OK heres the deal. I need a small (800 sqft) slab poured inside a metal barn. No form work needed. Barn is insulated, electric, water. Have called 4 different people about this job. All are in the concrete business. Got their names from friends. One guy shows up quotes labor only, wants me to buy concrete. Other guys give approximate price over phone, but don’t show up on day they say to look at job and give written estimate. Does everyone have so much work they don’t need the money. I am paying cash for a turnkey job. Wanted to start this project in early June. Any one have contacts in West Texas area.
Go Red Raiders
Marc
Replies
Does everyone have so much work they don't need the money.
In reply, yes, but its not the money, its the time.
This is the busiest season of the year. In February and march I would have had time and it would have been worth it for me to drive to Texas to put your floor in, but this is peak.
I have been working 6-7 days a week since may and Im about 7 jobs out. As for the money, I havent caught up from a 'scrape by' winter.
-zen
Around here (Ct) flat work guys also like for you to pay the concrete bill and just pay them labor. That way if the customer becomes difficult they can walk with nothing lost.
Look at it from their point of view. They dont want to be on the hook for a couple of grand over for a half days labor
One guy shows up quotes labor only, wants me to buy concrete.
This is not that uncommon. What is your problem with it? You can save the guy's markup on materials that way if you know how to negotiate the concrete buy....
Dinosaur
A day may come when the courage of men fails,when we forsake our friends and break all bonds of fellowship...
But it is not this day.
You need to hire a three-man finishing crew for a day. That's all you need, and you can get it.
Find out their day rate for the crew, tell them you provide pizzas for lunch. Ask them where they want the mud from. Ask them if they want you to rent a whirlybird. Pay for the mud yourself and pay the crew when the day is done.
After they leave, cover the slab yourself with dropcloths or plastic and soak it... keep it wet for several days. Then go get a saw and cut control joints if the finishers didn't cut any.
Oh yeah... call a few concrete suppliers and ask them who the freelance finish crews are.
Unfortunately you misunderstood the first guy. He must have been an Aggie. He would have told you where to get the concrete, and how much was needed, he just wanted you to payt the redimix supplier directly. Very common down here.
Guns Up!
I'm sorry, I thought you wanted it done the right way.
Thanks for the answers. I have done just about everything in homebuilding, except concrete work. I do not want to learn now. Just wanted a good job at reasonable price and time. Thanks guess I'll have to keep looking.
you wanted a good job at reasonable price and time. That is an oxymoron, you will never get it . only two out of three possible. good job, price, time good job= high price, their time
low price= fair job, maybe your time
on time= high price, fair jobjust not possible this time of year. we start at 3 am everyday work till 5 pm and still cannot keep up. 7 days a week. our plants are running 24 hr a dayowner paying for concrete is 99.9 % the way they do it. If I have to pay I mark up 50% and will put a lien on the house. Payment is demand on delivery and end of day in full
Wizard,
>>I do not want to learn now. Just wanted a good job at reasonable price and time. Thanks guess I'll have to keep looking.
Damme, bud, I hate to sound like I'm getting in your case, but. . . .
You have unreasonable expectations. Until you learn how a concrete job normally goes you will continue to have them. That means that you will continue looking until you find some scammer that will promise you the moon.
Let's take a look at what you have for me to work with. An existing building. What kind of foundation? Piers? Perimeter stem wall? Mid span posts? interior walls? What finished elevation compared to central footings and stemwall? What kind of finish do you want? What about plumbing and electrical runs. Toilet? Other fixtures and appliances? I gotta work around/under all this, ya know?
You said it is insulated, so I'll assume a stem wall, but what about central columns? Is this just a simple empty rectangle?
At the very least, if you want a good job, I'll need to place some isolation at the stem walls.
If you want a good job, I'll have to remove a layer of soil, compact the remainder and maybe bring in gravel as a base/filler.
If you want a good job, I'll have to place some kind of reinforcing, preferably rebar, but if you're cheap, I suppose I could use WWM.
If you want a good job, I'll have to look at your ground water/drainage issues.
If you want a good job, I'll have to get concrete under all fixtures and appliances.
If you want a long term economy, I'll have to place insulation around the perimeter under the floor. Since good concrete is as flat on bottom as it is on top, I'll have to remove an equivalent amount of soil.
If you want a good job, I'll have to place some forms (screes.)
If you want a good job, it will take some time, possibly as much as two weeks. Where am I gonna find that time slot?
Best case, all groundwork has been done and all I've got to do is set steel, screes, and mud. No issue with the central columns. Two full days. 64 man hours
Concrete will cost $1K-$2K, payable on delivery. If I gotta pay it, figure your cost at $1350-$2700, payable 8 hours later.
If ya want cheap and fast, 4 hours, in and out, and I'll use my BILs name, since he's in prison and can't complain.
SamT
Not to the point of your question, but when you say no formwork needed, what do you mean?
When I layout flatwork, I consider screed boards as part of the form work....I've done a few barns and you've got to have a perimeter to pull to and, unless your 800 sq. ft. barn is about 10' wide and 80' long, you'll need some screed lines in the field.
If you've taken care of all that, try calling the concrete plant or a local masonry supply and see if they know of a good finish guy, with his own tools, who might be able to fit in a small job like yours....get some laborers from a temp outfit or some local buffed out High school wrestlers or football players to pull the screeds and clean up.
And hire a line pump.
Why dont you do it?
I do smaller ones on my own. I am in no way considered a 'concrete guy'.
To remove the idiot factor I set up 1" galvanised pipes on packers and wire them down to the reinforcing. This is done with either a string line from the level perimeter or with a laser level.
I get a nice long screed and then work in rows using the pipes.
When done screeding, snip the wires, lift the pipe. Put a little concrete in a bucket and walk along the groove left by the pipe. Work backwards trowelling it out as you go.
When hard enough to stand on, get going with the power float. The last one I did I spent hours working the float. End result was exactly what the customer wanted, smooooooth.
If you get a couple friends, even big ones arent that bad. One to rake the concrete back as you screed and to fill in the dips. Another to run a wheel barrow, lift pipes etc. Hard work but entirely possible.
Whatever it was.................I didnt do it.
He can't do it himself cuz he can't get any packers. Jeez Louise, where do you live to make you talk so funny ... some foreign country?
But I agree. It sounds like a concrete project that would be very suitable to learn on. Either gets some dumb friends and a case of beer, or ask the batch plant for some names.
I'm sorry, I thought you wanted it done the right way.
I talk funny......ME???
LOL
You got things like drywall, hole hawgs, grits, siding and dykes.
( the last one kills me, we know that term as 2 womens who....... :-) )
Whatever it was.................I didnt do it.
Met a guy and his family from New Plymouth....
they talked funny... suspect you have the same accent...
YUP.
Go way South and they roll their R's which sounds a little weird till ya get used to it. Everyone else speaks Kiwi.
Still laffin.........:-)
Whatever it was.................I didnt do it.
Speaks Kiwi ya say...
is that why some pairs of shoes are noisier than others???
Nope, either your not holding yer mouth right, OR, yer swandri has got a rip in it.
Simple really. <G>
Whatever it was.................I didnt do it.
Ok, what do you call a grit? I think of it as a food.
I'm sorry, I thought you wanted it done the right way.
Grit be stuff ya spread on the road to stop skidding when its frosty.
Whatever it was.................I didnt do it.
I have had three pours done for me this year, one being an ICF wall with a pump, and two slabs. In all three cases, I was responsible for contacting the redimix supplier and ordering the correct amount of concrete, and I had to arrange for the pump. The finishing crew showed up to assist in the pour, screed, float and finish. This seems to be common practice, especially early in the construction season when the concrete crews are running on a thin margin and need the cash flow. This late in the year, it would be easier to contract the entire job as a turnkey.