What would you guys charge??? - Contractor Talk - Professional Construction and Remodeling Forum

theworx · 06-27-2006, 08:04 PM

Hey guys. Just finished a job today refinishing a large cedar deck. It's 15 years old, has been finished twice before I came in (and was probably due about 5 or 6 years ago). I spent 24 hours on my knees scaping as much as would come off and sanding, and another 10 hours applying the new stain. The deck is 32' x 12' and had 1 staircase (3 steps) and 24' of railing (ballusters every four inches).

The deck was in rough shape: peeling like crazy (like I said should have been done 6 years ago), and also had to replace 4 deck boards that were rotten... This guy has been a great repeat customer over the last few years so I don't want to shock him with my bill. The price I figured out tonight was $1000.00 (materials in), this is a side job so there is no overhead or profit figured in (just my wage + materials)... What would you guys charge for such a labour intensive undertaking (by sqr ft or in total)??? Thanx!!!

KellyPainting · 06-27-2006, 08:25 PM

If your licensed and insured than your low. I would charge $1000.00
labor only / materials extra / and replace wood extra. Thats just me

remember..he's been a customer for a long time... so he knows it will be done right if you do it.Thats why he asked you... Lots of guys would have done it cheaper.. but it would have not been done right... he's paying for Quality.. Workmanship... did you give a warranty? If you did it the right way then 2 yrs will be cake.

remember ... Price cutting is a self inflicting wound.

P.S... You never gave him an estimate before you started?

George Z · 06-27-2006, 08:52 PM

About $1800 to $2,000 but that's with our numbers.

theworx · 06-27-2006, 09:32 PM

Like I stated in my post this is a side job for someone I've done a lot of work for before. Being insured and licensed is not an issue and my warranty is the fact that he watched me bust my ass to do the job right and that if there are any problems that he knows he can trust me to return pronto and remedy them. It's a trust thing and that's why I didn't give him a price before hand because he's always been happy with my wage + materials. He just seemed a little shocked at how much time the prep work took... But that deck was in rough shape... I guess I'm looking to justify what I have to invoice him for tommorow...

theworx · 06-27-2006, 09:32 PM

doh

bigchaz · 06-27-2006, 10:18 PM

what kind of finish was on there that you had to scrape??

Ill run from any job where i need to put a deck finish over a painted deck. Without full stripping the results never come out satisfactory

You mention peeling and im assuming its paint, or was it the wood itself?

I charge by sf, but thats just for a powerwash and coat of stain. Anything additional would be more. Never had to scrape a deck so not sure how to price that

**Also with replacing some of the boards how did you get them to match the 15 year old stuff if you used a stain? (When you say stain im assuming an oil based semi transparent or similar decking stain)

FCPWLLC · 06-28-2006, 07:10 AM

We charge $3/sqft just to clean and seal. Basic. Sanding, scraping.... OMG what we charge. What you described and the man hours (34), would probably have charged close to $2100. But we probably would not have had 34 hours in it. And would have used Sikkens or Cabot Stain.

But like you said, You don't have the overhead we have. So charge what you need to live on.

bigchaz · 06-28-2006, 09:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FCPWLLC

We charge $3/sqft just to clean and seal.

sf based on surface area? Do you include all the railings, steps, and posts with that?

KellyPainting · 06-28-2006, 09:42 AM

So with all the information you gave us... the answer is..

No that price is fine....a little low but fine.. and if your happy and he's happy you are all right.

theworx · 06-28-2006, 04:59 PM

Thanx for the info guys. For your information it was hard to tell what the two undercoats were (they were in such bad shape) the first coat was clear (looked almost like a varathane and smelled like it too when I sanded) second coat was a semi-tranparent stain (oil I asssume). Scraped all that would come off and sanded to open up the pours of the wood for the new coat of solid colour oil stain. It looks great now...

Thanx again...

bigchaz · 06-28-2006, 05:45 PM

I guess im still kind of surprised that you had to scrape the "stain" off. Never seen a deck with oil finish have anything resembling peeling or something i could scrape off

Did you try at any point using a wood stripper to take the stain off?

FCPWLLC · 06-28-2006, 06:51 PM

I've seen where somebody has put an extra coat of stain over an original coat. It will peel as it wouldn't penetrate.

bigchaz... We just measure the foot print of Deck to get Sqft. Most of the time we add for 2nd level and any odd patterned rails. Solids are more too. $3 is where we start but some of the guys here are doing it for less that $1. Remember, I live in KY and cost of living is low.

theworx · 06-28-2006, 08:52 PM

Bigchaz, I swear the whole fricken deck (railings, steps and all) were peeling like crazy. I've refinished quite a few but this one took the prize for the most negleted... Anyway, it turned out great. I gave him the bill tonight for $1000 and he wrote me a cheque for $1250 for all my hard work and the great result. Not bad for a side job (cash money) when I had nothing else to do the last couple of days

...

bigchaz · 06-28-2006, 09:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FCPWLLC

bigchaz... We just measure the foot print of Deck to get Sqft. Most of the time we add for 2nd level and any odd patterned rails. Solids are more too. $3 is where we start but some of the guys here are doing it for less that $1. Remember, I live in KY and cost of living is low.

Ah ok gotcha. Its hard to judge pricing based on sqft since everyone does it differant. I thought 3 dollars was high but thats compared to me doing 1.25 but adding extra for the cleaning, steps, posts, and material. Probably ends up closer to 3 for the final price

Im in NC where living is still relatively low. We got guys doing decks for 60 bucks.

FCPWLLC · 06-29-2006, 06:17 AM

$60 Deck Guys

bigchaz · 06-29-2006, 07:18 AM

Haha the best part is when they call back in 6 months when their thompsons water seal has completely worn off

My price: Its now doubled

denkev63 · 06-29-2006, 06:52 PM

Hi I'm a decorater painter but some time i do wallpaper too, the thing is that i always hesitate when i price a room the same thing happen when i price a painting job. Can somebody tell me what would be like an standar rate per room in a painting job

bigchaz · 06-29-2006, 06:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by denkev63

Hi I'm a decorater painter but some time i do wallpaper too, the thing is that i always hesitate when i price a room the same thing happen when i price a painting job. Can somebody tell me what would be like an standar rate per room in a painting job

Youll never find a standard rate for anything in the trade
Too many variables

-where you're located
-type of paint
-type of room
-prep work
-etc