Well, I'm strongly considering getting into the business of backhoeing around the neighborhood. I've made a nifty flyer, which will get hung on mailboxes on my street. Over the weekend I've asked my neighbors (we'll call them T&G), who I've helped a bunch, to be guinea pigs for me trying to get a decent quote together for a project they wanted done. I plan to be very clear with what I will and won't do and this will likely be a use-my-services-at-your-own-risk venture for the time being. I'm not sure how bad of an idea that is, but I imagine I'll find out. The plan, for my first quote, was to determine what to charge to clear scrub and brush off the back of my neighbors 240' long fence line, on the back of their property. The scrub averaged maybe 6 feet thick in most places but there was a big chunk that was maybe 30' thick. I took a look at what T&G wanted done. I was very open about my thoughts and rates and I always make sure they understand what they are getting into. My guess, looking at the space was about 5 hours, and since they were a trial run for me I said $300, which probably wasn't enough during normal times. The initial look at it was Saturday afternoon and I asked if they wanted to start Sunday. They did, so I did. About 5 hours later, to the minute, I was knocking over and pulling out my last bit. All in all, it went well. The scariest part for me is worrying about maintenance and making sure those costs are built into my pricing. I know I haven't done a whole lot of maintenance to my hoe, so I'm always a bit on edge due to potentially breaking down. I can see spending about $5k on a pro to come out and take care of some maintenance stuff before too long. My costs broke down as such: $300 for the 5 hour job I spent about $50 on about a half tank of fuel Gave myself a $20 greasing charge And walked away at about $46/hour, thinking of putting at least 100 bucks in the maintenance bucket. My thoughts are normally I think I'd charge in the $100/hour range. It's hard telling if that is right but for the few farm animals I've buried the folks getting that work done seemed very pleased at that price. I think most people will want a quote for a whole job, rather than by the hour, so that may be challenging too... Here's the fence line, from the cornfield to the left to the far corner behind the backhoe, and the piles when I was done. I'll need to go back over and take a picture of it now that it's done, I forgot that part.
I keep my hoe on my property. I buried a horse for a neighbor once. I didn't ask for anything but they brought me 5 gallons of diesel. The next time thay called I honestly didn't have time. I think they got mad about it and stopped waiving as we passed on the road. I replace hoses as they begin to leak. One of my biggest fears is to have a major hose break and dump a bunch of oil on someone else's property. Good luck with your venture though.
My experience says that most work is only appreciated if you charge for it. My buddy charges $200.00 to bury a horse for any neighbor and they all still wave.
These neighbors, T&G, have been terribly appreciative of my "free" work and feel like they are taking advantage. I got to the point where, while I wasn't quoting prices to them, I was saying just pay me in beer or bourbon and was becoming a little resentful, I think they feel better with me coming up with a quote and I feel better because it's real money. The amount of work I'd saved or made possible for them more quickly has been pretty nuts. NH575E- I plan to come up with some notes to mention to any potential clients. Busted hoses are one of the things I need to put on that list. I can't say I blame you for not wanting to take your machine elsewhere. I like the idea of offsetting the price of the hoe and if I can do enough and save enough money I could look into making it more of a "real" business. I like that I can say no and I like meeting my neighbors. For the time being I only plan to flyer my street and we'll see how that goes.
your liability exposure is not insignificant even doing something like clearing the brush. I suggest you get locate on everything you do I don't care what you're doing if you touch the dirt call 811 get a can of white paint and learn how to use it. control your environment. each job is conditional to not having any lookie-lus or people standing around or your kids or dogs or farm animals that could potentially get run over. when you're clearing brush take the tallest tree multiply times two and that's almost safe distance. almost. I'm not saying that if you do everything right nothing bad can happen, but if you don't do everything right you're just asking for it. regarding a blown hose : if you don't have a bale of oil control mats get it. keep about a 4-in sheaf of them somewhere directly on the machine in a garbage sack along with some rubber gloves. you can jump down and mitigate a whole lot of problems if you have the tools right at hand. same thing goes for a fire extinguisher. it doesn't do any good in your pickup or at the house.
Good notes @skyking1 ! The call before you dig is a definite one I thought of as well, though I plan to tell customers that I will not be doing anything near any underground utilities. It's too scary and too expensive if I mess up. I do need to get some absorbent mats and an extinguisher in there, thanks for suggesting!
Good advise on the 811 call. My SIL works for a portable building company and they call before digging or setting anchors. He said you would be surprised at the locations that get flagged for utilities where the home owners were unaware.
Always utility locates before bucket hits the ground.
I paid $125 the last time I buried a horse. And most guys around here charge $125 an hour.
Is that utility locates on public easements or even on private property?
Everywhere private property included.
How do you know there are no underground utilities unless you get them located first? Even a valid locate misses from time to time.
^ what he said. If you call locate and they miss by more than 2 feet, and you hit the line, you are off the hook providing you don't wipe out their marks. i have been in that position once. If you don't call, you are just on the hook for everything. and the @#Q$^^&^& call is FREE!! Just DOO EEEET!
As long as you call for locates 48 hrs in advance, have the locations done,you’ll have a dig number in the event they miss something as long as you keep the proper distance 18 inches here in the Chicago land area.
Yeah hoses blow, happens to everyone, caps/plugs, pig mats, rags and a garden sprayer of dawn for cleanup gets is done when a customer calls us cause the popped one. Seems like our lazy ass 811 has been real bad about putting flags and stake chasers as of late, BS about the vid and labor and being overworked and bla bla bla.
Take pictures of the rows of flags before you start digging.
It’s a blast here in Chicagoland area in the winter with 2 or 3 feet of frost lol.
yeah No thanks. I do like the weather here. I don't think I've busted more than about 10" of frost ever. Even that is a b*****d when backfill time comes, and then the thaw.
I have seen utilities in the damndest places that no one new were there always get an 811 ticket or your on the hook or your insurance is anyway at premium time for the repair contractor and depending on the utility it gets dam expensive and verify the utility response or your still on the hook for it my tickets are supposed to be clear in 3 days and at 5 days some locates have not responded yet so always verify 100 an hour is a decent price you need to put a minimum price out to protect yourself mines 4 hours but if all I did was puts around the neighborhood I might go to 3
Your new backhoe side job is how I make my living. It started that way and I'm working almost every day now. Pays okay! I live in Costa Rica, there aren't liability issues or buried utilities in the same way as in the states. If I was back in Maryland I'd probably have to get some licenses and insurance to be able to do what I do. Good luck!
I would get insurance. One mistake or oil spill and you could lose everything. You should be charging a minimum fee and at least $125-150 per hour.
the 811 site: https://call811.com/ Also, you must maintain the markouts even when you are done with your work...The company I work for got a fine for not maintaining the markouts when we were done...The theory is that if another contractor must dig, they will still have markouts for their work...I say it is just another way 4 them to get more $$$$!
That's stupid the law says here you dont touch locate Mark's period yes I have repainted them for me but every contractor is supposed to have a ticket number of there own and without your ticket number the law says you dont have a locate weather there's Mark's or not
Thanks for all the notes gang! I think someone mentioned my mentioning not calling for utility markings? The times I've done that have been way back in the back of someone's fields but your point is well taken. I'm pretty scared of hitting a line and I'd really rather not have to deal with that kind of thing. I may have made noise about this on other threads... My first real experience was renting a backhoe and a neighbor down the way asked me to come help dig a trench or something for some drainage control. Well, it was right along the side of the road and I was too dumb to know better, so out I go. I get a couple feet deep before we realize that I've cut through a phone line, that ended up costing the neighbor like 1600 bucks to fix. Luckily, I wasn't on the hook for it. Also, I'm not sure how I've avoided water lines, now that I think of it. I've managed to snag a cable line that was, interestingly, going from my shed (presumably a hub of sorts), to my neighbors house. I was out there just straightening some stuff out and he comes charging out of his house asking about what I've hit... I did have utilities marked that time but I guess not well enough.
Well, I work for a utility that the markouts show (gas and electric), so when we are done, we must "maintain" them. Yes, it is stupid...can you say government!!
So, I'm looking at the state 811 site, which is a big fancy mess, but it appears to be suggested that the excavator (me) do the calling before I'm digging. Is that right? Not the property owner?
Yes...unless the homeowner is the excavator...LOL
Here in Chicago each contractor has to call and get their own locates and dig number for digging in the same area,so you don’t have to worry about you’re locate flags or marks,I think technically you’re dig numbers are only good for 3 day’s without having to recall in the location,pain in the rear but has to be done.The contractors usually make the subs to call in their locates,for liability issues in case something gets damaged the GC isn’t involved.
A neighbor story ... Fellow asked me to help plant a row of trees with my tractor & 3 point auger. The row went very well and quick. A bunch of hard work with shovel avoided. It was so easy, he decided, the last was a hole next to the house near a propane tank. I asked several times about the line. He assured me the propane line was not in danger. So I dropped the auger and started. Within minutes, the hole started to fill with water. Auger brought up a neat half foot section of Pex. We hit his water line dead center. But the topper was his wife was in the shower at the time. Visualize a mad wet hen ... I beat a hasty retreat to leave him to it.
Unrelated but all this discussion of hitting utilities reminds me of the time I backed over a buried propane tank with my brush mower. We built our house on the property we were living in a mobile home on. I went all electric for the new house. I notified the gas company to come get the buried tank that went to the mobile home several times but they never responded. Time passed and I forgot it was there. It was a FULL 250 gallon tank. I remembered immediately when I heard the blades clanging on the top of the tank. It knocked the regulator loose but fortunately didn't ignite the leaking propane. I called 911 and explained everything to the fire department. They had no problem at all getting the gas company out on a Sunday to vent the tank and burn it off. They came and got it in the next few days.
@hosspuller , as my niece would say, "not my circus, not my monkeys"
@NH575E That's terrifying! You got lucky! @hosspuller It sounds like water lines can be tricky to mark, I'm not sure they mark any in my area, so I've start investigating ground penetrating radar, but my guess is several hundred bucks to come and map something out. We tried going to the city and looking up the drawings for the house and permits and stuff but it doesn't show where the water runs through the yard. I know where the shutoff is at the street and where it comes into the house but I have no idea the path the line takes to get there. That is very scary to me, because I do do some digging and it would be the only thing remotely in the area, all the rest of my utilities run in on the other side of the driveway, where the water, seemingly, runs straight through the middle of the yard. I'm pretty sure I'm not skilled enough to try dousing rods to mark the line.
LOL Not sure about water, but the utility company I work for installs a locating wire when the plastic pipe is installed. The tracer wire is not touching the pipe, but is spaced a specific distance directly above. At one time, the copper wire was installed touching the plastic. One lightning strike of the tracing wire fixed that...BOOM... Actually the wire melted the plastic, and it leaked, then the boom. I think they even make a caution tape (caution gas utilities below) with the tracer imbedded in the tape...we do not use it tho. The tape and wire are separate entities. Also, as previously mentioned, we sand the facilities, so, note to self, if the dirt suddenly turns to sand, get the shovel and hand dig
Sand...... I'm waiting to get my electric onto the property... High voltage line underground ( 400 ft)to a pad transformer. Then to a rack where the meter will be mounted... then underground in 2 directions ( house/pole barn). The lines that they ( utility) put are in a trench I will dig.... 39" deep with 3"sand.... then they drop in their wire and I cover with 12" of sand. Then I will unroll some plastic pipe in the hole for phone/cable.... some fill and a layer of caution tape. But I will need to document for the 'property file' the dimensions locating said trench.....since I won't be around 40 years down the road.
Sounds like a good plan, T-town. Pictures are your friend, but with a power line, they are easily found with the correct equipment.
I say go for it. I wouldn't mind doing the same, but just being very selective on what jobs I pick. I had a neighbor stop by couple of weeks ago, knocked on the door. Asked me if that backhoe was mine. He asked what I would charge him to push down his burn pile and smooth out a mysterious mound of dirt in their back yard. It was well away from the septic. He said it's an odd "out of place" mound of dirt. They asked the previous owners of the home what the mound was all about and he said they didn't know what it was. I told him, 'Sure, I'll stop by Saturday and we'll shave it down and spread the dirt out. No charge, just helping out a neighbor.' Saturday comes and I call him to tell him I'm on my way. Never heard from him. So, I decide to walk down there and see what I'm getting myself into. He was outside and he said his wife told the previous owners (I think they're family) that I was going to bring a backhoe and we were going to unearth the mound and smooth it down. The previous owners now remembered what was in the pile and recommended we not dig it up. Busted! The neighbor said the pile was the result of a bunch of garbage and unburnable junk. Could be rolled up carpet, mattress springs and who knows what else was piled on top of the ground they pulled dirt from the yard to cover it! The neighbor and his wife were ticked. So, he said he's not sure he wants to fool with it. Fine with me. I told him we could ease into it and I could give it a proper burial, but he's still mulling it over. I would consider forming an LLC if I decided to do this for real just to protect myself from people I don't know. Good luck. Hope you get lots of work.
Thanks @boone that's a crazy story! It wouldn't be too hard to dig a deeper hole but who knows how much crap is in it?! LLC is probably a good idea...
I've taken some notes over the past few weeks, as I'm getting into this. I'll share here. It's not organized very well, yet, but as I take notes I understand what is useful. If you see info, or lacking info, please let me know what is important to track. It'll be a bit sloppy... Some I'v mentioned previously. (G and T) Back of yard scrub 240'x8' Start @1130a 8/15/21 Break 2p back 315p Break 538p back 600p Done 645p 5 hours Half tank of fuel- 50 bucks Made 300 bucks, not enough. Should be 700. Profit 250, 50/hour. No real maintenance money. Test pricing for G and T 9/8/2021 (G and T) Start 440p, end 6pm quarter tank of fuel, 5 minute drive over. Loosen some dirt- 10'x3' 10 minutes, smooth out mounds in ditch- 40'x8' 20 minutes, pull big stump 4'x7', 30-50 minutes and stump disposal (probably did preliminary 20 minutes of digging on this, but several weeks earlier), smooth area, not compacted, of stump digout- 15 minutes. 9/11 start at 1015a, added 10 gallons fuel, started with 2/3 tank, ended with just under half tank. Lots of driving, minimal hoeing 3 hrs. Break at 115p- back 215p Moved lots of dirt to back fence line for a berm- how many trips? 30, for 3/4? Of fence line? Maybe 2/3. Break 330p to BS with G&T, start 440p quit at 500p Random livestock disposal- Cow (Allen, N's friend) or horse (Marilyn, N's friend and John, back yard neighbors), about an hour, plus transport. Quarter tank of fuel. 120 bucks or a big rock, should be 3 big rocks. Should also be dependent on livestock location, ie. how much gross work is there to do? (N's nephew, Don) Pull a hay baler out of the woods. 2 hours, 2 miles away, 100 bucks and a piece (8" metal wheel {like a steering wheel but small and not used for steering} off the baler. Sketchy job due to putting it on a trailer and wet path, spent lots of time getting unstuck from relatively flat, wet spot. Should have been 200 bucks or some more stuff off the baler (big flywheel!) Bring a ratchet set or drive back later.
definitely need to make a bit more money.... everytime I fix something on my machine it’s a hundred dollar bill.
Only a hundred bucks, huh?
Meaning whenever I have to fix something, it seems like it’s always $100+ to fix it.
I think aighead read/expected $100 to be $1000
Knock on wood I haven’t had any of those yet..........
If your going to risk your equipment and time you should be making no less than 700 bucks for a full day you should also have insurance and you should have a minimum witch is about half of daily so say 350 bucks for a minimum of 3 to 4 hours otherwise you will end up paying for someone else's project and loose money
mks is correct. 100 seems cheap, not that I'd want to make 100 dollar repairs a lot but... AzIron, your $$ sound about right. Currently, I'm maybe a third of the way through a project across the street and I've WAY underbid it. When I thought about it I quoted 300 bucks and she said I was too cheap. I think they'll offer more money (Not sure if I'll ask for more or not), but it's certainly a lesson for me this time. I haven't timed the trip to dump a load and return, but it's a slow-go through the entire length of their yard, not a straight shot, and it's bumpy so I go slow for that too.
Lucky guy! I need you to start fixing mine.
Lots of words! Well, my neighbor, N, told me of a guy around the corner who wanted some work done. I drive past this house every couple days and see this old timer sitting in his garage just staring out at the world. N tells me which house it is so I go talk to him. He's got a well manicured suburban style yard with many mature, but well trimmed, yew bushes that surround the house. He wants them all out so he can plant some perennials and not have to worry about trimming the bushes anymore. That seems easy enough. I discuss the work he wants done and warn him that the backhoe is a heavy machine and all that and it may do a number on his pretty lawn. He understands and it's been dry for a week or so. He also asks if I can keep the landscaping bricks in place as much as possible. I tell him it'd be 300 bucks or 250 bucks and a cane (he has a Canes for Sale sign in his yard). He agrees. I come back the following day, pull the hoe into the driveway and immediately someone stops and gets my phone number to offer more work. After that, I drive the hoe to the backyard and out of the corner of my eye I see a cable go whipping by. SON OF A!!! Somehow, I missed the phone line hanging across the yard, connected to the house. I went and looked at it and it had been repaired where it broke once already. I was very forthcoming with the homeowner and told him I screwed up. He no longer uses a landline so isn't real worried about it. Next, I start on the bushes in the back, with my son helping. We get a couple of the big non-yew bushes out easily and without much trouble, but then it's on to the yew that are all closer to the house. Chains and straps won't stick well enough to them, they just keep sliding off. I flip around and start using the hoe to dig them out and that goes fine but quite messy, due to an extensive network of weed fabric that pulls the dirt up all over the place. I'm knocking his little pavers around and getting frustrated with the whole process. We're 2 hours deep and less than halfway done. It got late and dark and I talked to the guy to tell him we'd be back, but that it was calling for rain, so it may be a bit before I dare drive on his lawn any more. I'm at an impasse. I'm really learning lessons. The first is pay attention for lines and cables and stuff like that (this makes me feel real dumb). Second, don't do work on a nice property. Third, quote prices 3 times higher than what I think. This old guy sat in his chair and watched us the entire time. My beat up machine has a couple slow seal leaks so I'm nervous about that and I'm making a mess of his nice gardens. I told him I don't do finish work and he was ok with that but the whole job is turning out rougher than expected. I'm contemplating going back to talk to him to say that I won't charge him for the work I've done but I don't want to finish the job and risk destroying his yard. I really don't like the idea of giving up on a job but it seems like one I shouldn't have taken. On the other hand, the guy that stopped to get my number has a couple decent sized jobs where he just wants stuff cleared out or moved, on more or less abandoned properties. He's not worried about my messes and understands what the hoe can do. I expect to make decent money from these, hopefully I'm not wrong again.
This one has grass seed on it now. About 90' of ditch. Toughest dig I've ever done in terms of obstacles underground & above. Dig Safe missed 100% of the infrastructure in the ground. I once had a high school teacher used the phrase, "the old women of both sexes", he must have known these people. "Is my Prius in the way?" "The gravel you used on the driveway is the wrong color." "Can you move the meter pedestal up next to the town road?" This after the job is done. The town plow would make short work of that! I failed to mention a 12' wide row of brush growing on the steep bank along the town road. The ATV parked in front of the garage, I believe last used by a son now living in Colorado. All that, and the hardest soil ever. Ditch walls absolutely vertical, I couldn't scrape a bit of loose dirt at all.
Willie that sounds gross. This guy hasn't been nearly the problem. He was clear on his requests and I was clear on mine but I'm finding that I can't keep things as nice as he wants it. I bought a backhoe so I didn't have to pick up a shovel too often and I don't really like getting down and doing a bunch of manual labor. I've made that pretty abundantly clear for the next guy.
Man, I get that, but I'd do whatever I could to finish it up for him. I'd chalk it up to a learning experience, and move forward, charging more and being more picky lol. I'm in the same boat more or less.
I mostly agree but is it at the cost of his landscaper charging more to clean up after me? I'll probably finish it. I'm learning, sad trombone.
I can dig a ditch or hole pretty easily. Filling it in usually leaves some spoil dirt on the grass adjacent to the hole. When I restore a lawn it becomes much bigger than the actual excavation. One trick is put spoils in the truck & dump elsewhere. Yes, I then have to go with front bucket to retrieve it when backfilling. Another tool I use is dirt pans. I cut 275 gallon oil tanks in half, I've accumulated quite a few. Each gets 4 short chains welded to it at corners, another two off center on bottom. I have a rig hooks to back bucket, short chain to logger's grab. Through the ring end of logger's grab I pass two 12' 5/16 chains. It works best to have a helper when backfilling. Put spoils in the pans, pick them up, swing to the edge of the ditch, set it down. Unhitch two chains to dump dirt back in. Some will stick in the pan, hitch to the two short chains on bottom. It ain't quick, but saves some rake time. Clean up is easier with toothless clean up bucket with wrist, having only a toothed bucket, clean up is slow, imperfect work. I can restore a 4' wide ditch easier than 12' wide ruined lawn.
If you are near me, I will come and bury your horse for $200.00. No insurance, no bond, no other promises. You just get a buried horse, that's it.
You should work hourly. Everyone in my world works hourly. And everything takes twice as long as you think it should, on a good day. Just tell customers you have no idea how those tree stumps are going to cooperate, how hard those bushes are in the ground, what kind of rocks you'll find, how this must is going to affect you. If they want a machine to do it it costs x amount per hour, you're welcome to pay me and send me home any time you get the idea I'm wasting time and running up the meter just for fun.
Good ideas Willie! JL- I'm not charging enough! I've been at the 100-120 or trade me a good rock territory! Finca- Yeah, my next job, the guy who stopped me, mentioned above, will likely be hourly. I've told him that I wouldn't waste time or hose him on the hour meter, but I guess that can only be believed as time goes on. I'm probably not charging a high enough hourly rate but we'll see how it goes.
Most backhoes record hours based on throttle. Hour meter only runs true time at full throttle. Might better use your watch or cell phone to create time sheets. It's a bit like welding time. My helmet logs dark time. In all day it might record 1 hour arc time. There will be hours you aren't running the tractor.
Ha! I never even thought to look at the hour meter! I'm likely to check my phone prior to leaving the house and texting when I'm on my way and done for the day. Timestampy style.
When doing by the hour time disputes can be common I have never used an hour meter for time of work i have always gone by my watch If your putting numbers to a job then just like hourly do a minimum if i garnered a number for a 3 hour job it would still be at least 600 bucks Your dabbling in a buissness your not serious about you need to figure out if it's a hobby or a buissness if it's a hobby your probably never going to make what you should cause your not approaching jobs to make money your doing them recreationally and your not investing in insurance and other liability shields that phone line that was knocked down was a best case scenario Just out of curiosity did you get a dig ticket for utilities and another thing to remember when pulling bushes and trees out they can destroy any pipe in the root area when you uproot them true experience was a tree broke a gas line valve and shut down a main and evacuated 2 buildings it was fought in court and settled by insurance If your sure you want to do this start treating it like a real job just my advice and it's worth what you paid for it I hope your adventure works out the way you planned it
Good points AzIron. I can't determine if it's a hobby or a job either. If it's a hobby it's one I can't afford. If it's a job I haven't figured out my price points yet. My wife and I discussed it a bit a couple days ago and she's helping me to give better estimates or quotes with the attitude of if a person doesn't like a quote it isn't a big deal to not take the job. I like to help people where I can but it's tough to want to be helpful and not resentful of the help I offer at the cost I agree to.
This happened to me on my own property...Wife wanted the shrubs removed from in front of the house, so, I hooked a chain to my pickup, and away I went. Sure, the shrub came out, but suddenly the hole was full of water (fun . I look in the hole, and there is my well water line broken in half as the roots had grown around it . I wallered in the mud and fixed it, once I turned off the power to the pump to stop the geyser...LOL Note: All this was prior to owning a backhoe
Two weeks back I was pluggin along, scraping surface rocks into a pick up pile when the hoe controls started to jerk and jump.... backed down the throttle... slowly raised and stowed the boom/dipper...... then pulled ahead out of the crap I was in and...hopped out and bingo... a 3/4 inch hose on the pick-up side of the hyd pump feed had split. Had two spots of contamination on the bare ground ( no grass/ top soil). After the repair.... I added close to 5 gal of hyd fluid. Scraped up the contaminated soil/rock and dumped it onto my burn pile. It got me thinking about what a mess that would be on some clients front yard.... and the hoops I would have to go thru for cleanup.... I guess I'm saying I would not trust my 'old hoe' on someone else's ground.
Or...it would be wise to evaluate the hoses to see if they look old, weathered, cracked. etc., and replace, if you are using it on a customers property...Even new hoses blow at times. Usually it is a manufacturers defect, however, you would still be on the clink for cleanup in todays world. The utility I work for spends 10s of millions every year to clean up oil, and more to prevent oil leaks. God forbid it gets in a sewer catch basin .
I learnt a couple of hard lessons during early ownership and cleaning up some property I had clear cut of trees. I drove my hoe into an area that contained some small stumps and punctured a rear tire. I got off fairly easy on that one and had a new tire replaced on site for $650. I learned A: not to drive into an area that hadn't been cleared of stumps and B: to lower my tire pressures so they are more flexible. I had tire pressure set to 32 as per the manual but the tire guy suggested I keep them at 20 psi. I haven't had any more trouble with tires so far since then. One day I had another brain fart and drove into another area I hadn't cleared of debris. Tore the 3" supply hose off my reservoir and dumped 30 gallons of fluid on the ground. Had to lay on the oil soaked ground on a tarp and put a new hose on then carry 5 gallon buckets of hydraulic fluid tripping over limbs and debris to refill. Since then my hoe NEVER drives into an area that hasn't been scrapped clean by the loader or hoe bucket. I will use one end or the other to scrape to bare dirt and locate stumps or push the debris forward of the tires.
Thanks for the input guys... You're making me think. I know what you mean about running into stuff, though I've been lucky. My neighbor "N" was on his tractor pointing out some old refrigerators he wanted me to pick up and toss in a scrap pile when he turned a corner in his very overgrown pasture/trash pile and bottomed out his tractor, so then he was stuck. I got a little aggravated after that because I wasn't sure what all could be under me. I did what NH is saying and put my loader blade on the ground and went slowly forward to make sure nothing was going to go bad. I got lucky but I also kind of gave N some grief about how much work he really had back there. What he really needs is about $3k in a bulldozer rental to shove literally everything into a pile to either scrap from or bury.
Clearing is the biggest tire killer I know of anymore I have rear and fronts on hand and tubes usually i do my own tires it's faster and cheaper But if your going to do clearing pay mind to tire hazzards
I bought my backhoe to clear a heavily wooded piece of property I bought. I was going to put new tires on it before moving it to my land. Seeing this maybe I should wait before replacing them.
What I meant was, nut up and pick up that summbitchin shovel lol (no offense!) Look at it as free exercise lol
Running the shovel typically makes a person a better operator cause they get motivated to be better
Some rake work is necessary. I favor a narrow weeding tool for hooking out golf ball sized rocks. Then go over it with a bow rake, finally a wide aluminum landscape rake. Keep grass seed handy in a sealed bucket. Otherwise, $50,000 should buy the machinery to do what the rake otherwise does. My son advocates building the cost of a load of screened topsoil into the budget.
Me too. One day younger son (picture the Tasmanian Devil), everything happens FAST, showed up to help for 1 hour. Sure enough, he backed up while turning sharply, hit a stump, and tore the battery box off the tractor. "Thanks for all your help Zack." We have rules. Seat belt, do NOT move the tractor with door open, no passengers. I have parking spaces between the trees all over the place. Park in the spaces leaving room to drive on the roads around the property. ALL the young people surrounding me have trouble with this. I can't picture them leaving a vehicle out in the middle in a parking lot, but pulling fully into a parking space is more than any of them can do. "Uncle Dave" isn't all that sharp & he's lazier than a pet coon. Perfect storm of stupid: Zack had used the dump truck & parked it rear hanging out in the road. He was splitting wood, carrying it 100 yards to the woodshed 1 loader bucket at a time. "Uncle Dave" riding on the step, too lazy to walk that far. I heard an explosion, ran out to investigate. He had hit the corner of the dump body with the open door. Nobody injured, thank God. $500. in parts, $200. in auto body supplies, untold hours work, it was good as new. Had to cut the door in half to straighten it. There's more to damage than just tires. Those bucket things on each end are the only parts you should touch obstacles with.
Never be too good for the shovel / rake. Sometimes I have to remind myself / people "the machine can do that" but usually that involves maintenance. You don't need to cart out a hydraulic jack when you've got one right in front of you lol. In short, I'm small time, but I don't show up without a shovel and rake... And chainsaws always seem to come into play... and... you get the idea. Residential stuff equals dirty hands, which is fine.
Well, I went last night and finished the bush job. I gave him warning of the yard being too wet and he said let's go ahead and do it. We did it but I've rutted up the yard some, not miserably, but some. I did do some raking and straightening things up. No more neighborhood jobs for me, I don't think.
I'm on vacation probably until December because it's too wet to do any useful work here at the end of rainy season. Going and making a bunch of ruts and mud puddles is a counter productive pain in the ass. So is not getting paid for three months, but at least it gives me time to do some personal projects on the farm (during the worst time of the year). You should keep doing neighborhood jobs, get to be that "friendly neighborhood backhoe operator". Just set your customers straight on their expectations beforehand. When they hire you, they are only hiring a giant shovel that can do amazing things but can also make a mess. It's okay, sometimes they need that heavy equipment capability and will be willing to clean up afterwards. Build a relationship with an odd job laborer type dude (and his crew of friends and cousins and brothers as you need them). I don't want to sound controversial or rude but in many cases that'll mean immigrants, like the dudes waiting around outside the home depot in the morning. That's what it's like in Maryland DC and Virginia where I'm from originally. But find help wherever you know to, Craigslist whatever. I assume you have some land if you got your own backhoe, hire someone to help you with little odd jobs around the farm so you get to know him and train him a little and get communication dynamics clear. Perhaps that seems like an unnecessary expenditure, hiring dudes to help out on the farm occasionally, but view it as an investment in your landscape construction business. And your farm jobs will get done better and faster. But having good help you can call for jobs is an important resource for your business. When you have a residential job, include a laborer or two in your hourly rate. I guarantee it will help everything go faster and smoother. I'm a big advocate of just charging hourly for small jobs, but at the same time I'm also trying to get the landscape construction angle going a little more and do bigger jobs on contract. Been doing this for like six years now and just barely getting to where I might be able to make bids intelligently. Got a big ol nursery of ornamental landscaping plants going at home, trying to plant up peoples land after I make them building sites and driveways etc. Gotta couple fishing lines out to local biologists that can direct me towards native plants and shrubs, especially flowering species that will attract pollinating insects and birds, etc. Just trying to come up with angles so I get back towards the farming and landscape planting end of things, instead of just scraping Gravel roads, cleaning ditches, septic tank holes, etc. Anyways good luck. PS - Make the customer call miss utility also. Where I work I don't have to worry about all that but in your world I'm understanding it's a real liability.
Well, I can't say how much I appreciate everyone's feedback in this thread, you guys/gals are amazing, but as quick as it started I've decided it's in mine and my families best interest to hang up the spurs for a bit. The few jobs I've gotten have given me nothing but frustration, either due to my own ignorance, or changing plans, or misunderstood expectations and, at least for now, it's not the world for me. The wife and I discussed the whole venture and while she's supportive of anything I want to do, she did a good job at reminding me (gently, she's not a naggy type at all) that I'm neglecting all my projects at home to go to other's and try to help for money I don't really need, then come home frustrated for whatever reason. We've got a barn about to be ordered that I need to cut down probably 5 big trees for, and move a big pile of logs out of the way of where the barn is going, and rebuild a bridge over the creek, and do some rock screening, etc... Lots of stuff that I can't do, or am too tired to do if I go elsewhere. Tie all that to running a machine for pay that probably doesn't really pay for maintenance and upkeep of the machine and running it all over God's creation and it's smarter to stay at home and do stuff. Part of it sucks because I do enjoy helping others and as we all know the amount of saved work from using a backhoe can be pretty amazing but I guess I'm realizing that I've gotten ahead of myself. If I've worn out my $24k machine before I've done my own stuff at home, then I'm not doing it right. I feel like I'm doing a fair amount of self-justification, and I am, as it's hard to turn down hundreds of dollars for generally manageable work, but it's something I think is wise to do for now. Maybe if I ever get to the point where most of my projects are done I'll get back to it, with a fresh and smarter mind...
aighead, It seems that you have given the venture much thought, and made a sound decision. I personally have a rule that I do not use my "toys" for business purposes because they are not toys if you must rely on them for income, and I really want to enjoy my toys...Your recent experiences, and frustrations have only reinforced my position! The above being stated, it is nice to know that if you were in a bind, and your finances suddenly changed, you do have the means to make money...at that point it would be survival, and having toys would be secondary.
Haha, thanks Swetz! While it seems like a very quick flip, from let's go! to let's stop! I think you are right. Maybe I didn't think about it enough to begin with, but I did try and experiment a bit. My guess is I'll still occasionally help out some neighbors here and there but I don't think I'll go looking for work for a while. Good point about making money if I need to!
Ha ha, I hear you *clearly* and 110% understand what you're saying. My farm is an abandoned mess most of the year cuz I'm out working. It's like only during the three rainiest months when there's no excavation work is when I start farming again. But I got some dudes working here now and trying to set it up as a system that runs (and pays for) itself. Do your own work for a while, get more experience running the machine, and moreso maintaining it and fixing it. By the time it's over we're all going to be serious backhoe mechanics. I understand worrying about wearing out your machine before your own projects are done but they really don't wear out like that. You can rest easy on that. My deere has 25k hours on it and isn't going to stop working anytime soon. Eventually you'll be able to pick up side work again. Good luck, enjoy being a farmer, I'm almost jealous.... Except now I gotta get off the couch and carry a couple feed sacks in the rain to take care of the pigs and chickens, then go plant some seed trays. Was gonna rototill a new bean field today but it's been raining for like the last 16 hours so maybe today's not the day.
You have heard the old saying, “ the shoe maker’s son has no shoes ?” LOL
I help out the neighbors too, but payment is always beer and a hand when needed. An extra hand at a much needed point is worth a lot, at least 2 me as I dont have ne 1 2 help out with the heavy stuff.
In Spanish they say "at the blacksmiths house there's wooden knives"
That's good to cultivate those relationships with buddies and neighbors. But by the same token I think it's important to cultivate people you hire for odd jobs here and there. If one has land to work occasionally they'll need a farmhand. And then you can take them to work on jobs off the farm, if one does contracting or landscaping or whatever and needs a helper. Sorry to get off topic again
LOL!!!
I, on the other hand am addicted. I like to dig. Didn't get enough sandbox time as a child. Furthermore, I need a way to put conduit underground. I see two great challenges: What is underground I want to avoid damaging? How do I repair it to look like I never was there? Locating requires a $10,000. tool. Restoring to perfection would require hand tools, or Very expensive machines. Raking/rock picking hours exceed digging /filling. While no two jobs are alike, some things are constant: Every customer wants to know to the penny what the final job will cost. In every case, it must be cheap. After the excavation is complete, there better be grass better than before & NO pebbles on the lawn. Oh, the driveway gravel must color match the rest of the driveway. In my opinion, Chinese, women, fussy old men, ALL ethnic groups, gays .................however they identify, everybody is an impossible excavation customer. ALL will treat their lawn as "the old women of both sexes" treat their floors. "only dig up my lawn if it is flawless 1 minute later! Whatever you do, don't step on the floors."
Yeah... I just try to be clear with my customers expectations, tell them it's gonna make a mess, and I charge by the hour. Cleanup is expensive if they want me to do it but I can bring guys if they want.
I think my world is different from yours. Anyone I bring with me, I am responsible for. I must have workmen's comp insurance. The work I usually do, OSHA would be hard pressed to find, but laborers are non existent. Beggars stand in a sea of help wanted signs. When it's down to hand work it's me & Seth.