BACKWOODS

This will really push you over the edge.........
199.00 for 30 lbs. + sales tax
Discount that if you buy large quantities

beenthere

What does an 8' 2X4 really cost. About 15 to 25 cents.

Why do you pay so much more for it.

BiggersJunior

So it cost the HVAC guy $6.67/lb to buy the freon. I needed 5lbs, so that cost him $33.33. He charged me $200, minus $33.33, so his profit was $166.67 for about an hour of work. Is this accurate? If so, it's a rip off.

BiggersJunior

beenthere.....let me know where I can buy an 8' 2x4's for .15 to .25 and I'll buy all they have. And when I find freon for .15 to .25 per pound, I'll let you know too. Don't hold your breath.

beenthere

Didn't say you could buy it for 15 to 25 cents.

I said thats what it really cost.

After that 15 to 25 cents, everything else is labor.



I have some R22 left, that I paid less then a buck for.

I still sell it based on current replacement cost.


Your guy may have paid more then 280 bucks for that jug of gas. Depends how much he bought last year, when he bought it last year, and how much he uses a year.

I tell people up front what it will cost them for me to refill their system.
If they don't like my price, they are free to get someone else.

They still have to pay me for coming out and telling them that their system is low on charge.

Maybe your guy didn't tell you what he charges upfront. He should have. But weather he did or not.
His price is fair. You have he option to call someone else next time.

bwalley

R-22 does cost about $6.67 a lb so he did have about $34 in material, you are forgetting about the truck, the office, drive time, the time it took to pick up the refrigerant, the tools required, the advertising, license fees, insurance etc., plus labor.

It is not a crime to make a profit.

What would be a rip off is if the guy harged you for something he didn't do.

If you don't like paying $200 to get your system recharged, go get EPA certified and licensed, get trained and then buy the tools, then you can avoid being "ripped off" in the future.

I charge an $85 sevice call, plus labor (you said he was there an hour) and materials.

85 Service call
85 Labor (One Hour)
100 Refrigerant
10 Caps

The leak check would be time and materials, one reason why you charge it and then wait and see how long it takes to leak out is it could have been a schrader valve (that is why I always put new metal caps with a captured O ring) or if it takes a long time to leak out it is on the low side, if it leaks out real quick a couple of days or less, it is on the high side or a larger leak.

When you buy a beer at the bar for $7, do you go on a web forum and accuse them of ripping you off because you could have bought the same beer for $1 at the 7-11?

BiggersJunior

hahaha......don't get all bent out of shape guys. Our charge for lumber materials is what we actually pay for it, for that particular job. There is not a markup for materials like you guys are doing. In other words, if the 2x4 was $6.67 delivered, that's what we would charge the owner. We would include our business profit into the labor and overall job costs. That seems like that's where we make up the difference.

I understand the overhead cost for sure. But with these kind of profits, I may just look into getting my license and starting an HVAC business. Making a $133/hr gross profit ($133 x 10 hours = $1,330/day) to repair or fill FREON is really good money in today's economy......or any economy for that matter. There are plenty of units that need freon leak repair or to be refilled.

beenthere

You make want to take some courses, so you can tell the difference between a system low on charge, and one that has low air flow, or a restriction in the refrigerant circuit.


If you didn't charge mark up/profit on your subs work. Then home owners could afford to get better systems. LOL

bwalley

The $6.67 per lb is not a delivered price, the guy had to pick it up, BTW not just anyone can go buy a jug of R-22, you have to be EPA certified and any of the good supply houses require a contractors license as well.

I spent over $800 on books alone just so I could take the test to get my Certified A/C Contrctors License, then there are the test fees, study time, prep courses, exam fee's license fee's. bond, insurance, W/C etc.

Do you think a bar is ripping you off when they sell you a beer for $7, that they may have paid $1 for and how much of a tip do you throw the hottie behind the bar that opened the cooler grabeed a beer and took the cap off for you?

If you sell lumber for what it costs you, how do you account for waste or "slippage"?

BiggersJunior

I don't buy $7 beers, I go without, or wait until I get home or somewhere more reasonable. Maybe you buy 24 of them when you go out to look at the "hottie's" behind the bar ($168 + tips for the "hotties"), and that's probably why you have to charge people so much in order to fulfull your "habit".

You guys are in a good business and are making more than most "office" people that have college educations, masters degrees, etc... I know numerous people that spent well over $800 for books (big deal)......try over $100,000 for a good college education that took many 4+ years to obtain.......Maybe you have similar degrees......maybe not.....but you are making more money than most of those people, which is good for you!

rbsremodeling

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Being an idiot frees a man from having to live up to others peoples expectations.

BiggersJunior

RBS......do what? haha.......have read lots and lots of your posts, and never made such comment. What are you talking about?

willworkforbeer

Takes a leetle more then four years to get an education in construction, there are some costs to it too. If one survives the gaunlet, one should make decent money shouldnt they?

BiggersJunior

Exactly. A college education doesn't mean you will be successful by any means. But it cost a lot of money to get one, and you have a better chance of being successful than without one. Looks like there is good money in the HVAC business. I've always thought that anyways.

beenthere

That college degrre person sutting in an office obviously isn't crawling around in a damp crawlspace.

Changing blower motors in 135° and hotter attics.

Getting out of bed t 3:00AM to repair someone elses heating system.

Etc.

Plus. A lot of those college people. Only got degrees in philosophy.

bwalley

A college degree isn't worth much these days, but a guy with a trade can make a good living.

There are people who are "book smart" and then there are people who are smart.

BTW a guy charging $200 to charge an A/C unit isn't going to get rich, if you think you can get rich by charging A/C units for $200 a unit go get your license and jump on the bandwagon.

NickTech

a/c systems dont self diagnose and tell you they're low on refrig. the tech has to take readings and determine that it is low on refrig. and then charge it correctly as per manufacters spec as well as per EPA regs. not to mention the countless other potential problems that could be lurking with the unit that the tech needs to be prepared to handle. these prices are fair! it wouldnt be fair though if a company kept coming back month after month, year after year to keep recharging the system though without finding and fixing the leak.

delta l

Hey Ace, it's time for you to get a new avatar, and O to get another excuse for all the crap he's dumping on us. Even O is citing W.

BTW, are you still hawking parts on the net?

BiggersJunior

Right on Nick. Thanks for your response.

MechAcc

One do not go by the price that individual stated. Prices on R-22 is continually changing. Just wait til next year they'll be even higher when production is cut. What is the hourly service rate? $70, $80 or $90. Then there is the cost of insurance, unemployment tax, facilities upkeep, service van, etc. $200 for 5 pounds of refrigerant and 1 hour of labor, and how much of that was during after hours rate, is a fair price. You got a good deal.

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