New to business -- Residential Demo Bid

[Diesel Dan 92]

I am a young guy who started contracting on my own 2 years ago. I've been plowing snow and looking to add demolition and dirt work to my business. This is a job I was asked to estimate.



This is a six bay garage. There is a block wall on each end and in the middle made of 8x8x16 blocks. The walls are about 11' high and 20' deep so about 250 blocks per wall. This makes about 26,000lbs of block to get rid of. I can rent a heavy material dumpster 10yard / 20,000lbs capacity for $425. The rest of the structure is lumber and barn steel. Thinking maybe a 40 yard / 10,000lb dumpster for $589 (Hopefully big enough).

My estimate was

$525.....................................heavy dumpster (+$100)
$689.....................................light dumpster (+$100)
$100....................................mobilize backhoe to site (half to an hour drive)
$1000..................................10 hours of backhoe with me operating (rental cost $40/hr)
$400.....................................10 hours for helper labor (I pay him $20) ($20/hr for me)

$2,714 Grand Total.

Any comments on this bid? Thanks for your opinions in advance.

 

[tuney443]

I see you don't have your own equipment so I'll try and adjust my thinking some.First,you will be EXTREMELY foolish placing that steel in a dumpster for 2 good reasons,it is worth money to you at the scrap yard and unless you lay it PERFECTLY flat in the dumpster first[before the lumber],which is very labor intensive,will take up LOTS of valuable dumpster real estate.Same goes with the lumber,unless you have a thumb on the hoe for making toothpicks,you're dealing with lots of unwieldy large framing pieces that might take much more than 1 day[which you figured],whether by rig or hand labor,doesn't matter,that also takes up serious volume in a dumpster,AND a 40 yd.one with high sides is a B- - -H to reach and compact with a hoe,especially if it's not a decent sized one with a long reach.

As to your math,seems like you didn't account for 6K lbs. of weight on those blocks that will be an extra charged to you.Also,keep in mind regarding weight,if it should rain/sleet/snow-you will be paying for that also,trick is to keep those dumpsters DRY! Watch the weather and/or tarp up--I use long lumber to make a pitched ''roof'' so water sheds until the roll off truck comes for pickup.I think your prices are too tight to the vest,I'd bump them up for the UT OHS some and then whatever figure you arrive at,add in at least 15% profit on top.Good luck!

 

[Diesel Dan 92]

I see you don't have your own equipment so I'll try and adjust my thinking some.First,you will be EXTREMELY foolish placing that steel in a dumpster for 2 good reasons,it is worth money to you at the scrap yard and unless you lay it PERFECTLY flat in the dumpster first[before the lumber],which is very labor intensive,will take up LOTS of valuable dumpster real estate.Same goes with the lumber,unless you have a thumb on the hoe for making toothpicks,you're dealing with lots of unwieldy large framing pieces that might take much more than 1 day[which you figured],whether by rig or hand labor,doesn't matter,that also takes up serious volume in a dumpster,AND a 40 yd.one with high sides is a B- - -H to reach and compact with a hoe,especially if it's not a decent sized one with a long reach.

As to your math,seems like you didn't account for 6K lbs. of weight on those blocks that will be an extra charged to you.Also,keep in mind regarding weight,if it should rain/sleet/snow-you will be paying for that also,trick is to keep those dumpsters DRY! Watch the weather and/or tarp up--I use long lumber to make a pitched ''roof'' so water sheds until the roll off truck comes for pickup.I think your prices are too tight to the vest,I'd bump them up for the UT OHS some and then whatever figure you arrive at,add in at least 15% profit on top.Good luck!

I should have added, the steel will be scrapped. There isn't much to the structure, other than the roof which will have to be chewed up some. The wood won't weigh much so I was hoping to get rid of the extra blocks in the large dumpster. The Backhoe is a CAT 416C.

The my current bid leaves me about $1,000 for profit provided nothing goes to hell.

 

[tuney443]

Did you ever consider not placing the blocks in the dumpster? I,for one,NEVER do that as it's considered clean fill in most places and also makes excellent road base when chewed up with tracked iron.If you search around,I'll bet you can find an excavator/trucker who would gladly take it off your hands if you load him.FYI,true profit is that minimum 15% I suggested you put on top.

 

[Diesel Dan 92]

Did you ever consider not placing the blocks in the dumpster? I,for one,NEVER do that as it's considered clean fill in most places and also makes excellent road base when chewed up with tracked iron.If you search around,I'll bet you can find an excavator/trucker who would gladly take it off your hands if you load him.FYI,true profit is that minimum 15% I suggested you put on top.

That makes sense. I will try to find someone who wants some of the block.

 

[FSERVICE]

$100 for mobilization?? IMO that way to cheap!!most trucks here are at a minimum $160 to drop off anything close by. & on all bids when you reach your #, you think you have figured everything THEN add 15% of the total job.. you will be surprised how nice that 15% is to have on there a lot of times it will save your BUTT

 

[Diesel Dan 92]

$100 for mobilization?? IMO that way to cheap!!most trucks here are at a minimum $160 to drop off anything close by. & on all bids when you reach your #, you think you have figured everything THEN add 15% of the total job.. you will be surprised how nice that 15% is to have on there a lot of times it will save your BUTT

The I already have the backhoe rented at $40 per engine hour. It's about 5 miles from the demo site so will just drive it.

How do I stick an extra 15% on there when people want an itemized written estimate? Most people would choke if the last line item was "15% for me, because it's nice" lol

 

[monster76]

You have to add that 15% in Through out the bid

 

[monster76]

And dont forget to add in a clause for the unexpected be xlear and concise of what the demo includes and does not include.

 

[CM1995]

You have to add that 15% in Through out the bid

What monster said. A simple spreadsheet can compute your mark-up for each line item.

What size is the structure? Is there a slab you have to get rid of? What about the footings for the block walls? What condition is the final site required to be - grading, seed and straw, etc.? Are there any permits required and if so, who is responsible for them, you or the owner?

On demo's, I do what Tuney said and never haul clean fill (concrete, asphalt, bricks, blocks) to a landfill as there are several places to dump clean fill for free or a small dump fee. I have two dumps on either side of the city that I take this type of material to. This is the heaviest of the debris and not paying by the ton for this debris can make or break a demo. Hire a dump truck to haul this debris.

Using a backhoe is going to be aggravating but it can be done.

 

[Diesel Dan 92]

What monster said. A simple spreadsheet can compute your mark-up for each line item.

What size is the structure? Is there a slab you have to get rid of? What about the footings for the block walls? What condition is the final site required to be - grading, seed and straw, etc.? Are there any permits required and if so, who is responsible for them, you or the owner?

On demo's, I do what Tuney said and never haul clean fill (concrete, asphalt, bricks, blocks) to a landfill as there are several places to dump clean fill for free or a small dump fee. I have two dumps on either side of the city that I take this type of material to. This is the heaviest of the debris and not paying by the ton for this debris can make or break a demo. Hire a dump truck to haul this debris.

Using a backhoe is going to be aggravating but it can be done.

Just the structure has to be removed. The ground will be left as is. I think the garage condemned and has to be torn down before the house can be sold.