# Need help bidding three gass stations....



## sdmaintenance (Oct 9, 2009)

Ok so I have been asked to bid three Irving Gas stations... most of our work has been parking lots and a few banks. I live in NH and average 18 storms a year. I have to sand and salt them as well.
I need to give the guy a price for all three of them. They are all within 5miles of each other and about 7miles of all my other jobs.
None of the hass stations are open past midnight....
So what you guys think???? How much should I bid them for? What have some of you toher guys found is a fair price 

thanks


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## PowerWagon (Aug 31, 2006)

If I were you, walk away from those gas stations! too much stress..


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## Silverstreak (Oct 25, 2007)

yeah always, always someone there, figure on extra salt because by the time you show up 50 cars have packed down the snow into a nasty crust

hard to say what to bid without looking at the lot size

i do 3, usually at the end of the storm on the way home, but theyre all privately owned and dont expect me, i do it for fuel/cash and def would never sign a contract...too much liability 

i dont know how people doing 24hr pharmacies and convenience stores do it without keeping a truck there nonstop


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## ERICS LAWN CARE (Oct 19, 2009)

gas stations would be nightmare; you have those gas lids in the pavement that stick up and might come off when you hit them--cars everywhere that dont care that you have several other jobs to get to. and yes cars all over the place driving on the snow before you get there--guess helps they arent open 24 hrs but would need measurements--you cant look at it guess at a price--some might be a little bigger than others without realizing it until you actually measure it and gas stations would have a level of difficulty which should make price higher than a normal parking lot. i am not sure what they meant by liability other than what i mentioned already. you cant go by what price we say cause you need to know your cost--you might not have truck payments so you might be able to be cheaper. You need to know how much you need per hour minimum and add your projected profit to it and allow for money for break downs and wear and tear on your truck. then you need to determine how long the job will take which might mean looking back at previous records; we always always keep track of when we were at a job (in and out time right to the minute); so i can look back and see how long it took--then on those logs the driver writes his opinion on weather conditions--we keep track of how much snow recv and if it was light and fluffy or wet and heavy


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## Bird21 (Sep 4, 2008)

I did three stations years ago.. I would not do them again unless the price was 200.00+ per push. Way to much liability. Many things to watch for when plowing ie Autos and delivery trucks pulling into the lots at all angles and directions, people walking to the counter slipping all over the place, fuel lids in the concrete, the pumps themselves, and so on.

The problem I found was the people would pull in and expect you see them, even if they pulled up right behind you. Then there is the fact that it will be either packed down or a slushy mess, It will everytime no matter what. 

For the right price I would do them but only with my most skilled and experienced driver with a spotter. The spotter would shovel the snow from the pump islands and watch for the idiots around the truck.


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## ferdinand711 (Oct 25, 2006)

sdmaintenance;837973 said:


> Ok so I have been asked to bid three Irving Gas stations... most of our work has been parking lots and a few banks. I live in NH and average 18 storms a year. I have to sand and salt them as well.
> I need to give the guy a price for all three of them. They are all within 5miles of each other and about 7miles of all my other jobs.
> None of the hass stations are open past midnight....
> So what you guys think???? How much should I bid them for? What have some of you toher guys found is a fair price
> ...


Per push on every two inches while they are still open. Price them double or even triple than what you normally charge, in case you'll get them all the pain in the behind will be compensated. BUT if you think you have enough jobs to get you through without having to deal with this, then STAY AWAY FROM THEM.


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## fordzilla1155 (Jan 10, 2004)

2 slurpees from Apoo


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## basher (Nov 13, 2004)

Bid them High and salt them Heavy


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## 2COR517 (Oct 23, 2008)

basher;838247 said:


> Bid them High and salt them Heavy


x2. I would think you're looking at about 5 grand each. Get plenty of salt down BEFORE the storm starts. That will reduce the hardpack from sticking.


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## azandy (Oct 15, 2008)

There has been a lot of dicussion on gas stations. Ya someone has to plow them. I got rid of the last ones we had after last season. Won't ever bid another one. If it has a C store with fast food, well it is 10 times worse. We made money on them, but to much stress and each of the last two years someone has had a little accident at some point. I won't deal with these again. I'll stick to my clinics, nursing homes, and banks. Same money much less stress.


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## Mark Oomkes (Dec 10, 2000)

Bid high enough to make a profit and low enough to get the work.


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## 2COR517 (Oct 23, 2008)

Mark Oomkes;838301 said:


> Bid high enough to make a profit and low enough to get the work.


Now why did you have to go and confuse things with logical reasoning?


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## dodge2500 (Aug 20, 2009)

I bid on 2 of them in my area and got them both. They will take about 30 min each and they are $95 per push for each and $90 for salt for each. They take about 8 bags of salt each. They want to be done every 2 inches of snow and they are not open 24 hours. Hope this helps.


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## Mark Oomkes (Dec 10, 2000)

2COR517;838339 said:


> Now why did you have to go and confuse things with logical reasoning?


I was told no more smart comments, so I figured I go for logic.

When I can't do that anymore, I'll just start being an a s s.


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## sdmaintenance (Oct 9, 2009)

*thanks guys*

ok... thanks for all your advise guys.. i am going to bid them cause we are a little slim this year i will just bid them all high i guess and see what happens...


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