BIGGEST mulch job I have ever priced help!!!

[grassman177]

thanks, i have a job that is 30 houses in a very tight HOA that totals about 91-92 yards of mulch. i am having a hard time feeling out what labor time to charge for this bid.

how long do you think it might take for this project, using 4 guys and two wheel barrows, mulch delivered in pallets of bags onsite to make things easier.

i estimated 15 hrs of total time with all, but it seems wrong. what do you guys think and how long does it take you per yard to install considering 4 guys working??

thanks, i need to figure this out by tuesday so hoping some of you can help.!!

[grassman177]

here is an overhead view, you can see the comunity mulch beds, and there is beds around every house, some are comletely around while others are only a partial around the house landscape.

i would have the pallets of mulch delivered strategically in the area for ease of moving around. probably about 3 specific drop spots to work from, maybe 4

[Groomer]

15 hrs. for 90 yards? You guys gonna run the entire time? I'd say it will take a few hours just to open every bag. Beds all prepped and ready to spread? My 3 man crew can put down some mulch, but I couldn't do 90 in 15. How's that HOA work, when Mr. A gets twice as much mulch as M. B? Everyone still pay the same fee?

[ED'S LAWNCARE]

1ST thing I have to ask is why bags? Way too expensive, or are you just going to supply labor? Anyway with no prep work I get $55 yd installed which by the time I take out the mulch it equals to $30/yd. $30 x 92 = $2760 for labor. 15 hrs is about right. I think I could do it with the 2 guys that help me time to time in about 12hrs. Then again I wouldn't be using bags either.

[grassman177]

hahaha, no we dont run, i was just starting to figure and thought i would shout out here first. i have never done any one place bigger than 30 yds, and that was big.

That job took us about 8-9hrs i think, have to look.(dont keep me held to that time!) but we also had to go back and forth to get the mulch where at this bid, i will have it directly delivered onsite and placed in about 4 different places to aid in ease of moving it around.

BAGS, well, we like it and we can get one or two semi loads delivered at our shop and it is not exposed to the elements being in bags, much much neater and cleaner to store, and seriously, it is still only $30 per yd this way for us including delivery and tax etc. may sound expensive to you guys, but bulk from the same place is still about $26-28 per yd so it is not much more for the convenience. mulch is high here even in wholesale. bags are way easier to handle and lay for us. we have timed it and with the pitch forking and wheel barrows for bulk vs the wheel barrows only and just ripping the bags open( trust me it is not hard at all, very easy like a zip lock is easy, to easy sometimes even) we are about 20%faster with the bags.

No one seems to believe us, but it is true. so therefore my arguement for bags is ease of handling, storage and laying down are all better for us. delivering that much dyed mulch would make a serious mess to the roads onsite there if we did that. i am not into that mess at all. i am sure they would be pissed too!

so, about how long per yd are you guys taking to apply the mulch, and considering your methods, even using bulk, what are your figures?? one guy said 12 hrs, another thinks my guess of 15 is too low??!! so more info needed and thoughts please.

thanks for responding, it all helps!

[grassman177]

oh, and bed prep is super minimal as there is edging in place so no redefining anything at all, maybe a bit of raking here and there. no plants to cut back either as they have it done in the fall.

[RollingZimmer]

2760 sounds right.

I shoot for 80 a yard including cost, install, edging and weeding on rough yards and heavily weeded gardens.

Although, I am doing a few bids at banks right now with little to no edging and no weed pulling at all and Im gonna charge 60 a yard to see if I can get the job. I have not really done commercial mulching before so Im giving it a whirl.

I see where you are coming from with bags, but you wouldnt need a wheel barrow so you could have two barrels carry tons of bags, one guy spreads three or four then four or more arive. Might save time, esp. with cleanup and such.

Pray for no wind! youll be chasing bags all day lol.

Good luck mannn

[RollingZimmer]

when i say dont need a wheel barrow i mean you could still transport bags by carrying them. maybe even load up a truck and back it into the driveway and spread it then move down the road.

this place is gonna smell damn good when your done.

i think thats all i got for responses now.

[MarkintheGarden]

Grassman, my estimate for this job is total 69 hours labor based on 92 yards.
17.25 hours for the crew of four.
A good crew might make 15 hours.

What is the volume per bag, and how thick are you spreading it?

Sometimes a dolly works as well as a wheelbarrow does for moving bags of mulch.

[br549oicu8]

We may take a tractor to the site if we get the job to get the mulch closer to where it is needed. I have a Kubota L-3710 with a front loader at home, which happens to be about 1 1/2 blocks from this place. That would help a bunch. I do have turf tires, so as long as it's not wet we would be ok to at least get it close without too much manpower.