Core Aeration Pricing

[DA Quality Lawn & YS]

This was covered pretty well last fall, but to reiterate, what is everyone's rates on core aeration? Would like to hear from northern contractors like myself. Going rate seems to be around $12-$15/K sq ft in this neck of the woods? With rental cost, this price range seems to allow me to make a good profit off of the service. What is everyone elses take on this?

[magland]

That would be high for around here. I would say around $10 per 1000 sq ft. Of course, we still have guys charging $20-$25 to do an aeration. Amazing! A homeowner can't even rent a machine and do it himself for that. Nice industry we are in. Provide a service cheaper than the homeowner can do by himeself. I wish my bathroom remodel guy was that way. I can do it for $4000, so how about you do it for $3500. :hammerhead:

[green_mark]

We run at 15.00/1,000 but are going to increase this year to about 16.50.

[larryinalabama]

I just purchased a Bluebire 530a with a 4 hp Honda engine. Im going to charg 60$ per yard 1hour max. 50$ each additional hour. The rental co gets 45$ per hour.

[DFLS]

I just purchased a Bluebire 530a with a 4 hp Honda engine. Im going to charg 60$ per yard 1hour max. 50$ each additional hour. The rental co gets 45$ per hour.

You should get more than that. If the first lawn takes 2 hours then you make $110 less the rental fee $45 = $65 for two hours work. Now you have to consider the pick up / drop off of the machine that is time = $$ off of the $65 profit. That boils down to less than $30/hr. Before I bought an aerator I charged the rental price + my time to pick it up and drop it off to the customer in addition to an hourly fee for the aeration itself. Even if you do more than one yard per rental, charge each customer the rental fee (unless they are neighbors then split the rental fee). Easy extra money.

[larryinalabama]

You should get more than that. If the first lawn takes 2 hours then you make $110 less the rental fee $45 = $65 for two hours work. Now you have to consider the pick up / drop off of the machine that is time = $$ off of the $65 profit. That boils down to less than $30/hr. Before I bought an aerator I charged the rental price + my time to pick it up and drop it off to the customer in addition to an hourly fee for the aeration itself. Even if you do more than one yard per rental, charge each customer the rental fee (unless they are neighbors then split the rental fee). Easy extra money.

My thinking is that most lawns will take 30 minutes or less, at 60$ per yard thats fine, I just want to cover myself if the coner lot guy wants it done ant it takes me longer. I only need 20 jobs to cove what I paid for the machine.

[Exact Rototilling]

Hey if I can't make at least $75 bare minimum including marking sprinkler heads myself [I don't trust the customer to mark them all] for the same yard I would charge to $35 to mow why bother. Just mow yards at that rate why aerate and risk punching and destroying sprinkler heads dog run lines etc. Get a bigger faster mower to knock out more yards faster and make more mowing than aerating. Use the $4500+ towards a cool new ZTR. The big name companies around here pull in big bucks aerating why not me with superior equipment, and with an up sell on over seeding etc. payup

IMHO you need to pull in x2 min what you would make mowing to make it worth offering. Every area is different.

:waving:

[larryinalabama]

I just now am starting to build my business. I will do it part time for this year and hopefully full time next year. I may try for 75$ for aerating, even at 60$ Im still thinking its a good lick.

[AI Inc]

I just now am starting to build my business. I will do it part time for this year and hopefully full time next year. I may try for 75$ for aerating, even at 60$ Im still thinking its a good lick.

First yr I had a $75 minimum , next yr it went to $90 , last yr raised it to $100 Running one all day is like dancing with a big girl , its a lot of work!

[larryinalabama]

First yr I had a $75 minimum , next yr it went to $90 , last yr raised it to $100 Running one all day is like dancing with a big girl , its a lot of work!

Well I guess Ive danced with some big girls in my day. The Blubird will wear your rear end down.

Anyway part of my business plan is to have all or most of the equiptment that rental yards have. I will offer the machines with me the operator slightly higher than the rental yards do. Im trying to get some of the do it yourselvers work that no one else does.

[IMAGE]

One of the bigger outfits in my town is doing 7400 sq ft yards for $70. I am going to match thier pricing.

[larryinalabama]

We don't have too many guys aerating in my aera. Im thinking most people that aerate have to rent the aerator. Im trying to tap some of that market as well as convince people that their yard will benefit. Thats why Im starting at 60$ for now, I have to somewhat compete with the rental yard. The rental store gets 45$ so Im thinking at 60$ I will get the sale provided they know I exhist.

[readycutlawncare]

now i am only in my second season but the prices you guys are talking about seems so cheap. aerating is a tough job and you guys are only charging a couple dollars more than what you are renting it for? my lowest price last was 120.00(3500sq ft). a descent sized corner lot was at least 350.00 to 450.00(6500 sq ft and up). they should be paying the cost to rent the machine plus your labor rate. remember you are saving them some back breaking work. i bought a ryan core aerator back in october and it allows me a little flexability on my pricing but i try not to go to low. i would never aerate a yard for less than 120.00. but thats just my new person in the business attitude.

[jeffinsgf]

Some of you guys aren't following what Larry is saying. He isn't renting the aerator. In his first post he said he bought an aerator. When he mentions the rental price, he's trying to show the logic behind his $60 an hour price -- that is -- if Harry Homeowner goes to the rental yard and rents an aerator for $45 an hour, he then has to haul it home, drag it out of the back of the Town & Country mini-van, rip the carpet, irritate the wife, get bounced all over the yard, tear up 5 sprinkler heads that he doesn't know how to fix, do a half-axxed job of aerating, scratch the bumper of the T&C and slip a disc putting the g## d##### thing back in, drive it back to the rental yard, and then get dinged for another $45 'cause he was an hour and a half late. For $15 more than Harry is planning to spend, Larry will take all that out of his life.

It's good logic, but it leads to a price that is on the low end of what the market will bear. Per-K pricing also has its pit falls, depending on the average size of lot that you're working on. In some small residential situations, you're going to be doing the same driving in and out, the same loading and unloading, nearly the same amount of time marking obstacles, and then aerating 5 or 6 K.

[madmax]

I know that girl.

I try and get at least 5 of my customers to do an aeration before I rent one. That way I can still make the money I need to and my customers can absorb the rental fees with out it killing them. I do this when ever I need to rent anything for the rental guys. There is no way I can own everything they have. We just had a lot of storm damage and I rented a chipper for 300.00 a day. Did the same thing with that. ( I charge 50.00 a hr. plus the rental break down.)

[larryinalabama]

[QUOTE=madmax;2142964]I know that girl.

I try and get at least 5 of my customers to do an aeration before I rent one. That way I can still make the money I need to and my customers can absorb the rental fees with out it killing them. I do this when ever I need to rent anything for the rental guys. There is no way I can own everything they have. We just had a lot of storm damage and I rented a chipper for 300.00 a day. Did the same thing with that. ( I charge 50.00 a hr. plus the rental break down.)[/QUOTE

My prices and your prices are about the same. 60-80 dollers per hour is about the going rate. I see some want 350 per hour, at that price I would be staying home waiting on phone calls.

My business plan is to run 40 residuntual accounts, average at least 30$ per account. Thats 240$ per day, add a couple of aeration or other small jobs at 60 $ that brings me to 360 per day. 60 $ for expenses so I make 1500$ per week, Im happy with that.

[daveyo]

I just now am starting to build my business. I will do it part time for this year and hopefully full time next year. I may try for 75$ for aerating, even at 60$ Im still thinking its a good lick.

After you realize what a bear it is to aerate you'll reconfigure your numbers. We always get $ to mark flags, drive time, gas, labor, depreciation, maintenance, overhead, possible downtime blah blah blah. If I don't then why am I in business. Get now what you think you'll need in the future or you'll shock your customers when you figure out your real numbers.

now i am only in my second season but the prices you guys are talking about seems so cheap. aerating is a tough job and you guys are only charging a couple dollars more than what you are renting it for? my lowest price last was 120.00(3500sq ft). a descent sized corner lot was at least 350.00 to 450.00(6500 sq ft and up). they should be paying the cost to rent the machine plus your labor rate. remember you are saving them some back breaking work. i bought a ryan core aerator back in October and it allows me a little flexability on my pricing but i try not to go to low. i would never aerate a yard for less than 120.00. but thats just my new person in the business attitude.

and thats the right attitude, I was right at that price also, we did a lot of aerating maybe two or three customers said something but still paid, its hard azz work

[txgrassguy]

I receive a minimum of $250 for 14K turf site - aerating in an X pattern - includes core clean up.
I have an old 60" ztr with the spring time rake that goes on the trailer with the walk behind aerator or follows the 6' 3 point.
I use double blades, high lifts on the bottom and gator blades on the top and the deck height is at least 1/2" above the height of the turf sight.
We never mark unless the contract stipulates and then at a cost of $65/hour.
Has worked very well for over four years now and still getting calls for more.
One operator can aerify and clean up a 14K site in about 1.5 hours.

[Elden]

txgrass, you mentioned double blades? Please explain. Do you simply put two blades on at a time or are there special attachments needed to do that?

[Trader Rick]

With the price of fuel/equipment/insurance etc...... you will be out of business charging rates as low as you are for work like aeration. The first major breakdown will kick your butt. You work hard for a living, charge what it is worth. You pull up to a job with many thousands of dollars worth of equipment and charge just a little over cost to do the work, meanwhile the plumber or heat/ac guy rings your door bell and it just cost you $75 and he hasn't done a thing except show up. If your customers wont pay a decent price for your work, change the circle of customers you serve. We learned this a long time ago. If you get every job you bid due to price, your bidding to low.
:usflag::weightlifter::usflag:

[ALC-GregH]

It's been awhile since this thread came up but I need some help with aerating.

I need to do a corner lot, maybe 4000sqft 45 max. My plan was to use one of these in the picture to pull behind my riding mower. I'm totally new to these so bare with me. What are the small containers on the top used for? Will this model apply seed as well? I need to quote a customer a price to aerate and over seed ASAP but I'm not sure what I need to use to get the lawn looking better. I don't have a pic of the lawn but it has bare spots all over the place. In the bare spots lay all small rocks. What would you do in this condition? Honestly it needs to be cut out and re-sodded but I know they don't want to spend that kind of money. What are the chances that it will grow and fill in the bare spots? Would it just be better to wait until early fall to over seed? Chances are, the person won't be watering the lawn so I'm thinking it wouldn't be worth the effort.
http://www.rentalsunlimited.com/catalog/LwnGrdn/lwngrd6.gif

thanks for the help.

[jeffinsgf]

The containers are for ballast. Fill them with either water or sand. Without ballast, your aerator won't penetrate properly.

It's too late to seed, I think. Maybe too late to aerate. You want the turf actively growing and not under any stress. If you're having the same kind of heat as most of the Northeast, I wouldn't even think about aerating or overseeding, either one.

If the bare rocky areas aren't real big, get in there with a mini-tiller (Mantis or Honda), stir them up a little and rake out some of the rock. Throw some annual rye on it, and it will cover until you can do a proper renovation in September.

[Exact Rototilling]

When ever I hear the "grass never gets watered except for rain" line I usually try to steer clear of those renovation requests. In my area sprinkler systems and dragging around hoses are still allowed.

As a side note aerations have failed to meet the 2.5 to 3x the mowing rate in my area. I was unable to land any bids at those prices. I'm doing good to pull in 2x the mowing rate.

For the fall aeration season my marketing needs to be taken up several notches to tap the proper market. Generally speaking aeration is my most profitable service I offer. Fact is if I didn't offer aeration, rototilling, overseeding and lawn renovation repairs and had to rely on mowing alone like many low ball outfits here do I'd get out of this business ASAP.

:waving:

[ALC-GregH]

thank you for the response. I talked to them this morning and we decided to wait until fall to do anything with the lawn. I thought it was to late to over seed but wanted some reassurance. I still need to price out doing the job though. I will most likely rent the one in the pic I posted I can get it for $50 a day or $35 for a 1/2 day. It might take 30-40 minutes to physically do the job but I'd have to rush right back with it so I'd rather pay for the day and maybe using it at my place later. If I rent it after 4pm, I can us it that evening on the paying job, go home, do my yard the next morning and then return it. :) So rental fee, my time to aerate and seed, material's and I'm set?

Ballast huh? God I should have known that. :hammerhead:

[gorknoids]

We run a 24" Ryan to cut in and a 48" tow-behind (Fits most of the gates without breaking it off the Walker) and charge $65 per hour minimum. More beds, more cutting in, more expense. Do buy a tow-behind if you intend to offer the service. Using a spiral pattern, you can effectively quadruple-aerate a lawn in the time it takes to make one pass with the Fat Lady.

[LBLC_LCO]

Bumping this up since it's that time for some of us.

Planning on 2 x the mowing rate plus rental fees. Hoping I can get multiple customers at once to reduce the rental charge.

Preferences? Charge by every 1000 sqft? or 2-3x mowing cost?

Do you offer seeding at same time? What about fert? Prices?

[JLWC]

Im new at this. When is a good time to aerate a lawn

[dutchman]

That is what I like to know also. I have 2 customers I like to do on the 09-29 is that to late??

[Ric3077]

I have a $75 minimum...there are still clowns around here aerating 10,000 sq ft for $40...they are leaving TONS of $$$ on the table :hammerhead::hammerhead::hammerhead::dizzy::dizzy::dizzy:

[ezgoer1969]

I bought an aerator a couple weeks ago, thought I would make some extra money. Took it back after a few days. People here charge same or less than mowing.
Not me....