Drywall... is this a ripoff?

[Flames_Gimp]

including ceiling...ya man, this guy was tryin to rip me off..

[STAMPEDRED]

It might only be 8 hours of work once you factor in all the time involved that one poster did, but you can't forget that he has to drive there each day for one hour of work.

Even if he charged $50 an hour, which in todays trades is quite reasonable, he would effectively only be making $16.70 an hour once you factor in an hour to get there and then onto the next job! And for 12 sheets, he is just pricing it high so that if he gets it, great, but it is more or less not worth his time in the end for a small piddly (to him!) job like that.

But I would say it was agood call not to go with him. $1500 would have been more reasonable to me... Unless he supplied all materials in his original quote

[Flames_Gimp]

Originally Posted by STAMPEDRED

It might only be 8 hours of work once you factor in all the time involved that one poster did, but you can't forget that he has to drive there each day for one hour of work.

Even if he charged $50 an hour, which in todays trades is quite reasonable, he would effectively only be making $16.70 an hour once you factor in an hour to get there and then onto the next job! And for 12 sheets, he is just pricing it high so that if he gets it, great, but it is more or less not worth his time in the end for a small piddly (to him!) job like that.

But I would say it was agood call not to go with him. $1500 would have been more reasonable to me... Unless he supplied all materials in his original quote

he wouldnt even do it for 1500 if I supplied the materials

[thatguy]

Ya I see it all the time some trades have so many job offers they quote high and if you accept, jackpot for them, if not they still have plenty of jobs lined up so no loss to them.

[Barnes]

-Find a Saturday with a Flames game.

-Solicite CP for handyman resumes.

-Interview.

-Buy lots of beer.

[Jagger]

Originally Posted by thatguy

Ya I see it all the time some trades have so many job offers they quote high and if you accept, jackpot for them, if not they still have plenty of jobs lined up so no loss to them.

Unfortunately, that is a fact of life. I will quote some jobs high for sure but only because of the amount of labour I have to pay to get those difficult jobs completed. My roofers will not work on steep roofs nowadays, with the new safety standards in place, without getting paid very well. I can't say I blame them either.

You are right. Some jobs will get a large number thrown at it as the contractor really doesn't care if they get the job as they are so busy in any case.

[CrazyCaper]

Originally Posted by burn_baby_burn

I had my basement done a year ago. about 900 square feet. Two bed rooms, a bathroom, a laundry room, and a large family room, including roof. All boarded, mudded, taped ready for paint with rounded corners. The roof was sprayed. I also had a utility room and a storage room just boarded. All in all it cost me $2800 for all the labour and materials not including the drywall board itself.

I'm gonna need my basement done in the next several months. Who did you use? That sound like a helluva good deal.

[STAMPEDRED]

Originally Posted by Flames_Gimp

he wouldnt even do it for 1500 if I supplied the materials

That was a good call to walk!

To the trades favour, it is easy to assume that a price can seem high, but you really do have to factor in their travelling time. Most people work 9-5 weekdays in one place. Trades, especially ones who are running their own show, can travel to 2, 3, or even 4 jobs in a day... that travel time usually doesn't get paid for so that is where the higher price tag would come from.

I just recently quoted a job out in Okotoks and I paid my guy pretty good to travel from the far north of town all the way to Okotoks to do a weeks job. The GC didn't appreciate the fact it cost more, but what are you going to do? It costs my guy more just to get there and work is a plenty in the city! As much as I would want to cut the homeowner a deal, you can't give a "home-town" discount to someone who isn't even in your home town!

But your guy was definetely trying to soak ya! A little more networking and I'm sure you'll find a decent guy to do the job at a decent rate!

[burn_baby_burn]

Originally Posted by CrazyCaper

I'm gonna need my basement done in the next several months. Who did you use? That sound like a helluva good deal.

I live in Red Deer. It was a guy from Sylvan. All in all with labour and all materials it cost me $4000 total. I know a guy that manages a drywall supply store. He gave me a deal on the drywall. I borrowed a trailer and picked it up myself and then he helped me unload it at no additional cost. If you want a workout, unload a bunch of 8' to 20' sheets of drywall into your basement.

[Sylvanfan]

Charging travel time within the city of Calgary is BS. If the guy is that busy he should be able to schedule a small job so that he's not going from the South East to the North West for his next job. I get the impression that FG would have been somewhat flexible with his schedule had the guy given him a reasonable price. Most people need time to go to work so if FG is that far out of the way than start the day at his place and work your way back. Good for him for calling BS on this and not giving the guy the job.

Although I will admit that in any trade type bussiness if you see a job you don't really want to do, people will often to overprice the job so the client won't accept. In reality the customer would probably rather be told that the trades guys preference would be to not do that job.

[Shazam]

Originally Posted by Sylvanfan

In reality the customer would probably rather be told that the trades guys preference would be to not do that job.

Trust me, telling clients the truth doesn't work. At my old job we'd get swamped with work and occasionally have to turn down projects. We'd tell the client point blank "We're too busy right now". They'd respond with "Duh, I don't understand the concept of time. Why can't you do it?". Rinse, repeat.

[Flames_Gimp]

Originally Posted by Sylvanfan

Most people need time to go to work so if FG is that far out of the way than start the day at his place and work your way back. Good for him for calling BS on this and not giving the guy the job.

and I live Dead center of the city practically...

[STAMPEDRED]

Originally Posted by Sylvanfan

Charging travel time within the city of Calgary is BS. If the guy is that busy he should be able to schedule a small job so that he's not going from the South East to the North West for his next job. I get the impression that FG would have been somewhat flexible with his schedule had the guy given him a reasonable price. Most people need time to go to work so if FG is that far out of the way than start the day at his place and work your way back. Good for him for calling BS on this and not giving the guy the job.

Although I will admit that in any trade type bussiness if you see a job you don't really want to do, people will often to overprice the job so the client won't accept. In reality the customer would probably rather be told that the trades guys preference would be to not do that job.

It is quite a long drive to go from the SE to the NW... especially cause there is not always a clear route to take! Fuel is not really cheap anymore, and after doing a few jobs that require long travels... even within city limits, it can sure cut into profit and the time it takes to do some of these jobs can practically wipe you out! I never charge for estimates, but I will factor time into the quote. If I am doing a job next door for a guy then he will get a decent price. But if I have to drive all over the city, check measurements a couple of times, go over designs a few times... then its going to reflect in the price.

Remember, people are trading time for money in every line of work! The more time it takes, the more it should pay.

As for trades over-pricing jobs, Shazam is absolutely right. No one can understand the concept of "we are just too busy". But if you price it through the roof, it tends to push people to the point of understanding
that they should look somewhere else. On the flip side though is if they accept the price, they're job "miraculously" takes priority over a few others cause now it is worth their time to stop what they are doing and work on your project even though they will get the gears for not doing the other stuff from other customers!

So either way, FG made the right choice adn should be able to find someone soon enough to help him out. I would wait to find someone though, drywall has got to be THE worst job to do!

[Flames_Gimp]

I've got a buddy doing drywall for the first time... the whole kitchen is almost boarded and he is doing an excellent job so far

[Flames_Gimp]

[Flames_Gimp]

Originally Posted by fotze

The boarding is the easiest part, the mudding is the whore. The key is to be patient. Do one very thin coat and walk away from it and come back. I always get impatient and try to get it right after two coats and just keep buggering it up. The seams should be nice and wide, at least a foot wide. Primer and paint doesn't cover up anything.

yup gotta fan out the joints so it looks better. but, there are people who even suck at the boarding.. we're removing stuff another Friend installed...

[ken0042]

Hey FG- check your email. I'm just in the middle of doing my own drywall and a buddy brought over a magazine that has great mudding instructions. I scanned it in before he left, so I'll send you the scans.

I haven't had a chance to re-size the scans, so I'll email them to you one at a time. (Sorry about the size.)

My buddy did the first coat of mud last night, and left me to finish it. That's why he brought the article in for me.