Non-Orthadox Cleanup ???

[MGO]

I have a potential customer that wants a bid on a clean-up of his back-yard. I know how to price typical clean-ups.....i.e. cut, bag, pick-up dead wood and leaves, weed flower beds etc.....

But this is different......his backyard is 3,800 sq ft...and the grass is 2-3 ft tall!!!! I figure I will have to HACK it down with weedwhackers and brush cutters......bag it and dispose......then go in and cut on highest setting possible on mower just to get it sort of presentable.

ANyway, I am not quite sure how to figure the time for "mowing" a 2.5 ft high lawn!!!!!!! Any help on how long you think this should take and how many Bags of grass I will end up with???

Thankls!

[rednktxn]

I Am Doing One Like That And Was Not Sure Hoe To Do It Either. I Told Them 35.00 An Hour To Mow Only The First Two Times In With No Removal Of The Hay. The First Time I Mowed For 2 1/2 Hours Just Going Over And Over Chopping The Stuff Up And Blew The Drive And Walkways Down. I Go Back This Friday For Round 2. After Round 2 I Do The Lawn And Trimming For 45.00. Its Not My Fault They Let The Stuff Go And Want Someone To Clean It Up. I Don' Know If This Was The Right Way Or Not But Both Of Us Were Happy. Hope This Helps. Good Luck, Larrry

[MAD MOWERS]

MGO,

We run into these quite often doing Reality Props. 3800 sq ft. is not that large and if you have a good size commercial mower it will not take you all that long. You will have to rake and bag to remove the access grass clipings and figure on cutting the yard three times. SO,figure on charging what you would normaly x 3 = the price. If your using a 21" figure 3hrs. bigger mowers less.
These people that let their props. go that long don't care! SO, walk the place over GOOD loking for anything hidden in the grass. Cut high and rewalk the prop. then recut and rewalk until you reach the height you want.
Hope this helps

[MGO]

Thanks for the replies.....definately helps!

Thanks,
Mike

[Stephen M.]

My employees recently did a yard that was let go a little too long. It was approximately 10,600 sf and around a foot high with sedges growing in it. We billed hourly since I wasn't doing it for the price I originally quoted.

We used a DR Field Mower to cut it down first; raked up the cut grass; and remowed with a finish mower. It took them 6.5 man hours to do. It was wet at the roots and the sedges were tough, requiring extra mowing for a nice look.

The customer paid, but hasn't called us back. They were looking for a full maintenance bid and "cost considerations", which isn't my problem. They bought a vacation home and as usual, their lack of planning for upkeep isn't my concern and isn't worth it to give "price breaks" just to have the job. It isn't like our company has nothing to do.

Do those kind of jobs by the hour; it isn't worth losing your butt over.

[Seascape]

Id put everything in it,,, TOTAL HRS.
Travel time
Re- sharpen blades
Clean deck
Blow your mower off
I dont care what kind of mower you have 2.5 ' ,,,you have to cut at least 3 times to get a finish on it,,, and probally have to let it dry at that . Youll have to rake also more than likely,,, all said and done ,,, all this ,, how long you think it will take you?

Id go $45 per hr.

[RRS]

Also let them know that after you cut the grass down from 2 1/2' to 3" that a lot of it will probably die.

[jimslawnservice1]

2-3 ft. holy cow, but here is something I did around a lagoon for someone. I have a large gas powered extended hedge trimmer, used it like a sickle bar mower. works great and would get the woody stuff too. You can probably rent one reasonably too.

[hardboiled]

For Jim'slawnservice...I was eyeing stihls power scythe for some rough areas I'll be cutting 4 or 5 times this season. There's is a 22" bar for more control they say. What size bar was your's and did you work on any steep inclines with it? Thanks!
MGO...I did one last year like this and wound up with 43 bags of clippings (about 3/4 acre). It was right about this time of year but my best guess is it wasn't cut for the last two months of the previous season either. I priced it according to how many mows it would have had if they hired me at the beginning of the season. It went like this... cut, rake, bag, cut, rake, bag, cut, cut, relax. So I charged 6 or 7 times the fee for mowing and included enough for a set of belts and the bags and time involved bagging. These type of jobs certainly suck, but as long as you make money. Go easy and watch for hidden stuff.
I got a few calls for jobs like that this year too but only took a couple smaller ones. I really don't like working on neglected properties. You can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear. It's sad that some people don't take care of what they've been blessed with.

[grillonz]

Once you have worked out approx how long it is going to take to mow etc take your usual hourly rate & double it. Be prepared to break something & try to mow it near the end of a nice day. If your grass is dry it'll be easier. As for a mower, if you can fit one a flail mower would be the best to chop it down while leaving a reasonable finish in a single pass.
Happy mowing
James

[MGO]

Thanks again everyone.....I am going to bid high on this one based on everyone's comments. I am going to take into account the added wear-and-tear on my equipment and throw that into the equation...if I get this job I want it to be worth my effort and costs.,......thanks again all!

Mike

[Phil Nilsson]

MGO ... you're talking a very small area ... if it looks like the customer will sign on for repeat work ... sometimes it pays off just to "bite the bullet" ... charge a modest fee for getting it into shape ... and then getting a new customer for the longer term.

Suggestion? ... don't make a federal case out of it (IF) you feel you'll have a lasting account. Invest some labor ... payback will hopefully result.

[MGO]

Thanks Phil......I will keep that in mind. He says he wants weekly maint, but, that could be a ploy to get me to do the clean-up for "cheaper".....etc. I've heard of people doing that before...and I am not quite sure about this guy. Don't mean to sound too paranoid, but, I have plenty of work right now......

[Phil Nilsson]

MGO ... you're "breaking my heart" ... a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush ... and have faith ... if you help this person out ... and not "bash him" for that out of control yard ... he will say nice things about you to others ... do this one favor for me? Do it and give the guy a break ...

[Seascape]

if it looks like the customer will sign on for repeat work ... sometimes it pays off just to "bite the bullet" ...
Suggestion? ... don't make a federal case out of it (IF) you feel you'll have a lasting account. Invest some labor ... payback will hopefully result.

KEYWORD: hopefully

Ask me thats breaking a major rule of bidding. Breaks accur when a client earns them.