Blow out pricing

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Nereus

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We are blowing out several large sprinkler systems for one company this year. Some are single clocks with 7 to 9 stations and some are two clocks with 9 to 10 stations each. There are nine properties total and thay are approximately thirty miles apart. We want to keep it simple and charge one average price for each property. Any ideas as what to charge?
 

Randyj

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I don't have a clue... time plus mileage... what's your hourly charge? How long will it take to do a blow out job? How much other business that pays top dollar will you have to pass up while you do this job below your regular hourly rate?
 

hj

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blow out

You should charge whatever it costs you to do the job plus your overhead and profit. Obviously the bigger ones will take longer than the small ones, (although the close ones will not require the travel time of the further ones), so you have to calculate the total cost and then divide it by the number of individual locations to get a "single price".
 

Verdeboy

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Call a couple of other lawn sprinkler companies and ask what they would charge. Pretend you're the property manager for this company.

If you also do sprinkler repair, you can offer a discount rate if they allow you to fire up these same systems next spring and do all the repairs.

BTW, those are not large sprinkler systems. Many of the apartment complexes I worked for had 10 to 30 clocks per property, with 15 or more zones on each.
 

Gary Swart

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I fail to see how this would make it simpler. Seems to me it would make more sense just to figure out how much time, and milage each job took and itemize them individually on your billing. When you add each of the jobs costs you would have your answer, and it would give the owner the opportunity to charge the expense to each property if he so desired.
 

Verdeboy

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Gary Swart said:
I fail to see how this would make it simpler. Seems to me it would make more sense just to figure out how much time, and milage each job took and itemize them individually on your billing. When you add each of the jobs costs you would have your answer, and it would give the owner the opportunity to charge the expense to each property if he so desired.

I assume he'd want his prices to be in line with what others are charging. If his bid is too high, they may find someone else or not give him any more business once they get the bill. Of course, he also has to take into account his time and travel expenses before coming up with the bid. He has to make a decent profit. But it can't hurt to know what the competition is charging in his area.
 

Randyj

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Thats very true. I worked kinda cheap for a couple of years just to get my feet wet in the busines. Nowadays, I don't do haggling. I give them a price and that is my Bottom dollar price. If I can't make what everyone else in the area is making I just pass on the job and go to the next one. I'm too old and too tired and too broke to be working for too cheap. I've walked away from lots of jobs because for me to do it the customer would have to pay me too much and he could get someone else more into that kind of work to do it cheaper and better. I want to be treated fairly and honestly and I treat the customer the same way. I won't work for $5 per hour for someone I know lives in a million dollar house and makes big money...ain't gonna happen if ya know what I mean.
 

Cookie

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I have learned that those people in the big lavish homes, usually have no cash on hand, or in the checking acct. Most of their money is tied up in investments, or in the house payment, or on cars, or they are in debt to their eyeballs. Most of these homes, too, you will find sparse furnishings.

I know of an older couple from years ago, who came from old money, had money and alot of it. Yet, they used wooden crates for end tables, used one lamp in the one room, and when they offered you something to drink, it was in a dixie cup. Then, they reused the damn cup. To get something to eat there was not a reality. I am not saying that is how they all live, but, enough of them do. I couldn't laugh at this, it was too sad.

One other thing, for years their toilet did not work right. And, they posted a sign which said to dispose of all toilet paper in the trash can, which was next to it.

That was after they started to buy toilet paper. Believe it or not, they used to put a telephone book on the back of the toilet. That is what you used. I refused.

I will drink out of a dixie cup, I will sit in dim lighting, I will go hungry, but, I refuse to use a telephone book.
 

Randyj

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Yep... known a few folks like that. One of my hometowns best known men (just recently deceased) was about that way. He had this big mansion built and only had a window unit air conditioner...only in HIS bedroom! Only had a DIRT driveway for this huge big beautiful house. I was surprised that I never had a problem collecting...but it was the wife that paid. This guy's claim to fame was that in over 30 years he had never missed a Lion's club meeting...go figure.
 
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