I bid $17.50 per linear ft to install a six ft privacy fence
1 X 6 X 6 ft pressure treated wood.
How much do you charge?
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Replies
good luck with that price
Great if you get the wood free, otherwise, your just doing someone a favor.
thanks guysI'm just a one man crew working out of the trunk of my car.I've bid several jobs like this and they tell me I'm too highAnyway, thanks again
Your price needs to partially based on your overhead. Someone will always do it cheaper than you. The people that cry about your price will get what they pay for.
BTW for fence, I usually charge $50/ post and $50/ panel, labor. As a rule I dont do alot of fence but that generally keeps me in the ballpark.
Family.....They're always there when they need you.
whoa, you mean you are including materials for that price!!!!????at the first post I thought, yeah, that might do OK for labor, depending on how hard the soil digs....You can't possibly mean you are throwing in the materials too!
Welcome to the Taunton University of Knowledge FHB Campus at Breaktime. where ... Excellence is its own reward!
I have done thousands of feet of pressure treated fence at that price or less.
Pressure treated 1x6"x6' fence board runs about 3.00 a running ft.
A post every 8' costs about 6$ or less than a dollar a ft.
Concrete cost 4$ a bag per post or .50 a ft
Three runners(2x4x8) cost 10$ or about 1.35 a ft.
Nails cost around .35$ arunning ft.
3.00+1.00+.50+.1.35+.35 =6.20 but lets round up to 7.50 a ft.
That leaves 10$ a running ft for labor !
I can hand dig and set posts for 200' in a day by myself but let's say I average a 100ft
On the second day I can install runners and fence boards for a hundred ft
2 DAYS AND I MADE A THOUSAND BUCKS.
ANDYSZ2
PS Cedar fence cost around 10$ a running ft for materials and I have built an awful lot at 17.5 a ft
WHY DO I HAVE TO EXPLAIN TO FRIENDS AND FAMILY THAT BEING A SOLE PROPRIETOR IS A REAL JOB?
REMODELER/PUNCHOUT SPECIALIST
In this rocky soil, 8-10 holes and posts in a day of hand digging is a good day's work. Then another day to build fence. with getting the materials there, figure two days to go a hundred feet.Materials cheaper for you, too, I guess, just the SS fasteners are going to cost me half a dollar a foot.brain flash!Are you talking about that cheap premade fencing that is all splinters? If so, I'm in the wrong place. sorry. Never used that stuff. When IO build a fence, I build the fence.
Welcome to the Taunton University of Knowledge FHB Campus at Breaktime. where ... Excellence is its own reward!
Don't use stainless, double dipped galvanized and all individual boards and for the most part I use 16' runners cost me more but makes a better fence.
Only have to dig 2' deep but clay can be as tough as concrete will drill with hammerdrill and real long bit to breakup clay.
ANDYSZ2WHY DO I HAVE TO EXPLAIN TO FRIENDS AND FAMILY THAT BEING A SOLE PROPRIETOR IS A REAL JOB?
REMODELER/PUNCHOUT SPECIALIST
You are right on with your estimates. In my area, if you can hand dig 10 to 14 holes in a day your doing super and that assumes you don't hit any rocks or roots. I personally don't think one person can do it with our soil and the hidden surprises. I did 100 feet of fence holes in 2 1/2 days of digging, using digging bar and electric demo hammer/spade bit...considered myself lucky to do it that quick too. Mix up 14 to 16 bags of concrete and set posts in a day or day and one half ...again I felt lucky to get it done without any serious problems. If your having to cut back shrubs and trees along with digging up old concrete then it's going to take longer. (by yourself that is)
I recall one torturous day. Dug and set nine 6x6 4-5 feet deep. It was a cold day about this time of year, with wind blowing, near a cedar hedge so there were a few roots as well as the rocks. Seems most comments here are from those in softer soil, and only going down 2-3 feet.
Welcome to the Taunton University of Knowledge FHB Campus at Breaktime. where ... Excellence is its own reward!
The ground here is hard hard hard. In summer, you can take a shovel to any spot in the area, county for that matter, and attempt to dig. If all you have is a shovel, the hole is not going to get dug, period. If I put the point of the shovel into the soil, stand on the shovel, the shovel will only go in about 1/2 an inch.
I dig my holes to 2 feet and because we don't have heavy freeze, that's more then enough for any post.
If you install one post every 8 feet, with concrete base, then rails and 1x6 the rest of the way , material cost is about $22 /ft. If you've got a gate or two then the cost is higher. If I do a fence, other then my own, I wouldn't do it for less then $35 / ft. Lower then that and your just doing a favor for someone, you don't need the money to make a living on. If someone tells me it's too high, hey, if they're so well informed let them put the fence in themselves and show me how to do it cheaper. I don't do fences very often and then only for people I know, I'm not in the business but I know the basic fence structure and cost.
What is you material cost per foot? If you are using ceapo premade panels and basic 4x4 posts in sandy soil then I'd take it. If you are custom building them, then probably not.
cost per foot is about $10
The quotes were getting on the Gulf Coast pretty much mirrors Andy.
$10/ft labor and materials. Post holes and gates are extra.
I just did a basic 6 foot high fence, cedar 1x6x6 on both sides. Worked out to $80 a l/f. This includes labor and all materials.
Thanks to everyone for their inputNext QuestionIf hired, I am going to rent a "one man" post hole digger at DepotAt a cost of about 50 per day I think this is a good investment as I will be digging about 30 holeshttp://www.earthaugersdirect.com/Earthquake_E43_p/e43.htmCan one man (weak, middle age, out of shape) run this machine?Thanks!
No big deal. The bigger ones are a bit of a bear, but the 4" - 6" "drills" are pretty tame.
Unless you catch a rock edge. ;-)
Mike HennessyPittsburgh, PA
Thanks MikeI was talking to the guy at HD and he told me they have someting pretty slickthey have one of these you can rent for about $75 a dayhttp://www.equipmentland.com/products/general/dig-r-mobile.shtmlLooks pretty coolthanks again for your input
Depending on the length of fence I will sub out the post hole drilling. Typically guys in my area charge $15/hole to drill. I'd much rather pay them and save my back.
thanks I've never heard of that (subbing out the drilling)I talked to the guy at home depot and he said drilling can be difficult if the soil is clayhe said it's hard to pull the auger up out of the hole in the clay soilHe said the above mentioned machine with the hydraulics works really well in clay soilthanks again
That digger is the cats meow. Dugll my holes for 400'of fence in about half a day. And most of that time was moving the sum bitch from hole to hole. My son is only 5 so I can get him to dig the post holes. If the soil down there is anything like kc you're gonna have a piss load of clay and two separated shoulders on the one man post hole digger.
Just my two cents worth
Lefty- A Tape Measure Racist-Piffin said So!
I never like renting from HD, they charge by the hour. We have a rental yard that close at noon saturday, so if you pick up saturday morning, sunday is free. bring back monday
I agree with you, and fondly remember the days before our local rental joint sold out to United Rental and instituted a 'weekend rate'. Now, if you don't need it Sunday, you gotta get it back by 4-pm on Saturday or you pay for the whole weekend.
But just outta curiosity, why didja post that to me? NTTAWWT....
Dinosaur
How now, Mighty Sauron, that thou art not broughtlow by this? For thine evil pales before that whichfoolish men call Justice....
"he said it's hard to pull the auger up out of the hole in the clay soilHe said the above mentioned machine with the hydraulics works really well in clay soil"
Pure, unadulterated BS. The ONLY benefits for you are that it's more stable (i.e., less twisting-type kick back if the bit catches on a rock, which ain't all that likely, or all that bad if it does happen) and you can drill bigger diameter holes -- like up to 1', which is what I use these for. Since 6" is probably all you'll need, the smaller unit should do it.
The benefit for HD is that it costs more to rent.
Mike HennessyPittsburgh, PA
Those, IMHO, are harder to use than the single-man units since they're heavier and tend to wander off plumb due to weight of the power unit pushing the auger head off line. Also overkill for fence posts. Me, I'd go with the smaller, single-man unit, unless you have really rocky soil.
Mike HennessyPittsburgh, PA
that's more like it... i would guess it depends on your soil conditions
kinda like trenchers... trenchers don't work in New England... too many rocksMike Hussein Smith Rhode Island : Design / Build / Repair / Restore
I went into home depot today and looked at a one man post hole diggerIt runs on a two stroke engine and the accelerator is similar to motorcycle hand gripI'm looking at about 20 holes tooThanks Mike
better you than me.....have fun and lemme know how it works outMike Hussein Smith Rhode Island : Design / Build / Repair / Restore
Mike, I installed a 50 ft run of 6' privacy fence in my back yard a year agoI used 1 5/8 metal screws to attach the 1 X 6 X 6 to the 2 X 4 rails.some of the boards have twisted and warped and pulled away from the 2 x 4 rail and so, if hired, I am going to attach the fencing to the rail with 2 inch long screwsThe new fence will have three rails and so I would put a total of six screws in each 1 X 6 X 6Seems like that should keep the fence straight and flatAgree?
i think it's more a function of the wood than the screws...
grainy wood like SYP will twist .. wheras a more stable wood like cedar will not be as problematicMike Hussein Smith Rhode Island : Design / Build / Repair / Restore
keep track of times and cost then come back and let us know who's closer!
ok will doI bid the job last week and this is for a rental I'm not holding my breathI'm guessing my bid is too high but we'll see
View ImageView Image
mr....
mr........ the guy who worked for my digger bought one of those so he could sub our post holes
he was about 300 lb and pretty muscular..... i hired him for his first job
20 post holes... he sold that thing as soon as the job was over... it really knocks you around
i like the post hole diggers mounted on backhoes... but the one or two-man units like that just don't cut it in our rocky soilMike Hussein Smith Rhode Island : Design / Build / Repair / Restore
I just finished another fence. 6' boards topped with 2' lattice panel.
Came in at $81/a foot. $20 per foot materials, and $60 per foot labor.Would love to know if others are keeping track as well. Each time I do a fence, I keep refining the concept, cost and efficiency savings.
Sounds like you're making some coin on these fencesThanks for the update
Post some pictures.
And I have never heard of that much per ft so I would like to see what you built.
ANDYSZ2
WHY DO I HAVE TO EXPLAIN TO FRIENDS AND FAMILY THAT BEING A SOLE PROPRIETOR IS A REAL JOB?
REMODELER/PUNCHOUT SPECIALIST
Remember, he lives in Cal, home of the expensive contractors!!
I have yet to post pictures. The fence is super basic, nothing special. I am kinda surprised my per foot cost is so high compared to what I have seen posted here.Makes me think that there is no money in fences. Locally, it seems that most fences are handled by one or two major players.Makes me think that my hourly rate is unreasonably high for this sort of work.
Or your pace is off.
A good fence job might make me 300$ a day but it aint an easy day.
A 6' privacy fence out of cedar is around 20$ a running foot with material running around 9-10$ a ft.
I can set 20 posts by hand a day if the ground ain't to hard the next day I can frame all 160' and start my corners and lay out my boards the third day I will fence and the fourth I will build gates which I charge 50$ for a 4' and 150$ for a large double gate with hardware included. I might charge a little extra to install trailer jacks with wheels to keep the big gates from sagging.
ANDYSZ2WHY DO I HAVE TO EXPLAIN TO FRIENDS AND FAMILY THAT BEING A SOLE PROPRIETOR IS A REAL JOB?
REMODELER/PUNCHOUT SPECIALIST
That is more the price I have seen!!!
Wow $80 a foot. Could you please break this down a bit. True thickness of boards,stainless fastners? tough conditions? rich area?
Yeah, nothing about the fence was high end. I think what drove up the price was what was in the ground and what was in the way.I had to spend time establishing the property line. The neighbor had gone crazy landscaping with concrete and intruding on the client's property with the concrete. We had to jackhammer a lot of the stuff out of the way.This job was the opposite of drill holes in forgiving earth and install posts.However, I don't think I have ever had an easy fence installation, always concrete or rocks in the way.
Edited 11/11/2008 8:40 pm ET by yojimbo2
I called the City and asked where I go to get a Fence PermitThey indicated a Permit is not needed if the fence height is less than 8 ft.Does that sound right Larry?
yep,thats how it is. just make sure you stay on your side of the line and your ready to go.
better hurry the grounds going to freeze before long.if a man speaks in the forest,and there's not a woman to hear him,is he still wrong?
Thanks Larry - I lived in another town and I did have to get a permitThis was about 10 years ago and they mainly wanted to monitor the fences so that you would not put up something that the neighbors wouldn't like
do you have much in the way of trees? you start hitting a few roots and tug and pull loose you will be ready for a break.thats the drawback to the onemaner. but its probably better than hand digging
some of the rental places have one that the motor sets a ways off and you dig the hole,i think it helps anchor it a little.
let em know if you have a lot of fun,i bought 150' of vinyl fence 4 years ago,still haven't gotten bored enough to go digging yet.if a man speaks in the forest,and there's not a woman to hear him,is he still wrong?
Hadn't even thought about tree roots.I'm going to look at it tomorrowThanks LarryOh, I called "one call" today and they will mark the underground utilitiesI told the woman on the phone I was installing a fence.She asked me "will you be using any explosives?"I thought to myself "why is she asking me that?"I should have said "yes, why do you ask"
yes, check for underground. That is good.
Years ago I rented a duplex. Needed a fence. Landlord bought materials. we put it in for rent.
Didn't think about undergrounds. All of a sudden....neighborhood phones go out. 3-4 holes got a wire. Funny thing was this was in the back yard. Phone wires just going all over. Some somewhat following prop lines, some just setting off cross country.
They didn't charge us.
We got couple other fence jobs out of it
yes, tree roots will send you to the bar in a hurry. it can be a pain to just get the auger out of the hole, never mind what happened to your shoulders and back when it seized up.
I've used the two-man and the offset one-man (years ago), and I think hand digging is easier if there's any chance of roots or rocks. preferably someone else's hands, of course.
or use a spade bit on a big rotohammer- that'll get you down the first 18 " or so with no problem.
k
That price is similar to what I pay here, although it might be more like $16. That is for a large fence company that has all the right insurance, but they also use 5/8" thick boards. 6' "dog eared" privacy fence. I also have a guy who will do it for around $14.50 but he doesn't have all the right insurance - namely workman's comp - which he doesn't really have to have since he is a 1 man show, but I can't hire anyone without it - per our insurance co. I'm sure fence prices are very regional though.
6ft. high, 4x4 PT posts in concrete, cedar rails and verticals, Simpson brackets- $30 per running foot, gates extra.
I've seen $25 - $30 per foot around here. It's been years since it was <$20/ft. - lol
i just bid on a 6' high fence with a 2' trellis on top. Labor &
materials came out to $55 a lf.
Sounds like an attractive fence
I ended up bidding $31 or $3200 for 130 ft of fencingI didn't get the jobAfter my original bid they wanted to change some things and this raised the price -