Hydroseeding per Acre??

[greenscapes,inc.]

Just wondering what you guys are charging per acre for hydroseeding. I have to opportunity to bid over 200 acres but I don't plan to because my tank is only 600 gallons. Just curious what you guys think the bid will go for. Thanks

[Mike33]

I get around 2,500 per acre but i have small tank also. I would say they will go to a cheaper way such as blowing straw and tacking it.
Mike

[AintNoFun]

that will probably go in the 2 to 3 cents per sq. ft. range.. i dont see how straw and tack is cheaper its a 2 step which is labor consuming...

[EA Quinn]

2 to 3 cents? YIKES! your market is horrible. We competitively would be around .06 to .08 per square foot for that. it really depends who you are working. private stuff you can get more, but when its competitive you need to crunch the numbers.

[jeffscap]

that will probably go in the 2 to 3 cents per sq. ft. range.. i dont see how straw and tack is cheaper its a 2 step which is labor consuming...

2-3cents Don't make cents! I agree with EA Quinn :nono:

[AintNoFun]

a 30 acre job around here just went for 3.1 cents a square foot.. the next up was 3.6 cents. non prevailing rate..

[Mike33]

that will probably go in the 2 to 3 cents per sq. ft. range.. i dont see how straw and tack is cheaper its a 2 step which is labor consuming...

I just notice in my area on bigger and scab jobs they blow straw. But im probably the only person in my area using 70-30 blend.
Mike

[muddstopper]

a 228 acre job that I can see from my front window went for .031 cents persqft. I prepared a bid for the job because it was so close to me i figured I could do it as cheap as or cheaper than anyone else. After crunching the numbers. I threw my bid in the trash and didnt even summit it. I found I could stay busy doing the smaller jobs and charge more for them than I could bid the big jobs for. One thing that did happen by my not bidding the job is it has tied up the big competitor for 4 years ( hiway right of ways) to where they cant bid the smaller jobs. I grossed more last year than the total amount of the bid for the 228 acres for the entire 4 years. Let the big guys have the big jobs, it keeps them out of your way on everything else.

[DUSTYCEDAR]

mudd how do u stay busy? not many people around here hydroseed all the contractors just seed and straw and homeowners wont pay for it even the guys that have the macnines dont get much use they seem to sit and rot.

[Mike33]

mudd how do u stay busy? not many people around here hydroseed all the contractors just seed and straw and homeowners wont pay for it even the guys that have the macnines dont get much use they seem to sit and rot.

I dont know what you do but if you install new yards dont give the option. Just hydro-seed and get-r-dun. I charge any where from 7-9 cents depending on size and where i can get water. I seed yards in 3 hours that would of took all day by hand and hope the wind dont blow hard for 10 days. I guess what im trying to say is you would of had to charge to do it by hand, still buying the same seed, fertlizer and labor to apply. wood blend mulch and lime for seeder isnt that much more expensive.
Mike

[Mike33]

a 228 acre job that I can see from my front window went for .031 cents persqft. I prepared a bid for the job because it was so close to me i figured I could do it as cheap as or cheaper than anyone else. After crunching the numbers. I threw my bid in the trash and didnt even summit it. I found I could stay busy doing the smaller jobs and charge more for them than I could bid the big jobs for. One thing that did happen by my not bidding the job is it has tied up the big competitor for 4 years ( hiway right of ways) to where they cant bid the smaller jobs. I grossed more last year than the total amount of the bid for the 228 acres for the entire 4 years. Let the big guys have the big jobs, it keeps them out of your way on everything else.

I have seen some ass ified prices like that too around my area like strip jobs, etc., Always wondered how they could have that big equiptment and make out.
Mike

[EA Quinn]

just thought id show you guys a shot of our rig we got last year. sure makes jobs go a lot quicker! Like any other type of work you need to know your costs. You need to know what it costs you per day to have your truck and crew out installing lawns etc. Then you need to figure out what you need to make, to live a good life and stay afloat. Dont take jobs just to take jobs. We are very rarely the lowest bigger, but once you get a few jobs and they see the work you are capable of they will keep coming back(referring to construction companies).

http://www.eaquinn.com/gallery/hydroseeding/images/Hydroseeding-1.jpg
http://www.eaquinn.com/gallery/hydroseeding/images/Hydroseeding-3.jpg
http://www.eaquinn.com/gallery/hydroseeding/images/Hydroseeding-2.jpg

[B. L. Landscaping]

here in northern illinois i am getting about .07 to .11 cents for smaller residential hydroseeding jobs but i need a bigger machine to complete jobs faster. also that is a pretty sweet rig that EA Quinn has got himself.

[muddstopper]

mudd how do u stay busy? not many people around here hydroseed all the contractors just seed and straw and homeowners wont pay for it even the guys that have the macnines dont get much use they seem to sit and rot.

Dusty, I could go on for hours about what it took to get firmly established with my business. All we do is seed, we do do a little prepwork when we can schedule it, but not as much as we used to. The biggest factor is advertiseing the right customer base. I realized early that homeowners are one time customers, I like them, they pay good, but they just aint repeat business. A few years ago my wife made up a trifold brochure describing out servises complete with pictures. We went to the bulding inspectors office and got a list of all the general contractors in my area. We also hit the realitor multiple listing services for a list of all area realitors. We then mailed them a copy of the brochure and a business card. I found that brochures end up in the trash, but business cards go in the rolodex. Builders and grading contractors are a good source of repeat customers. Realitors/developers selling spec houses also are repeat customers. Now instead of my having to look for new homeowners to sell my services, I have repeat customers that call me wanting to know when I can fit them into my schedule. I do very little advertising, basicly just an ad in the yellow pages, this ad is good for the homeowner that needs hydroseeding. I also keep a stack of business cards at the local home and garden center. I have two full time employees and manage to keep them busy. My wife takes calls and does estimates, and schedules the work. I did over $50,000 worth of seeding for a grading contractor last year, and his son-inlaw owns a hydroseeder. Results and customer service, is the key to keeping repeat customers once you find them.

[Mike33]

just thought id show you guys a shot of our rig we got last year. sure makes jobs go a lot quicker! Like any other type of work you need to know your costs. You need to know what it costs you per day to have your truck and crew out installing lawns etc. Then you need to figure out what you need to make, to live a good life and stay afloat. Dont take jobs just to take jobs. We are very rarely the lowest bigger, but once you get a few jobs and they see the work you are capable of they will keep coming back(referring to construction companies).

http://www.eaquinn.com/gallery/hydroseeding/images/Hydroseeding-1.jpg
http://www.eaquinn.com/gallery/hydroseeding/images/Hydroseeding-3.jpg
http://www.eaquinn.com/gallery/hydroseeding/images/Hydroseeding-2.jpg

Nice outfit, is that about 1500 gal. machine.
Mike

[taproot]

Is this Matt running E.A Quinn on here? I here your/our old trailer is still running around that town.

Jeff

[EA Quinn]

Small world jeff! Yes I went to work for EA about 3 and half years ago. I saw the trailer once or twice. The machine on the back of our truck is a 3100 gallon machine.