Leaf Removal

[lawncrafter56]

tuscan... how do you remove leaves at the rates you have given? a blower rake and tarp?

Lawn care business tips

i mow it into bags, which mulches it also. why? to much to charge?

[lawncrafter56]

No, not all and very fairly priced for such a dirty service. As Breeze has noted in the past that the going rates in his area are quite a bit lower. I believe that as I am pressed, to command some of the rates as stated on the Gopher forum. though I still make good profit. My gravy train has turned leaner


I feel through this economy the yard service industry must adapt to the economic environment with narrower pofit margins. prepare for the times to get worse and if not, Cheers!
Best of luck to us all

ya that dudes prices are way too low.

my clientel is in all the rich communitys here. i dropped around 15 account cuz they were out of state owners, cuz they all take too long to pay me, took a hit, but it is paying off cuz current customers have friends, and neighbors, etc.......same prices for all.

you know, word of mouth

i try to target the nicest houses and just recently learned how to easily put bids in for all the CVC, rite aids, gander mt, you know, those commercials.
i recieved 2 accounts, cvs, best buy, within the first e-mails i sent out.

i am a small company, me and a few workers if i need them, but i just dont want to deal with the $30 cuts anymore. i know they add up fast, but they are a pain. i kept a few favs though, hot girls, old ladies, and friends.
everything else anymore, just the big fish.

[Steve]

just recently learned how to easily put bids in for all the CVC, rite aids, gander mt, you know, those commercials.

This seems to be a tough jump for many new lawn care business owners to make. Do you have any advice on how best to go about this?

[CHEESE2009]

I just called a few companies posing as a potential customer.

One company said they charge leaf removal by whatever the customer pays per one mowing.

Another said they charge $60.00 give or take every house, and $75.00 every corner house.

The highest rate is $100.00 from what I know in my area.


So..... Now what.... This is confusing.

I guess the rates for leaf removal are dirt cheap here!

ANOTHER company said they charge $25.00 every 1000 sqft of lawn, if it's higher then 1500, they round it to $50.00

No one seems to charge by the job size, meaning they charge before they see how many leaves are on the lawn.

[picframer]

Did you ask how they will be collecting the leaves and what they will do with them? This may be why they are charging by the 1,000 sq/ft, in my own case it doesn't really matter much to me how many they have, I pass over the leaves once and they are collected and mulched, it it was manual collection then I think one would have to go by the hour.

As with anything we do have to consider what the competition is doing.

[CHEESE2009]

Originally Posted by picframer

Did you ask how they will be collecting the leaves and what they will do with them? This may be why they are charging by the 1,000 sq/ft, in my own case it doesn't really matter much to me how many they have, I pass over the leaves once and they are collected and mulched, it it was manual collection then I think one would have to go by the hour.

As with anything we do have to consider what the competition is doing.

most of them aren't bright enough to use a tarp. They take a can & put raked leaves in it, dragging it to the truck. To me that's a hassle.

Should I even bother with leaf removal due to cheap competition?

I'd ate least like to try & charge $100.00, the max. But I doubt it'll do me any good here.

The rates here suck. Everyone charges so little it's hard to please everyone.

Everyone is a lowballer around here. Everyone will fight to obtain a customer if it means $1.00 in profit. It's odd.

[picframer]

I guess it depends how busy you are now, if you have the time, well something is better than nothing, we have been very fortunate and haven't got into price wars, I don't have many mowing accounts which is fine but the ones I do we make money at. I have had to twist this company in many different directions and obtain equipment the small guys can't afford and the bigger lawn care guys are only interested in commercial, I have stayed under the radar of the bigger excavation companies but they are not really that interested in what we are doing which is drainage systems and final landscaping.

In tree cutting and chipping I went right down the middle, the smaller comanies have their share and the big guys charge a lot more than I do and have to in order to support the equipment they have.

Pressure washing has been a small gold mine, there just are not many companies here offering the service and with vinyl siding and so many trees, dirt, grime, mold etc are an issue pretty much everywhere we go.

The biggest profit maker for me has been spraying organic products and now that most clients have had three sprays the results are kicking in big time, I get emails every week from customers raving over how well their lawn is doing, that is excellent advertising and brings in quite a few new clients.


So in your case, if you are comfortable with the money you are making or can make, go for it, as long as you are making a fair dollar at the end of the day.

[CHEESE2009]

Originally Posted by picframer

Pressure washing has been a small gold mine, there just are not many companies here offering the service and with vinyl siding and so many trees, dirt, grime, mold etc are an issue pretty much everywhere we go.

I wanted to get into pressure washing. How do you go about it?

I'd like to do sidings, driveways, outdoor furniture, maybe even windows.

what product do you use with your pressure washer, or do u just spray water?

I couldn't imagine it being a tough job, sounds fun!

What kind of problems can you run into? Creating small floods & soggy grass? LOL

How do you charge? etc... I guess I'll offer this service starting Monday! I got two pressure washers waiting for work.