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charge for splitting wood

Started by boboak, December 27, 2005, 01:02:42 AM

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boboak

   Whats a reasonable charge for splitting wood?  I"ve got an awesome home made splitter that my father-in-law built but we just use it around here and help out the neighbors.  I've had people ask me about renting it but I"d rather run it myself...saves a little on operator abuse.  It would be mostly a part time thing...a little extra revenue in the winter when logging slows down and I've finished my honey-do list.  I"d prefer to work hourly but would bid a job on flat  rate if I knew all the details.  I know what it costs per hour to run the splitter but theres probably costs I haven't taken into consideration.  Help me out here...what do you charge in your area (I'm in Northern California) and what might be a few things to watch out for. smiley_confused
Sometimes you get things done faster if you do them slower

Flyboy

 8) I wouldn't do it for less than $20. an hour, and strickly BY THE HOUR! and thats probably cheap.
I was in the wood business 5 years, had a good sized processor too.
Is THEIR wood all bucked and piled right near by? Or you got to saw it too?  THEY want it stacked TOO? How small they want it split? Whats a cord? Depends on whether your buyin or sellin? Good handlin 10" chunks or big burly back breakin garbage that should have stayed in the woods anyway?
Myself, I do my own and thats it. Period! I don't want to discourage you man, but firewood is hard, back breakin work, specially if your doing it by hand!  A lot of people burn wood cause it's "Trendy" and yeah the price of oil sucks too. MOST of them CAN'T or DON'T WANT TO do the work themselves, some "Transplants" up here turn their nose up at it like it's Lacky work or somethin.
But figure your hourly rate- add the Stupid charge for stupid customers- 20% fair - transportation charge to and fro - dirty wood charge - father in law's cut - vandalizum charge- liability insurance, (for when customer helps) Landscaping fee - for when spring comes and they see their lawn, Oh yeah Chyropractor fee for your back - and accountant fees for all the money you made, and last but most important Sales Tax for the privalidge of keepin Arnie in office.
You'd be better off with a part time job at Wally World. ;) ;)
Flyboy


A "Good Old Jack" -  DT 7500 Kubota 4X4 Farmi Winch - Norwood LM 2000 Band Mill - A Good Son, A Good Dog,

Ianab

Yeah... what money do you need per hour?
Take your wage (before tax) and put on a figure for your machinery hire and fuel per hour.

Even though your machine is home made it's worth several thousand dollars, and it would cost $50? a day to hire  + fuel.

Even if you work out a price per cord base it on your hourly rate and expenses.

Cheers

Ian

Weekend warrior, Peterson JP test pilot, Dolmar 7900 and Stihl MS310 saws and  the usual collection of power tools :)

RSteiner

I have thought about the same question, how much to charge for custom splitting fire wood and whether to charge by the cord or the hour.   If you could preview the wood to be split then decide to go by hour or cord I think that would be to your advantage.

I know on normal diameter chunks of fairly easy splitting stuff I can do a cord an hour by myself.  On this kind of stuff charging by the cord would be safe. Change that to big diameter stuff that is twisted and knarly and you can double that time.  So, with that kind of material to work with an hourly rate would be better.

If the owner wants the wood piled that is another hourly rate on top of the splitting fee.  As far as the owner helping it would be limited to feeding chunks to the operator and clearing away the split pieces.  I think I would favor the by the cord charge with a helper unless the wood was big and hard to split.

I would try to figure out which method worked to net me at least $25.00 per hour and I would stipulate a minimun charge of $40.00 to $50.00 to cover cost of transportation with in a 15 mile radius of home.

Randy
Randy

Frank_Pender

Twenty and hour is cheap.  For me and my equipment, I get $80 an hour.  When I did custom splitting many years ago,  ( 25) I charged $55 an hour and they had to be there to help remove the wood from the end of the splitter.
Frank Pender

Burlkraft

Too bad you are not closer.....You could come split my wood for $20.00 an hour :) :) :)

Like Frank said, I'd be chargin' more like $80.00 ;) ;) ;) ;) ;)

Time is money....It doesn't matter what yer doin' :) :) :)
Why not just 1 pain free day?

OLD_ JD

if i will be u i will start by asking me a few question ???...about what the average size of the wood u have to split,how manny corde per hour,if u can 4 corde per hour...at $80.00/h  or 1 corde/h at $20.00/h...it com to the same..but if u can do 4/h..and u charge $25.00 per corde...it's better ;D..if u go per corde ..include some extra labour time to hire some help if u go on corde...per hour's if they what to help you

*I m talking here of face corde  ;D..not full corde
canadien forest ranger

brdmkr

I don't even have a splitter, but most sawyers that charge by the hour seem to use 50.00/hour as a minimum figure for sawing lumber.  I don't think I would go below that for splitting firewood.  Customers with the wood all in a neat pile at one site will get more per hour and would be rewarded for doing their part.  If they want wood stacked, no problem, as they would be paying for that too.
Lucas 618  Mahindra 4110, FEL and pallet forks, some cant hooks, and a dose of want-to

rebocardo

As a side business, $25 an hour plus gas. That is what I charge for using my chain saw to split wood. Most people seem happy with that. I stack at the same rate so most people seem happy to stack it themselves. I will not huff wood up stairs and such.


Frickman

I've never custom split firewood like you're thinking of, but I have, and still do some custom work of various types. My minimum charge for anything is $60.00/hour, that's for my time and the equipment. I don't care if I'm marching or fighting, I get paid the same.

This price keeps alot of the cheapskates at bay. Also, the customer will have everything aranged ahead of time to minimize my billable time. This usually makes the job alot easier.

I used to sell alot of cut and split firewood. The backbreaking work handling the wood put an end to that.
If you're not broke down once in a while, you're not working hard enough

I'm not a hillbilly. I'm an "Appalachian American"

Retired  Conventional hand-felling logging operation with cable skidder and forwarder, Frick 01 handset sawmill

Pretend farmer when I have the time

boboak

   Thanks to all...I appreciate the information.  The 50 an hour figure sounds about right but special circumstances could affect that.  Flyboy, I like your idea about the extra charges..  Sort of an "aggravation surcharge'?  We have city transplants around here too and  they consider the locals as some kind of rustic semi-literates put here for their entertainment.  I think I'll use the 50 an hour as a base and use Fly Boy's advice on surcharges as needed.  I just don't want to cut any full-timers out of work or undercut anybody's rate.  Don't know of anybody around here offering custom splitting but since it'll be just a par-time gig I shouldn't be stepping on anybody.  Bob :) :)
Sometimes you get things done faster if you do them slower

Corley5

Quote from: Frickman on December 27, 2005, 02:26:33 PM
I don't care if I'm marching or fighting, I get paid the same.

;D ;D  :D :)
Burnt Gunpowder is the Smell Of Freedom

Flyboy

 8) 8) boboak,
Good luck on it, really!
If anyone whines about your price, ask them what they would charge to do it. Then let them do a couple cords and ask them again.
People used to gimme lip about my prices when I was "into it" I told them they could always cut their own. That usually shut them up.
Thats why I do my own, Period! 8)
Flyboy


A "Good Old Jack" -  DT 7500 Kubota 4X4 Farmi Winch - Norwood LM 2000 Band Mill - A Good Son, A Good Dog,

Flyboy

 ??? Hey Ianab
Educate Me, please. Whats Merimite?
Teach this "Old Vermonter" something.  :)
Flyboy


A "Good Old Jack" -  DT 7500 Kubota 4X4 Farmi Winch - Norwood LM 2000 Band Mill - A Good Son, A Good Dog,

Minnesota_boy

Quote from: boboak on December 27, 2005, 04:07:15 PM
   T I just don't want to cut any full-timers out of work or undercut anybody's rate.  Don't know of anybody around here offering custom splitting but since it'll be just a par-time gig I shouldn't be stepping on anybody.  Bob :) :)

Why should you worry about somebody else.  Are they worried about you?  If you price higher than them are they going to raise their price so they don't undercut you?

You should worry most about you.  Not how much an hour to charge but on how much you need for a day's work.  It doesn't matter if you charge $300/hr if you only work 1/4 hour a day.  Look to your bottom line, how much you want to have earned at the end of the year and divide that by the time you are willing to work that hard.  If nobody hires you, then rethink the amount.  Don't start too low.  You can come down easier than go up.  If you get a nice job, a real plum, then give the owner a discount for having such a nice job laid out.  They appreciate even a $5 discount and tell people.  If you add a surcharge they tell people about that too.
I eat a high-fiber diet.  Lots of sawdust!

Corley5

When I first started hatching my plan for a firewood venture I ran it by a friend and his response was what about the poor people whose only income was from firewood produced with an old pickup and a chainsaw ???.  What about them ???  It's a free market society.  Consumers can buy where they want ;D  Be concerned with your own business let others worry about theirs ;) ;D ;D  Capitalism rocks :) :)
Burnt Gunpowder is the Smell Of Freedom

brucehuggins

Who would sign on without hearing from you how many face cords of wood you can split in an hour.  It doesn't cost much to run a spliter and if I didn't have one I could rent a splitter for $ 35 - $ 50 per day. 
    I cut 12" blocks.  When everything goes smooth I can go from a tree in my woods to a face cord stacked on the edge of the road in 3 hours.  I can get $ 50 for 12" X 4' X 8'.  Splitting isn't the hardest part of the 3 hours, isn't the most skilled part of the 3 hours, or the most equipment rich part of the 3 hours. 

    I have no problem hiring casual labor for $ 10.00 an hour.  I figure I could give you $ 15 an hour if you bring your splitter and guarantee me 2 face cords an hour. 



Oldsawmillguy

boboak

Huggins...I hope your're kidding.  Or is this some kind of test?  If you can get someone to bring his splitter and work for fifteen an hour things must be awful tough in your area.  Before I invest my time, machinery, and effort  for a money-losing deal like fifteen an hour I'll leave it in the barn.  Theres easier ways to go broke.  We don't do face cords out here but before I bid a job  I'd want to look at it and then decide.  Read the other posts in this thread...lot of good ideas and information...and nobody and I mean NOBODY is splitting for fifteen an hour. 
Sometimes you get things done faster if you do them slower

brucehuggins

This ain't no economic powerhouse, thats for sure.   I can rent a splitter for $ 5 an hour and hire someone for $ 10 an hour.   That's a fact.   Unfortunate perhaps, but a fact. 

How many "face cords" or full cords an hour can you crank out.  What do people pay for firewood out there. 

If your position is sound I will adopt it. 







Oldsawmillguy

Ron Scott

Around here, wood splitters have been renting for around $50.00/day and you supply the gas and oil. Maybe a little higher now. Most Rental places and some individuals have them for rent.

Those who burn a lot of wood ususally have invested in their own or 3-4 neighbors, relatives, friends, etc. have gone in together for a "sharing use" splitter.

I use to rent, but now have my own.
~Ron

boboak

   brucehuggins...I don't usually sell firewood but I've seen ads in the paper for seasoned oak at 250 a cord.  The metropolitan areas, Sacramento and the Bay Area,will pay over three hundred.  Almond goes for about the same as oak if you can find it.  Cedar, doug fir, pine etc go for quite a bit less.  Firewood of any kind is getting hard to find.  Most of the culls, tops and slash are chipped in the woods and the orchard trees,prune, peach,etc are also usually chipped onsite.  I have oak logs delivered to my place and cut them in my spare time.  The oak runs from 6 inches to three feet in diameter so handling it after cutting is the main time-consumer.  If I can stay after it and everything runs smooth I can usually split two full cords in a day...and thats enough of a day for me.  Whats the old saying..."At my age I can still do a good day's work...it just takes me two days to do it".  I work for a logging outfit and my spare time is usually in the winter when we're weathered out of the woods.  Splitting for hire is just something I thought about doing to bring in a little winter money  Hope this answers your questions and I hope you didn't think I was down-grading where you live and work.  I was just surprised.  Wishing you a Happy New Year.
Sometimes you get things done faster if you do them slower

Corley5

For $15.00 an hour I'd stay home and split my own wood to sell ;) ;D  Way more profitable :)
Burnt Gunpowder is the Smell Of Freedom

brucehuggins

Boboak,
No offence taken.  I can get $ 200 here too but I have to hold out and wait till this time of year to get it.  I offer my softwood slabs and chunks for free to get them out of the way but seldom have any takers.

I am retired, cut firewood for two households and sell a little,  do a little custom sawing and am slowly logging off my own place.   

 

Here is a current local ad.   How would you like to compete against  this??

SEASONED FIREWOOD $35 face cord, $105 full cord; delivery available, 40¢/mile; call now 973-713-XXXX, leave message. Order now, wood going fast. - Norwich, NY - FIREWOOD
Email this Ad to a Friend.

Good luck





Oldsawmillguy

Corley5

Quote from: brucehuggins on January 02, 2006, 07:42:10 AM
Order now, wood going fast.

That's the key.  He won't be the competition for long ;D ;) :)
Burnt Gunpowder is the Smell Of Freedom

OLD_ JD

brucehuggins ,I am in the firewood bis too,and about ure ad,dont pay att to it ;)...the prize asking look good but....is what kind of wood  ??? is it seasoned ???is it 40c \mille per load or per face corde or corde ???if is wood going so fast...why is adding ??? ;)...this is the kind of question customer dont ask whene they see the prize ...but that the answers ure giving too ure consumer if they said "i can get it for cheaper"...best prize doesn't mean best wood ;).....i offer good wood at my prize to my regular consumer and the have trust in me ..that all it's matter 8)
I am selling aroud 800 face corde per year's and having same pep's who bying from me at my bgin..they are happy whit it...they dont care about the prize as long service and quality is there...hope that can help , and wish u a good year in the firewood biss ;)
canadien forest ranger

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