Rebelduckman
Minister of Fire
I know some good ol boys down here out of work and would jump on it for $10 an hour probably! It doesn't cost as much to live down here though
Price for splitting wood
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I know some good ol boys down here out of work and would jump on it for $10 an hour probably! It doesn't cost as much to live down here though
Thanks for the advice. It helped that the guy is an electrical contractor and understands the cost of doing business. I own and operate a small landscape maintenance business. He called me back and asked if I would be ok if he had 2 more tress dropped. We have had a lot of high winds lately and he is nervous.
claydogg84
Minister of Fire
He's bringing his own splitter and gas, so really his price is cheap considering what just a rental would cost.
Rebelduckman
Minister of Fire
Around here you can get a full cord of split ash delivered for $120.00. Wouldn't be worth it to me to pay over $20 an hr.
The guy has the wood already lying in his yard, he just wants it split and stacked but obviously doesn't want to the work himself.
He could rent a splitter himself, but he'd have to pick it up and return it, and since he doesn't want to do the labor he's still have to find someone to hire who'd work cheap, possibly with little or no experience using a splitter which would likely mean it would take longer. Then there's the liability thing if the inexperienced worker gets hurt.
Sounds to me like he made the right choice hiring the experienced guy he already trusts and knows who has his own equipment, even if it might cost him a few dollars more.
I must be one of them greedy, lazy, folks ...coz after reading this thread, I can't figure out why nobody hit on the obvious answer.
Quote the homeowner $30+/hr plus costs, go down to where the local Hispanic dayworkers hang-out, pick up a good, honest worker @$10 an hour. Set him to work and clear $20+ an hour for using your head. It's how America was built. By poor people doing all the work, while rich white people made all the money.
Quote the homeowner $30+/hr plus costs, go down to where the local Hispanic dayworkers hang-out, pick up a good, honest worker @$10 an hour. Set him to work and clear $20+ an hour for using your head. It's how America was built. By poor people doing all the work, while rich white people made all the money.
That's a great price for a cord of split White Ash delivered even if it's at its just split moisture level of 30% or so! I'd be saying the hell with the saws and splitter too!
I think the OP should just treat it like any other service he offers at the price he quotes anyone. Trees in landscaped environments falls under a different category than harvesting timber off of forested lands and using heavy machinery to mass process firewood.
A girl at work I know paid 2500.00 to have 3 white pines taken down in her front yard.
The hazards and liability and all that crap figure in.
Charge what you charge for your services and go with a Time and Materials price quote.
I dont think what we pay for firewood to be an element of the labor equation.
An excavating company down the road from me has huge rocks cabled to pallets and they want 660.00 a rock. The owner told me theres free delivery.
He laughed and said the Rock was really free, the delivery and offloading was 660.00.
A girl at work I know paid 2500.00 to have 3 white pines taken down in her front yard.
The hazards and liability and all that crap figure in.
Charge what you charge for your services and go with a Time and Materials price quote.
I dont think what we pay for firewood to be an element of the labor equation.
An excavating company down the road from me has huge rocks cabled to pallets and they want 660.00 a rock. The owner told me theres free delivery.
He laughed and said the Rock was really free, the delivery and offloading was 660.00.
Actually they went to Africa to get their workers, and they didn't pay them a dime. That's how America was built.
Here in Ohio, if your worried about liability then you need to hire someone insured that bids the job. If you hire by the hour you need to be paying workers comp and taxes.
It cost way to much to go to Africa these days. lolActually they went to Africa to get their workers, and they didn't pay them a dime. That's how America was built.
I'd figure my bid price based on my estimate of the time required, plus any costs like rental of a splitter, but I'd bid by the job. I like fixed prices better than hourly, so you can work fast and make more profit, or take it easy if you feel like it.
Poindexter
Minister of Fire
I would look for a flat rate price to leave the fresh splits in a pile for someone else to stack. Going rate up here is $50/ cord to turn a cord of rounds into a cord of splits.
For every one time you drive by a property and say to yourself, "Boy I wish I could stack like that," how many other properties have you already driven by and thought to yourself, "Jeez, my stacks look better than that." Stacking is just a tar-baby I think. Very sticky, can't hardly ever get loose.
For every one time you drive by a property and say to yourself, "Boy I wish I could stack like that," how many other properties have you already driven by and thought to yourself, "Jeez, my stacks look better than that." Stacking is just a tar-baby I think. Very sticky, can't hardly ever get loose.
I used to rent myself and splitter out in 4 hr blocks, $100. People thought it was a great value as I can do a lot of wood in 4 hours...it sure helped pay off my new splitter in a hurry and then I stopped. There was a decent money making opportunity there but I just wanted to pay off my splitter.
Wow, I'm in the wrong line of work. I don't get paid for my time to drive to work or for the gas it takes me to get there. I can't imagine making $20/hour just to split and stack firewood. And then to hear that the going rate for landscaping is $40/hour plus paying and equipment/gas fee??? There must be way too many overpaid people around to afford that. I make pretty good money and wouldn't even consider paying for that type of work.
I'm sure it's like that in most places in the civilized world, but people everywhere will still pay people by the hour to do odd jobs around their home. For instance, when people hire the kid down the block to cut their grass do they pay workers comp, or taxes or make sure the kid has insurance??? I think not. Your own home insurance covers most things like that, but you still have to use a certain amount of common sense. You won't hire that same kid to operate a piece of dangerous equipment he has no experience running.
Bagelboy
Feeling the Heat
For me, I paint for people sometimes, and charge $25/hour cash! I would do it for the same rate, plus charge for the gas I use. I would even bring my splitter if he had none. $25/hour is a rate I can live with!
$40 prhr is pretty fair. If your yard takes me 1.5 hrs to mow, trim, edge and blow it will be $70. Now let's do the math. I had to buy and insure all of the equipment. Then I had to buy a truck and trailer. Let's add in the fuel my mower blower and trimmer burns. Out of that 60 roughly $15 goes for taxes. Now add in the 1000000 liability policy plus the 750 per year for workers comp. oh and then you have to buy trimmer line, and mower blades. So after all that I should be doing the work for minimum wage? Nah I'll pass. As for splitting wood, the homeowner is welcome to go and spend 1k on a splitter or 63 to rent it. The he can drive 19 miles each way to pick it up and return it. Let's say he burns 3 gallons of fuel to run the splitter. My labor rate seems fair. I worked for 7 hours yesterday, 8 but I took a break, and we settled on 150 because there is still more wood led to be split nex week.
It is oak? PFFFTTT. $46 for a fiskars ax and $3 for bungy cord or two. No need for a splitter. You can probably do it faster with an ax. $40 an hour in Madison wisconsin I would charge. In my hometown if I actually lived there, which is a small town with lower costs, maybe $30.
sportbikerider78
Minister of Fire
Your $8 in the 80's adjusted for 2.5% inflation YOY is the new $15/hr. Readjust for the rising cost of goods....$20 is the new $8. If you want to blame someone for not working for a lower wage, blame the government for destroying the value of a dollar!
It could be that the person you are talking about has a much better way to earn $20 then splitting wood. Everyone has a different value on their own time,,,because it is their own and no one elses.
The poster already came up with a price and agreement with the owner. Nothing more needs be said.
I do love how folks love to put a value on their selves, like they are the only one that does what they do, and the justifications that come with it.
The bottom line is, your worth as much as a person is willing to pay you, or what the going market rate is.
Think it is time for a mod to close this puppy down.
I do love how folks love to put a value on their selves, like they are the only one that does what they do, and the justifications that come with it.
The bottom line is, your worth as much as a person is willing to pay you, or what the going market rate is.
Think it is time for a mod to close this puppy down.
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