treeguys plowin and saltin

[treeclimber101]

That just would not work in our area, and this is not my first snow removal rodeo, either.

Customer inspection? Don't be ridiculous! The customer expects you to have the job done when they show up in the morning. What are you going to do, wait around for them to come in and inspect? What if they fall on their butt while they are doing the inspection?

I have been the primary contractor for some really big businesses, and I have never been asked to get a signature for "signoff", except when there was a full time, on-site manager that was in constant communication with me. If I required a "signoff" for each snow, all I would be doing is standing around in parking lots waiting for my customers to come to work.

You said "but I don't guarantee that someone won't get hurt..." ? You need to call your insurance agent and have a little talk with him about service liability. I did last month, when one of my customers started popping in some liability language last month in my agreement. Quite frankly, they included explicit assumption of any lawsuits; probably because they had no contract with me last year! My insurance agent told me to go ahead and sign the purchase order, 'cause the liability is there, whether or not the language is written into the contract.

If you are providing snow removal services, you will likely be sued someday, whether or not the property manager signed a release. I will grant that getting a signature approving the work reduces the potential for litigation and non-payment, but it sure ain't no guarantee.

I have missed 3 lawsuits over the last 28 years, mostly because of luck, and partly because I did not have a contract.

1st time: the property manager & I decided not to do snow removal services. Hence, the injury was due to an act of god, not a failure to provide adequate snow removal.

2nd time: I never sent in a bill, so there was no proof that I performed services to be sued for. The customer was a cheapskate anyway, so I didn't miss them as a customer.

3rd time: I'm not sure, but I think the lack of contract protected me last year from an enormous lawsuit. That same customer piled on all sorts of legal clauses into a purchase order this year. I have been plowing that site since 1987 without anything other than a written proposal that outlined what we would do, and what the prices were. And we are talking about a factory that has about 800 employees and is one of the bigger Fortune 500 companies.

Like I said; contracts are not always a good thing.

Listen I really down care how you run your business , personally its sounds pretty shadey , maybe cowpokes from Kansas move snow like that but here the work is done and someone checks and signs off that the crew was there and the work is complete . And good luck if someone turns your stupid ass in for not having some paperwork or a cashed check for something you did , you think someone is gonna fall break there neck and all the lawyers are gonna say "WOW THAT SUCKS YOU PAID HIM CASH IF YOU DIDN'T WE WOULD HAVE SOMETHING" no there find you and then you'll have the state on ya too.... FRANKLY I think your only here to try and break my balls which is fine I really don't care for you much and will enjoy it..And as far as time moving snow I did with my father before I could see over the dash board ya dope ....I have never been sued , never had a slip and fall that really affected me because I AM SMART, your just lucky....

 

[sgreanbeans]

Years ago, when we plowed, we only did commercial, was warned to stay away from residential, so I did. We had 4 trucks, skidloader and a large wheel loader on the hook for stacking, big huge open parking lots where nice, however, you get a lot of money wrapped up with one customer, and that's not good, we took care of American, the furniture/appliance store, first year we had 34" of snow all year, bill was like 11500, next year we had 35.4" of snow in Dec alone, turned in bill of 11300, Manager freaked, saying I was ripping him off, I showed him the totals from the year prior, showing him that he received a break, still didn't care, took me 3 months to get my money (had to go too corporate with my paper work) still had him on contract for the next year, waited till midway thru the first snow fall to repay the favor and let him know that I would not be taking care of him, hehehe. Paybacks are nice sometimes! I know this was not professional of me, but I couldn't help it. That guy caused me to have a bad X-MAS that year, so a little pain back at him was a little pleasure for me! After that deal, I got out of it. But gonna go again, just pick my customers a little better.
Next year I hope to have enough gear to go after the big stuff again, just gonna stay away from that place!

 

[sgreanbeans]

Oh Prices, just checked with my buddy the other day, hes getting 75/80 per hour, per truck. 2.5 times the cost of the salt. No matter which way you buy it, thats applied aswell.
Has someone sign a service ticket every time as well, helps with the billing. Gonna follow his lead.

 

[ronnyb]

Hiniker makes the C plow. The plow flips over to become a backdrag blade. Back drag 30 feet, turn around, flip plow back upright, and plow out the drive. We recently stopped doing any commercial plowing and switched to residential only. The main problem was the low balling by large snow removal companies. It just didn't pay to bid on them anymore. Salt/ice melter we are charging 2.5-3x plus labor to lay it down. One more point, we have less maintenance issues with the trucks then when we were plowing commercial. Less wear and tear.

 

[treevet]

Hiniker makes the C plow. The plow flips over to become a backdrag blade. Back drag 30 feet, turn around, flip plow back upright, and plow out the drive. We recently stopped doing any commercial plowing and switched to residential only. The main problem was the low balling by large snow removal companies. It just didn't pay to bid on them anymore. Salt/ice melter we are charging 2.5-3x plus labor to lay it down. One more point, we have less maintenance issues with the trucks then when we were plowing commercial. Less wear and tear.

that makes sense to me. also if you work it right you can walk in the house with a pocket full of checks.

kinda like spraying trees. I used to have checks falling out of my pocket.

maybe a couple of easy commercial accounts

 

[treevet]

these things maybe hard on plow not designed to pull?

http://www.backdragblades.com/

 

[pdqdl]

... FRANKLY I think your only here to try and break my balls which is fine I really don't care for you much and will enjoy it...

I'm not into "busting peoples balls". I prefer stating facts or well informed opinions, then letting the other folks get tied up in the conflict.

One of my creeds: "Never argue with a fool, onlookers may not be able to tell the difference."
[erroneously credited to Mark Twain]

 

[treeclimber101]

Oh Prices, just checked with my buddy the other day, hes getting 75/80 per hour, per truck. 2.5 times the cost of the salt. No matter which way you buy it, thats applied aswell.
Has someone sign a service ticket every time as well, helps with the billing. Gonna follow his lead.

Service tickets are like punching time clock it shows at the precise time when work started and finished , so if mary jane rotten crotch takes a spill at 2:54am and you didn't arrive til 4:15am its not your problem ...

 

[treeclimber101]

I'm not into "busting peoples balls". I prefer stating facts or well informed opinions, then letting the other folks get tied up in the conflict.

One of my creeds: "Never argue with a fool, onlookers may not be able to tell the difference."
[erroneously credited to Mark Twain]

I wish that I followed that 3 posts ago...

 

[treeclimber101]

Agreed, same here.

The biggest mistake around here is the guys don't push the snow far enough back when the season starts. A month of even average snowfall with no melting, and you run out of room quick.

Seriously if your moving snow like that , which I don't doubt than someone knows your there , and your work has been noted somehow ..

 

[treemandan]

hahaha they probably not gonna change the whole "shebang" just cause Danno says so lol.

Well maybe not the whole shebang though at least my shebang cause whatever that poor guy was saying about humping through that snow...
Nah, you guys know me, if I gotta go I go and if I need to plow a way in then I plow a way in.

 

[treeslayer]

Nah, you guys know me, if I gotta go I go and if I need to plow a way in then I plow a way in.

:hmm3grin2orange::hmm3grin2orange::hmm3grin2orange::hmm3grin2orange:

Don't even get ME started.

 

[pdqdl]

There's such a thing??? Fifteen years climbing in western ny in a well known lake snow belt, for three different outfits, and over the waist deep snow has never shut down tree work. Scrambling over snow banks higher than my head has gotten old over the years. ...

How in the world would you do tree work in waist deep snow? Excavate every piece out of the snow, or just come back to clean up the mess after the spring thaw?

 

[beowulf343]

It's not that difficult. Stomp a trail to the backyard, most brush won't sink all the way to the ground, sweep your hands through the snow and find the brush. That much snow gets piled up, usually only the top few inches is fluffy, then you get a little bit of pack. It's not that difficult, kind of like learning to spot hangers in a tree, you learn to spot brush in the snow. Chunks will sink, but again they are not hard to find. What's actually funny, is the most difficult part is not finding the brush, it's getting the brush to the chipper over the snowbanks on the side of the road.

Backyard line clearance was the worst, had to pack down a new trail into every yard. I've only ever been called back four times in the spring to clean up winter work.

It's one of the reasons i will rage at guys who think they have to cut everything to pencil length, those you aren't going to find.

 

[Slvrmple72]

Watch yer step over there... might be some "sticks" in the snow.

On another note: Ben you lay down some seriously funny ****! Thanks man I needed a good laugh.

The new chip truck is gonna come with a plow on it. Should probably put a mount on the bucket truck.....hmmm.....thats a thought.

Saturday into sunday and then the start of the week will be fun. Lake Effect, love it, love it, love it!

 

[treeclimber101]

Watch yer step over there... might be some "sticks" in the snow.

On another note: Ben you lay down some seriously funny ****! Thanks man I needed a good laugh.

The new chip truck is gonna come with a plow on it. Should probably put a mount on the bucket truck.....hmmm.....thats a thought.

Saturday into sunday and then the start of the week will be fun. Lake Effect, love it, love it, love it!

And as you drive through the neighborhoods at midnite you can tear down all the phone and cable service with the bucket ...

 

[treeslayer]

Watch yer step over there... might be some "sticks" in the snow.

On another note: Ben you lay down some seriously funny ****! Thanks man I needed a good laugh.

The new chip truck is gonna come with a plow on it. Should probably put a mount on the bucket truck.....hmmm.....thats a thought.

Saturday into sunday and then the start of the week will be fun. Lake Effect, love it, love it, love it!

Trees-r-us here in Lake County IL has plows on some of their bucket trucks.

 

[sgreanbeans]

How in the world would you do tree work in waist deep snow? Excavate every piece out of the snow, or just come back to clean up the mess after the spring thaw?

We shovel! A path to the chipper and underneath the tree, clearing out to the drip line, makes clean up a bit easier. You'll never get every little twig out, most people understand. We do the best we possibly can. If, when the snow melts and if we missed something, I'll send a kid to rake up anything left but us. Usually, its just little bitty twigs.

 

[sgreanbeans]

Trees-r-us here in Lake County IL has plows on some of their bucket trucks.

Crazy! I couldn't imagine pushing snow in the bucket truck! I have seen guys mount 8.5 westerns on Rangers and S-10's!
That's always fun, reminds me off the dogs that lift both back legs too pee!

 

[treeclimber101]

We shovel! A path to the chipper and underneath the tree, clearing out to the drip line, makes clean up a bit easier. You'll never get every little twig out, most people understand. We do the best we possibly can. If, when the snow melts and if we missed something, I'll send a kid to rake up anything left but us. Usually, its just little bitty twigs.

Theres a real big company here and they did a tree in my neighborhood and they removed all the snow from the front yard , probably about 2000sq ft and piled it on the curb strip, it was the only house one the block with grass...Me I will clear some room near the work and a walk to the curb , and come back to clean up if anything gets left..