Snow Equipment Buying/Pricing what snow plowing costs?

[jdonovan]

Not sure which forum this belongs on, but here goes: My wife is always asking me, whenever I buy another piece of equipment, what someone would charge us to do this or that. I am curious what the going rates are for clearing a 700' long, hard gravel (sloping, but straight) lane of snow might be... some areas have banks on the side make it more difficult to deal with deep snowfalls, and an outside contractor would be starting at the bottom and working up. This is in Northern Baltimore county. I had no idea what people charge for this.

Neighbor here in NoVA has a 250' paved drive, the plow company gets $100/ 6".

They had enough commercial work that residential was taking a back seat on the priority list and they estimated 4-7 days from initial snow fall to plow her out. I did the drive for her in about an hour with the tractor.

The true cost may be slanted to hire someone to do it, but the advantage of the equipment in my garage is that the plowing is done on my schedule and the way I want.

Also a few days after the storm when the plow comes by and puts a 3' snow drift on the end of my driveway I can dig out in 15 min. Even the neighbors with snow blowers learned that 'plow ice' was too tough for them to move unless they broke it up with a shovel first.

 

[Sniggle]

I payed $100 to have a guy with a bobcat/snowblower clear my 220 foot drive way after the 27 inch storm. If it was under 18 inches, he only charges $50.

It is hard to pencil out a snow blower at those prices here in the mid atlantic (unless this type of winter becomes typical).

I do plan, however, to get a set of chains for my B7800, which should eliminate my need for any outside help.

 

[bp fick]

Please, please take no offense, for none is intended. Those who live in historic snow belts tend to also handle snow events somewhat differently than those who live in areas that have not had to deal with snow on a regular, annual, historic basis.

I plowed for a company and yes, the prices were and remain very, very high. But what we should all learn from the pros is this. If at all possible, (note the phrase) they plow in 6" increments. It is easier on the machinery and speeds up work. We used to just keep repeating, re-plowing our customers until it finally stopped snowing. Yes, we charged full bore for each pass. That's the way it works.

Guys doing their own plowing, in lieu of paying a plow service, should consider mimicking this practice. Dealing with 24" the "morning after" just, well, stinks. We used to stay up all night, plowing at 6" increments. Old habits die hard. I still do the same thing. Big snows mean no sleep, just naps if one is caught up.

If you don't wish to pay a plow service, then you will also have to mimic their willingness to invest in good equipment, that remove the snow quickly so that they can go on to the next customers. Yup, it costs dearly, which is why their rates are as high as they are.

 

[jdgreg]

In my area, I understand the going rate was $150 an hr for snow removal.

 

[RalphVa]

A local guy was charging a flat rate of $125, as long as it took him no longer than an hour.

Ralph

 

[AlbertaDan]

I own a little Kubota 2360. With it I bought a 5ft front blade and a 5ft snowblower. I use mine in Newfoundland Canada. With the blower I get almost all of the snow off. Then i switch to the blade (Takes about 10min) and clean down to bare pavement.

When I first bought the set up the wife was the same as yours. "Why am i spending so much? We should just call somebody to clear it for us"

Then when we went home for Xmas she realized why i bought it. Her mother stayed with us and has limited mobility. With clear pavemet there was no issues at all. Like others have said here, there are intangibles that are immeasurable. Getting out when you need to instead of having to wait....priceless


Attached a few pics last spring after the snow was gone, to give you na idea of the size of my driveway.

 

[Tig]

The true cost may be slanted to hire someone to do it, but the advantage of the equipment in my garage is that the plowing is done on my schedule and the way I want.

That sums it up for me. If I need to get out during a storm or in the middle of the night, I can. Also the last person who contracted someone to plow this shared lane received a letter from a lawyer courtesy of one of the summer residents.
So cost isn't the only factor.

 

[bp fick]

That sums it up for me. If I need to get out during a storm or in the middle of the night, I can. Also the last person who contracted someone to plow this shared lane received a letter from a lawyer courtesy of one of the summer residents.
So cost isn't the only factor.

And who knows your gravel, shrubs, trees, swales, etc better than you? Ever seen the damage some paid guys can do, whether intentionally careless or not?

 

[shane]

From the four pages of responses I see none from real men... just lie to her and be done with it.

Actually, there is a lot of good information here. I'm just thankful that here in middle TN I don't need it (at least not yet).

 

[varmint]

Well, the thought that you plow in modest increments isn't new to me... my neighbor who deals with the longer paved lane uses a big 4WD pickup and big V plow, and he does just that... imagine a rich guy working all night! I should have, but they were forecasting 8-10" of snow overnight, and I could have dealt with that. The net chains I ordered yesterday morning should be here late today, according to the UPS tracking site. One of the advantages of being fairly close to the shipper. I intend to be unstoppable, once I get them. I also plan on being careful so I don't snap rear links or do something dumb.