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Commercial gutter job

SkulBlaker

Active member
Messages
413
Location
Scotland
hey guys just drove past a local care home (place is very big) and the gutters are filled with :turd: so just decided to drop in and ask if they want them cleared, owner is back tomorrow from holiday but the manager seemed very keen about it, question is what price do I go in at? I'm clearingn house gutters just now for around £1.50-£2 a meter but unsure wether to price lower for a commercial job or higher. I reckon if I price £1 a meter it's a £1000 job (lots of separate buildings)

 
Wow that's cheap £2 a meter!?!

You can charge a lot more than that for houses mate,

With the commercial, work on a day rate mate, then add a bit for the inevitable issues along the way

 
As Jake said, domestic house is £40 minimum pretty much, I have done a single side before for £30.

Also commercial I do as Jake does, day rate.

 
Up here the prices are hard mate, a local windie that did round the corner from me was £15 total for both sides. Average is around £20 for a front and back. I've no idea what my day rate would be as I've only got 15 houses so not a full day. What would you guys charge?

 
be wary. i learnt the hard way that some commercial gutters are installed with little or no slope -this means they never drain completely of water

which leads to full gutters cos plants grow well in water and almost impossible to empty 100%

 
Yeah, I had a quick walk round and the gutters are full, one is bowing slightly with the weight. Going to drop in again on Friday to speak to the manager.

 
Day rate in a tough area £100? I charge £150-£200 depending what I am doing, who the client is and how I feel on the day, also if its multiple days I may charge less as well.

 
If you dont have that much work on yet then then £100 for a day should be a bonus for you but what about in 3 years time when you are fully booked up and they want them doing again, how will they react when you decide it's closer to £500?

Personally I charge a very hefty fee for care homes, both my mother and wife worked in the care industry for a long time, the owners treat the residents and staff like ****, pay barely above minimum wage yet receive a minimum of around £2000 per resident per week that they have there.

Trust me, they can afford to pay you £1 per meter even if it ends up at 1000 meters.

 
If you dont have that much work on yet then then £100 for a day should be a bonus for you but what about in 3 years time when you are fully booked up and they want them doing again, how will they react when you decide it's closer to £500?
Personally I charge a very hefty fee for care homes, both my mother and wife worked in the care industry for a long time, the owners treat the residents and staff like ****, pay barely above minimum wage yet receive a minimum of around £2000 per resident per week that they have there.

Trust me, they can afford to pay you £1 per meter even if it ends up at 1000 meters.
That's what I was thinking mate, I used to work in a care home too and the prices they were charging were ridiculous for the residents. If they want a quote I've decided after advice and a lot of thought to price it as I would a domestic property, explain this to them and then tell them I'll do it at half the price if they book there and then. Like I said they are in serious need of being cleared and no one is knocking on the door to carry out the work.

Thanks for the advice, it has given me help.

 
Right, so was up the ladder doing a First clean today and I get the call from the care home to head out and give a quote. Took a walk round and every single gutter is full. Priced it as I would a donestic job up here and knocked some money off. Reckon it will take a day and a half maybe 2 to do. Prices it at £800 for the full clear and **** comes away with me. Fingers crossed on it

 
Well just got the call from the place and I've got the job, they want the fascias and Sofits done too, which Made me put the price up to £1200 which they are happy with so, reckon it will take 2-3 days to do, will need to order anothe batch of UBIK now haha

 
Well spent 6 hours myself and 5 hours with a helper on the main building on Thursday and Friday and that's the gutters cleared out. I have to say what an absolute pain in the **** it has been, every section of the gutters had a gutter guard in it, had to rip each one of these out and told the owner I would not replacing them, explained that that's the main reason the gutters were so bad. We removed around 1200 litres of gunk and was lucky as the owner said I could dump it on site in a wooded area. Had a 90 litre wheelbarrow and filled it around 12 times over! Bigger job than I thought, but I've now just to clean down the Sofits and fascias and start the smaller building which luckily hasn't got the guards in them! Hopefully another 2-3 days will do it, and there was me thinking the full thing would only take 2-3 days total! New to it all as you know so will get better at the timescales as I go. Hopefully they will take me up on the downpipe covers as that will pay for my helpers 2 and a half days work and leave me with the original quote I have them.

 
You'll get stung on time now and then it just happens. It goes the other way as well so I think it balances out in the long run.

 
If it wasn't for the gutter gaurds I think I would have been on track for my original time. The problem was I had to move the ladders every 2 meters as couldn't use my gutter pro tool and pole. Should have maybe had a look at the insides of the gutters when pricing it lol

 
If it wasn't for the gutter gaurds I think I would have been on track for my original time. The problem was I had to move the ladders every 2 meters as couldn't use my gutter pro tool and pole. Should have maybe had a look at the insides of the gutters when pricing it lol
Yeah those grills are a nightmare, I put a price in for a school a few weeks ago that was all guards, I wander around with gutter pole and mirror to check everywhere, and I said straight away this will take a LONG time, this is my price to remove the guards and clean, if you want them back in it will be another x amount but if you wish to clean them regular it will be a LOT cheaper to leave the guards out and gave a price for that.

They're awful things.

 
I would price it as 2 guys say £150-200 each so say £300 -400 a day x 2 maybe 3 Are u using a vacuum or by hand ?

 
The gutter clearing side is done mate, a vac wouldn't have worked due to the guards and the amount in them so was done by hand into a builders bucket and then into a wheelbarrow, my ligaments in my knees were in bits due to the amount of times up and down the ladder not been used to that since my training at the fire college!!! Priced the job for what I thought it would take initially at £400 per day for myself, so £200-£300 a day now for what it's likely to take its a fair price. Also gave them a quote for the downpipe covers (80 of them) which comes in at £350 so that will cover the wages for the help and the time it will take me to fit them, plus a little for a few beers. That's if they want them that is. Managed to negotiate a reduction in price for the covers so can get them for £3.25 for 4 instead of £5.25.

 
Well the beast is finally dead!!! Finished up this morning and have to say it was a pain in the **** of a job, worked out my hourly rate and its been £25 per hour, not too bad but the job was still under priced by at least a grand for the amount if work needed. These are the things you learn from though eh.

Happy note is the cheque is in the bank wuhoo!!!

 
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