Bush Hogging 8 acres - pricing?

[Skramps]

Have you walked the lot?
Lot's of "junk" is known to take refuge in fallow fields. Old fences, discarded tires, etc.

I’m going to walk the heavily overgrown areas when I arrive to check for junk so hopefully
I can spot obstacle before they become a problem. I’m also going to be mowing it with my grapple on the tractor riding close to the ground to, in theory, catch any wire or trash before it becomes an issue.

 

[Skramps]

Hey guys. Sorry if this is the wrong forum to post this. I'm pricing out my first paid job with my tractor and rotary cutter. The customer wants 8 acres of knee/waist high fields mowed. It looks like it has been regularly maintained but not recently so there aren't any debris piles, wooded areas, briars or anything like that. Mostly grasses and some small wooded material. Slightly inclined and rolling but not steep. No large obstacles except a few large trees that have enough clearance around them to cut around. I live in Maine and am not new to landscaping or yard cutting but I've never priced this large of a cutting and not with a tractor.

I have my overhead and profit figured out on paper but I have no idea if I'm too high or low.
I'm assuming an hour an acre?
It's close to 40 miles (one hour) from my house.
Without knowing the market for bush hogging and going off my numbers (theoretical at this point) I would want to charge $750.

To me that seems outrageous for just mowing an 8 acre field but I do all of my own work around my property so I'm not accustomed to paying contractors. I've seen a few people on craigslist advertising $50 an hour but that seems way too low to stay afloat. Especially now.
Does this seem reasonable for anyone else?

Update: I sent the estimate of $750 to the customer and they accepted.

 

[Hay Dude]

Update: I sent the estimate of $750 to the customer and they accepted.

Good!
Were you able to speak with customer about extra charge for picking up trash? Who is responsible for disposal of trash?
I’d be a bit leary of running grapple too close to the ground should it catch on something and jostle the tractor (and you).
Once the first cut is behind you, subsequent cuts get easy.
I have contracts dating back into the early 2000’s that I have kept and made a lot of money on. It’s one of the better parts of my overall business model and I feel like I can do this for decades with ease.

 

[Skramps]

Good!
Were you able to speak with customer about extra charge for picking up trash? Who is responsible for disposal of trash?
I’d be a bit leary of running grapple too close to the ground should it catch on something and jostle the tractor (and you).
Once the first cut is behind you, subsequent cuts get easy.
I have contracts dating back into the early 2000’s that I have kept and made a lot of money on. It’s one of the better parts of my overall business model and I feel like I can do this for decades with ease.

Good point. My main thought was to hopefully catch any wire or a rock before it destroys the cutter. I’ll have to be careful it doesn’t dig in.

I haven’t discussed trash removal which I didn’t even think of. I will add that to my list.

 

[Hay Dude]

Good point. My main thought was to hopefully catch any wire or a rock before it destroys the cutter. I’ll have to be careful it doesn’t dig in.

I haven’t discussed trash removal which I didn’t even think of. I will add that to my list.

Might want to get that done before you show up to mow. If it’s really trashed, it could end up taking more time to clean it up than the mowing.

Once I was doing a 30 acre field mowing job for a long time customer. Previous to the mowing, we had a storm and a lot of trash, even large objects, like fence panels, signs, etc. It was unavoidable to strike some of the trash. Customer sent an employee out to pick it all up. If it was on me, I would have been out there an additional day or more.

 

[tradosaurus]

Might want to get that done before you show up to mow. If it’s really trashed, it could end up taking more time to clean it up than the mowing.

Why its better to quote $/hr and warn the customer that a typical mowing job could take twice as long if trash pick up has to be done.

 

[LittleBittyBigJohn]

I'm curious if you are doing this for main income or a side hustle. I have done lawn care as a side hustle for 6 years or so in the past. It was good money and I enjoyed it. I tried my best not to under-cut the established guys. At the same time understanding that my "hourly rate" would be less, as I started with homeowner tools and was not as fast as the big guys. As I acquired larger, faster equipment my per yard rate remained largely the same but my hourly rate went up a great deal. I have done 1 bush hogging job with Little Bitty Big John (1025R) recently. Though I did it for free as a way to serve. I learned a great deal on those 3-4 acres. It took almost twice as long to complete as I expected. I obviously had my cutter adjusted wrong. It was drawing too much HP because the grass was balling up under the cutter. I also had a fuel filter get clogged further robbing HP. Then I got too hot, dehydrated, and was sick the rest of the day. It's great that you are getting good money while you learn (I assume you are learning, if not I mean no dis-respect). If it ends up being more work than you think it's worth, take it as a learning experience for next time. There will always be jobs that are not as profitable as you hoped, there are also the others that are more profitable than you expected. With my lawncare, the more experience I got, the better I got at anticipating the terrible jobs and pricing them accordingly. You will do the same.

 

[lman]

Update: I sent the estimate of $750 to the customer and they accepted.

I just mowed my 10 acre pasture, I guess I can pay myself $750.

 

[Have tractor did travel]

Since you sold your tractor maybe take a long break from this forum if you get so bothered with people not putting in their location.

Who appointed you the Membership Participation Nazi ? Just because you don't agree with Jeff, you think he should drop out ? So, since I don't agree with you, shall I wear your "Nazi" hat and invite you to drop out ?
Jeff has made tremendous contribution to this website over the years. At such time as he chooses to drop out, we'll miss him. Meanwhile, many of us look forward to his next observations.

 

[tradosaurus]

Who appointed you the Membership Participation Nazi ? Just because you don't agree with Jeff, you think he should drop out ? So, since I don't agree with you, shall I wear your "Nazi" hat and invite you to drop out ?
Jeff has made tremendous contribution to this website over the years. At such time as he chooses to drop out, we'll miss him. Meanwhile, many of us look forward to his next observations.

Never said I disagreed with Jeff.

Change your name to "Drama Queen" since you like to start drama.