Just Starting

Hey Guys-

I've been a member of lawnsite for a while but never posted over here, so Hi to all and hopefully you can help me out.

We're starting plowing this year and I was wondering how you guys charge.

2-3 inches
3-5 inches
etc.

or do you charge per push? The majority of our jobs are going to be push throughs and not very much backdragging.

How about contracts, do you do a set price for the season plus any addl plows? or do you set those up on per plow deals. I tried to check Dino's page but it was down.

Thanks for all the help. I want to make sure I get this started off right.

Mike
Greenkeepers


PS: I already did a search but didn't find what I was looking for.

 

Mike call me at 860/859-0739. there is way to much info to share than I care to type.
Also recheck my site, I believe I typed the URL wrong.
http://www.thehousedoktor.com
Dino

 

Welcome to the snow side of the site. Have you considered working the plowing into your turf contracts? Many times when I survey a site, I figure what it will take us to plow the site on an hourly basis, plus driving time, materials (sand/de-icers)and figure for how many services for a 24 hr. period. Take all that and multiply it by the number of times it snows in your area and add yourself a cushion on top of that. That monthly payment from your customer really helps the cash flow. This is our first year for aggresively selling these contracts and in less than one month we've already added well over 10K to our monthly cash flow. Time and materials sucks. Hope this helps.

 

Greenkeepers,
Also check out Chuck's site. Lots of great stuff there & his past newsletters I believe address some of your questions too. Good luck & enjoy all that extra profit!
http://www.snowplowing-contractors.com/[url/]

 

Thanks for the help guys...

What do you think is a better plow, western or meyers??????????

Mike


Hey dino, the site is working fine for me now.. Thanks!!

 

Neither. The Boss plows have worked the best for us because we like the construction of the frame and easy controllers. One negative, however, is that they never mounted or came off as easy as advertised. Anyway, a V plow in scoop position will save you time. If you're back dragging driveways though, get a straight blade.

 

Id think twice about a Meyer, this forum, and the Web, are full of tales of woe and how to fix them. Not a good sign. Get a Fisher, they never break so you wont ever find a site on the web devoted to their repair!!!

 

For a full trip mold board plow, boss is the best over Western. The shock absorbers that are behind the plow make a big difference on you and the truck. Meyers does not have the shocks and wear out alot faster. Although, Meyers does make a good plow. Hope this helps.

 

Full trip blade. Western is the way to go.

Trip edge, Diamond is my 1st choice (i have 11 of them 1 new this season) Fisher is my second ( have 8 total, last year 2 8.5 EV's and 1 10', new this year 2 more 10's and 2 9.5 EVs not installed yet, and one 93 8' streight blade.

Diamond 1st choice for streight blades 8'-9'.

For 10's and v plows fisher is the way to go.

However if you are only going to have one plow, i would get the fisher v plow.

Geoff

[Edited by GeoffDiamond on 09-26-2000 at 10:39 PM]