# How much do you charge for Crown Cleaning / Dead Wooding ?



## Butterz (Feb 16, 2013)

I am wondering how much you guys charge for crown cleaning on decidious trees of various sizes? There has been a severe drought for the last two years where I live which resulted in significant amounts of dead wood. So doing a complete crown cleaning on a mature oak with a massive dense canopy takes me nearly as long as it does to remove the tree itself!

I would appreciate your input!


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## Mikecutstrees (Feb 16, 2013)

I usually charge an hourly rate and give the customer an estimate of the cost. Most trees are $150-$400. 

Mike


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## Butterz (Feb 16, 2013)

Mikecutstrees said:


> I usually charge an hourly rate and give the customer an estimate of the cost. Most trees are $150-$400.
> 
> Mike



what is your hourly rate?


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## mckeetree (Feb 16, 2013)

We base most of those by the hour anymore giving the client a worse case scenario price. We get $200 per hour for one climber and usually three guys on the ground.We add $50 per hour to that if working out of a bucket or if there are two climbers working, three ground guys. We did one today, I didn't see the tree...foremen bid it and took a crew out and did it, that took a little over three hours and charged the customer $700. They threw about 15 min. in there for "road time". Next they went and did a stump job. We have several different rates we charge for stumps.


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## Butterz (Feb 16, 2013)

mckeetree said:


> We base most of those by the hour anymore giving the client a worse case scenario price. We get $200 per hour for one climber and usually three guys on the ground.We add $50 per hour to that if working out of a bucket or if there are two climbers working, three ground guys. We did one today, I didn't see the tree...foremen bid it and took a crew out and did it, that took a little over three hours and charged the customer $700. They threw about 15 min. in there for "road time". Next they went and did a stump job. We have several different rates we charge for stumps.



thanks for letting me know


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## cjtreeclimber (Feb 16, 2013)

I used to tell my customers that their is no way that I could give them an estimate over a phone due to the fact that their is so many variables to consider. Do I have to fight my way through a jungle, defend myself from a pack of coons, bees, poison oak, and giant man eating panzies. I try my best to talk them into just letting me look at it- afraid that if I quote to high over the phone they might call the next guy down the line. quite nerve racking to give a phone quote for me but I've learned to anyway. I just say 350 bucks. I end up usually with tree take down jobs for some reason. I'd like to do more dead wooding and crown reduction on those nice large oaks. Some tough climbing getting out on those ends. Probably need to start taking a secondary throw bag/line and my other climb line as well with no spurs.


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## ForTheArborist (Feb 16, 2013)

Butterz said:


> I am wondering how much you guys charge for crown cleaning on decidious trees of various sizes? There has been a severe drought for the last two years where I live which resulted in significant amounts of dead wood. So doing a complete crown cleaning on a mature oak with a massive dense canopy takes me nearly as long as it does to remove the tree itself!
> 
> I would appreciate your input!



Prices are going to vary. Not all pricing will work for everyone. What is the minimum that you want to make a year?


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## Pelorus (Feb 16, 2013)

I'd like to charge enough to require scheduled Brinks armoured truck pickups of $$$
my clients don't share my vision, and have become hostile for some reason. :msp_ohmy:


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## Butterz (Feb 16, 2013)

Pelorus said:


> I'd like to charge enough to require scheduled Brinks armoured truck pickups of $$$
> my clients don't share my vision, and have become hostile for some reason. :msp_ohmy:


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## ForTheArborist (Feb 16, 2013)

We're all dealing with the same problem.


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## BC WetCoast (Feb 16, 2013)

Your crew rate times the amount of time you think it will take. Don't forget travel time, because you're paying your crew to travel.

We never bid a tree without seeing it first and never do a job without a signed contract. If you can get on the property, then you have a chance to upsell the customer on other services such as shrub pruning, fertilizing or pest spraying.

Hourly bids for this this kind of work, for us, always turn out to be problematic, with the client disagreeing on the time spent, arguing about travel time. Better to give a fixed price bid.


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## imagineero (Feb 17, 2013)

$200/hr here, and I don't charge for travel. That price includes cleanup. I find clients are a lot more realistic about how small in diameter they want to go with deadwooding when they pay per hour rather than a flat rate. Couple hours does most trees just fine. I don't quote flatrate over the phone. If they want a fixed quote, I point out individual branches with a bright green laser, so there can be no misunderstanding. I point out clearly what will and won't be cut.

That hourly rate may sound high, but honestly, I make more money just working of straight quotes. When I give a set price, I often end up making closer to $300/hour, and i seem to win more work at set prices too. $200/hr is only $1600/8 hour day which isn't a lot for a climber and 2 or 3 groundies plus some chipping.

I can't imagine any arborist would do anything for $25. What do they get for that?

Shaun


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## treeclimber101 (Feb 17, 2013)

200.00 an hour sounds about right for a truck chipper and a climbing crew , and that's fair .. It was better then that a few years back and 275 an hour was about right , but times have sure changed .


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## DavdH (Feb 17, 2013)

$1800.00/day includes climber w/bucket truck, 2 crew chipper and dump, and clean=up, liability ins etc. Usually 30 min to 4 hr/ tree.


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## Butterz (Feb 17, 2013)

Thank you all very much for giving your input


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## bootboy (Feb 27, 2013)

For removals and deadwooding both, I came up with an hourly of $140 if I'm in the tree, $70 on the ground. It's worked out really well since I have 2 helpers on average. Trimming solo or doing a removal with a crew of 4, these rates have worked out remarkably well for me and the pace at which my crew and I work. I have really low overhead and most of my jobs are relatively similar is magnitude.


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## Pelorus (Feb 27, 2013)

I have low overhead too, but the problem I have found with being too affordable is that you don't generate enough income to be able to grow the company. It then takes a long time to be able to either buy or pay off equipment. 

Plus, I have ended up working twice as hard (2X as many jobs to earn the same amount of $$$) as one of my more business savvy competitors.


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## Mikecutstrees (Feb 27, 2013)

Hourly rate around here anywhere from $54 per hour for retired in the winter to $65 normal rate. Emergency rate goes up from there.

Mike


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