Replies

1. 
   jcallahan | Jan 31, 2002 04:44am | #1

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   Not sage words but depending where you are at, disposing of the demo debris may cost more than the demo work itself. Some sites require sorting, drywall, asphalt shingles etc. I've seen large variations in nearby towns ....... pays to do your homework.

1. 
   doug_hubbard | Jan 31, 2002 04:57am | #2

   *yeah i know.thanks.'less it's asbestos or chemical or tires or pallets, it all goes in the same dumster here

1. 
   Frenchy_Dampier | Jan 31, 2002 05:14am | #3

   *Don't muscle it, don't try to do it too cheap. My sister wanted to demo most of her house save some and do it cheap. I told her to have the guys with the excavators come in and munch it up toss it in a dumpster and be done with it. She wanted to call on family memebers and take it apart gently to save any "good" boards and recycle things that could be recylced. It took her over four months to take it apart her way, she used all of her good will with the family and in the end it would have been cheaper to have the pro's do it, it would have been done in a week and all of the "good stuff" turned out to be bad. In her community (like mine, you can't rebuild if you tear down completely so the need to save some of the old house...To be torn down later with another permit) The pro's are used to that. It's easy to take an excavator and clamp onto a big chunk of the house break it loose and toss into a dumpster) sure you can get more in a dumpster if you take it apart piece by piece and stack it carefully. My sister thinks she saved the cost of three dumpsters by doing it that way.. of course since it took so long she spent the winter in a tent in her old living room..... You pays your money and you take your chances..

1. 
   ANDY_C._CLIFFORD | Jan 31, 2002 01:59pm | #4

   *I demoed about 1500 sq ft of my house to turn it into whats now 4000 sq ft. I had to save a lot which makes the cost actually go up because you have to be really careful. Took about eight 30 yd dumpsters @ about $600 a piece and three guys and myself at about $10,000 low ball....Do the numbers..I had two demo companies quote me about 30 grand (cause they had to be so careful..I'm in New York. Taking down a WHOLE house is a lotttt cheaper. You dont really need to be as careful..Ka-boom!

1. 
   Schelling_McKinley | Jan 31, 2002 03:49pm | #5

   *We demoed a similar sized house board by board for $5000 complete. Our mason, a very rough character, organized a crew of low priced buddies and they had it down and trucked away in two long days. They sold some of the flooring and metal roofing but couldn't have gotten much for it. Our excavator gave us a similar price if we could bury it on site.

2. 
   Boss_Hog | Jan 31, 2002 03:53pm | #6

   *Frenchy is right about it being a pain to demo an old house. Stepping on nails is one of my fondest memories of the only time I've ever done it. It was dirty - really, really dirty. Makes the dust bunnies under your bed look pretty tame by comparison. I hope to never, never have to go through that again as long as I live.This won't work if you have to save part of it - The fire department here has used a couple of abandonded houses around here for "fire parctice". They throw some straw bales in a room and light them, then have the rookies put it out. Then they light more in another room, etc. until they finally let the whole house burn down. Saves a lot on landfill fees, and is great practice for the fire department.

3. 
   The_Tennis_Court_Builder_...on_t | Jan 31, 2002 04:01pm | #7

   *tore out the whole inside of a home of similar size for about $5000. One guy went at it with a big smile. Loves to rip and toss! I left him there for the week by himself checking on him. He did all the total rip out easily, then we had to go slow for all the semi rip out. Another helper had a one ton dump and all went to $10/yd demo dump.Tore down a whole 12 unit motel that had a fire with an excavator and special demo insurance, Excavator charged $4000, and we did the window and door removals.. sold all fixtures, sinks, potties, lights, doors, windows to a guy that has apartments, $5 for this, $10 for that, $20 for picture windows with side sashes, Huge project, done in less than a week, charged $7500.near the stream,ajDemo is easy and fun! Chainsaws, excavators giant chunks being cut and dropped...Oh the smell, the excitement of getting flopped on!

4. 
   doug_hubbard | Feb 01, 2002 04:46am | #8

   *Excellent!Thank you- just what I was looking for.I can cut back from the 15k a bit- get it done and give the client some dollars back- start on the right foot.thanks all,hub