Going rate for leaf collection?

[keeney]

I am adding a material collection system (semi self-built) to my JD 4100 so I never have to rake leaves again!

I am contemplating offering leaf collection service for a few seasons to help offset and justify the cost.

Not wanting to get into a full-fledged mowing business, I would target customers who otherwise mow their own yards, but are overwhelmed by large amounts of leaves and would want one or two mowings with a good leaf-vac in the fall.

Anybody have a good idea what the going price would be for leaf removal? I was thinking $50 per shot for yards up to 1/2 acre that can be cleared without extensive use of the push-mower/bagger and hand-held leaf blower. That would include hauling and disposing of the leaves.

- Rick

 

[beenthere]

Any pics of your leaf collector system?

Interested in your idea of custom leaf collection. Can you set a minimum per job, and then have a price per 'load', either a load of your cart or a load on your 'hauler'. At least that is a way to measure, although leaves pack differently when dry vs wet, so you may get less money for wet leaves.
Frequency of visits might have to be built in. I've picked up leaves once already, and expect at least two more times. On some jobs, the neighbors leaves might blow in after a strong wind, and you have to go back again to pick them up.

 

[keeney]

RE: "Any pics of your leaf collector system?"

Its just a pile of parts in the garage so far. I plan to post more on it when the project progresses. Hoping to weld up the frame this weekend.

A couple of highlights:

- Uses trash cans for collection similar to many Trac-vac models. Since this is an occasional use for me, the trash cans would be used for trash collection in the shop and garage during non-leaf season, so their cost is shared. Also, they can be easily (manually) dumped into a truck or trailer. Many cart-style systems are not designed to dump into a truck.

Only the JD high-dump MCS appears to be setup to dump directly into a truck, but it has a list price of over $3000, and the cheapest used one I saw went for $1200 just for the bin and frame (no blower or engine).

- Uses a cheap pvc collection and discharge pipe ($1.20 per foot) instead of expensive flexible hose ($15 or higher per foot). Avoided use of expensive large PVC fittings.

- Fits on 3-point mount without worrying about a "latch kit". Positioned to be able to be lowered completely to the ground for easy installation / removal, but when mower is in normal mowing position, has plenty of ground clearance.

- The project started out as a free broken-down old walk-behind Craftsman snowblower that still had a good engine with horizontal shaft. I purchased an impeller as a spare part from a commercially produced vac system, but the impeller fits a special shaft that is different from the standard 3/4" shaft used in snowblowers. So, I re-assmbled and fixed the snowblower (turned out was only missing a roll-pin to hold a sprocket to a shaft in its wheel drive) and am selling it to fund the new engine with the right shaft - a 7.5 HP Briggs I/C Intek from SmallEngineWharehouse.com, about $250 including shipping.

- Frame is welded from odds and ends of angle iron I have laying around. One large piece of 4" square tube that the engine is mounted to is an extra newel post from the steel and cherry balcony and stair railings in the house I built.


As far as a service goes, I was thinking more of a one-shot model. Like the guys who drive around with their snowplows after a big snowstorm. Look for houses with lots of leaves, knock on the door and offer to remove them on the spot, one time, immediately.

I know that the closest public compost site charges $6 per yard to take yard waste, so I would have to cover that cost, or find a cheaper place to dispose of the leaves.

- Rick

 

[2nstonge]

My neighbor paid $300 to have a landscaper do it. Yard is about an acre. 2-3 guys were there for about a half day; mowed/vacuumed with a riding mower & then raked & cleaned-out around the bushes...alot of grunt work and they took everything away.

-Norm

 

[billbill1]

If you have the space to do it, compost the leaves and sell the finished compost to gardeners. There's quite a market for it and might be a good extra income for you. Get a tiller to keep the compost stirred up with and take on garden tilling for more income.

 

[RonR]

Some thoughts:

Jobs almost always take twice as long as you estimate (especially if there are leaves around trees/flowers/shrubs), so guess your hours to accomplish and DOUBLE IT. This will make the price of the job sound high, and some will balk at paying that much; so they get to do their own. Those that want to pay will gladly pay it so they don't have to mess with it.

I don't know what to recommend for call backs when more leaves fall or the neighbor's leaves blow over, but you need to be clear with the client how that will work--or not pick them up til November. The callback could take as long as the first time, even if the leaves are only 10% as thick--they will be spread out in the flowers, so pickup will be long.....

Driving around to look for jobs is EXPENSIVE and time consuming. Walking around the neighborhood with fliers or ads in a local paper might be more effective.

Pour yourself a tall cold drink, sit back, and think very dark, disturbing thoughts of what could go wrong. Things like you run the lady's 20 year old cat Fluffy though your machine, or toss a rock through an expensive stained glass window, or worse yet, you injure a client's child, who wasn't supposed to be in the way, but was anyway................ If that doesn't scare you into liability insurance (about $1K/yr for me), nothing will. BTW, as soon as you take your leaf monster off your property and hire out with it, your homeowner's insurance will wash their hands of you.....

Not wanting to scare you off, just make sure you go into this with open eyes. I can speak from a little experience--two of my first three jobs were underbid by about 50%!

Best wishes,
ron

 

[RalphVa]

Don't know why anyone rake leaves. I used to mow 5 acres of church property in NJ with lots of oak trees. I just chopped them up by discharging inward until the mower couldn't take it. Then I'd discharge outward for a couple rounds before going back inward again. They had a ridiculously noisey rig on their old Sears tractors that used an engined mounted behind the seat to blow leaves into a cart pulled behind the tractor. Got rid of that mess once I started chopping them with the Scag.

In Baton Rouge, I'd just use my mulching mower, which is what I use here.

Terrible sin to rake leaves. Put them back into the soil from whence they came. Silly to rake leaves. Gives me plenty to steal from folks who do so and put them out at the curb though.

Ralph

 

[beenthere]

Why?
I remove them because I want to...... /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif I prefer the look after I am done.

I've been that route of mulching them too. But much better IMO to remove the bulk of them and let the grass grow. Plenty of 'leaf' mulch is left to lay on the soil and build it up (again, in my opinion). I really don't like it when I used to miss getting them off and getting a snow on top, making a mess in the spring with snow, leaves, and ice on top of the frozen ground that keeps the new grass from growing.

Each to their own..... /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

 

[Syncro]

<font color="blue"> ......I prefer the look after I am done....... </font>

Boy you've got that right, I sure like the groomed look too. Our lawn looks like a freshly vaccumed carpet after using the Agri-Fab leaf vac. This year I've cut/vac'd 10 times with probably one more time to go. Each cleanup takes about 2 hours and actually is fun. My wife rakes around the trees and I drive around with the machine sucking 'em up. Fun! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[DennisArrow]

I found this old thread, perhaps there is a more recent; but some help would be appreciated ............

The problem: We have several acres of pasture that are on a 18 to 25 degree slope. Have worked several years, fighting the drought, to get fescue/bermuda to get established in order to graze our registered Boer herd. The problem is that this area has several stands of trees that shed leaves (oak, hickory, gum,poplar) and is totally surrounded by the same heavy old growth forest. This time of year, after reseeding fescue, the leaves of course fall and need removal to expose the grass over the winter to encourage growth and establishment.............

I have at my disposal:

Iseki TL2300 with bush hog
Lawn tractor with mowing deck
Heavy duty back pack blower
Kubota RTV

The tractor, frankly is just toooo spooky to take the slopes on. The last time it skidded half way down the hill and was stopped at the last moment by lowering the bucket I swore I would never take it into this pasture again.

The lawn tractor will do the job but is fairly "tippy" across the slopes, inadequate braking going down the hill, and going up the ag tires tear up the fragile soil that I am working so hard to build up.

The blower works just fine; but is super labor intensive. Maybe 20 or so hours to clear the acreage. Disposal is not a problem as I just blow them into the surrounding forested areas. Yes, they become mountains as you move them and then place them where you want them.

The RTV is great for going across the slopes as I apply fert/herb, and of course up and down the hills is not a problem either. Traction is great so soil damage is minimal. NO Accesories to mulch or blow with.

Money is tight here so using what I have would be nice, or a low cost something to use behind the RTV is a stong possibility.

An ideas or comments would be great. Thanks.........God Bless.....Dennis