighborhood of 5-7 an hour in expenses including chain wear.As far as over all wear and tear on the saw, I have had very little expense over the years in repairs.I repair my own saws, and parts are reasonable for my saws.Even if I threw a total of ten bucks an hour to expenses, I am still getting a decent wage for doing what I love doing.
If the job was further away, steep hillsides to deal with, etc then I adjust my price accordingly.

Just out of curiosity Treeco, what do you figure for expenses for one saw running per hour?

 

[sbhooper]

Does anybody have a way that they figure wear and tear on a saw/equipment? I don't feel like it is very much unless something breaks down. I have used the original chain on my 361 for LOTS of cutting, so it really owes me nothing (it is time to change to a new one). On a moderate job, I would figure the price of a chain just because and then estimate the gas and travel time. Past that, I don't know how you could figure in the equipment. Fortuneately, I don't have to make a living doing it, so if I screw up, it is not going to change the frequency of my meals. I am just trying to figure out a consistent way to provide a good service at a price that makes it worth my while also.

 

[savageactor7]

I can't give an hourly price for cutting because I'm such a lethargic cutter and a believer of frequent brakes. Sometimes while working folks think I'm dead but No ... I just smell that way. That's why I give a flat rate job price.

 

[sbhooper]

Good point about the flat-rate jobs. I have to do that with Game and Parks contracts. I can see where the price would go up a lot paying for insurance etc. I don't have a lot of additional expenses other than equipment, so it is easier to keep the price more reasonable, but I am still learning how to price the jobs. I can do fine charging by the hour because I cut fast and stay after it. I usually just work a little longer than I figure to cover the breaks.

 

[turnkey4099]

Thanks for the replies. I'm still not enthused about it but may test him at $25/hr. One consideration is the work is in my local cutting area and referrals are how I am getting lots of locust takedowns - locust being the only hardwood in any abundance out here and then only because it is being killed by the Locust Borer. I am in competition with a couple other 'wooders' for anything that comes available.

Harry K

 

[Tree Pig]

How many trees are we talking about. I could buck up a wood in an hour. Drag all your gear out there for $25 would seem crazy to me. Hopefully your talking a few big trees with plenty of large limbs or else I may go with a flat price if its a short job.

 

[sloth9669]

same

same thing here a guy down the street.....clear cut some land and has 20-30 cord and iam just charging him by the cord...whatever is sold is what i get paid on this way we both win i get 130 per cord cut and split. no stacking or delivery's. i got 3 helpers and we all gonna split the money to make light work of it. pics to follow.

 

[smokinj]

No matter how good the job pays it isn't worth anything if you can't get paid.

How much of your own firewood can you cut before you are ready to put up ?
If you can cut and stack a cord in a workday before you are ready to quit then charge him for a cord of wood or the going rate. You can't make it less profitable than working it for yourself or there isn't much point.

With the exception, that the money is today (bird in hand) instead of this winter when wood sells. If it turns out that $25 an hour is better than what you make then adjust accordingly or test the water with it. If he baulks at the price you set remind him that gas, oil, chains and the right equipment don't come cheap. You bought the equipment you have for better productivity than Wal-Mart tools offer.

+1
I ave a climber that also sells firewood this is how he charges me. (in ricks never does he say a doller amount) I also look at it the same way

 

[turnkey4099]

How many trees are we talking about. I could buck up a wood in an hour. Drag all your gear out there for $25 would seem crazy to me. Hopefully your talking a few big trees with plenty of large limbs or else I may go with a flat price if its a short job.

I didn't go down to look at them. From memory from last year when they were still standing it is 6-8 big ones. The stuff I could see from the house didn't look like enugh logs to be all of them - some may have already been worked up.

Harry K

 

[KsWoodsMan]

How many trees are we talking about. I could buck up a wood in an hour. Drag all your gear out there for $25 would seem crazy to me. Hopefully your talking a few big trees with plenty of large limbs or else I may go with a flat price if its a short job.

I didn't go down to look at them. From memory from last year when they were still standing it is 6-8 big ones. The stuff I could see from the house didn't look like enugh logs to be all of them - some may have already been worked up.

Harry K

For any job including smaller jobs you need to establish a minimum. The saws dont load themself, clean themself or sharpen their own chains to get ready for the next job. Most equipment operators will have a 2-4 hour minimum, even for a 5 minute job.

He might have wore out his back or saw trying to work up what has been done so far or gotten scared and ready to let an experienced woodcutter finish up.

 

[Brushwacker]

I charge $25 an hour using my saws and consider it cheap . Time on the job and touch ups on the chain when needed . No charge for breaks.
A lot of people I know working union I hear are making way more with benifits using sombody elses equipment. $30 - 40 an hour + .

 

[WidowMaker]

I'd charge him by the cord, just like I was selling him firewood...