# 2 acre apartment lots with 18k ft' of sidewalks - HELP ME please!!!



## klem (Nov 11, 2009)

i think i might be just slightly off on the pricing, but can some of the seasoned plowing veterans help me out with this one.......
We got asked to bid on this apartment complex with a 2' trigger and there is more walks than anything (well, not really, just a sh*t load of sidewalks)..

I measured the parking lots and drives to be just shy of 84,000 square feet and also 18000 square feet of sidewalks... (5 ft wide walks)

We have 5 trucks, 3 of them 7'6" with wings, one without wings and one v-plow, and also a handful of single stage blowers and 3 2-stage blowers

from what i'm getting at, would 1100 per visit be a good price on this lot. I have never priced out anything this complicated before with so many obstacles and walkways...
3 trucks with wings at 2 hours with 2 guys walking with blowers...

the drives are in blue, and all the sidewalks located in the red outlined area

i forgot to add, salting only needed in the lots, they dont want walks salted (i know, i know, add the slip and fall clause in contract)


----------



## Advantage (Nov 7, 2007)

I ran into sort of the same situation except with a much smaller parking lot. I think you are in the ballpark as far as pricing considering where you're located. We couldn't get that pricing here though.


----------



## buckwheat_la (Oct 11, 2009)

i need some clarification, the red line outlines the complex, what is the blue line? just drives and parking areas?


----------



## badabing1512 (Aug 28, 2008)

Your going to need a quad with a plow or bobcat with a plow/blower attachment, no way 2 guys with blowers are getting all those walks done in 2 hours


----------



## klem (Nov 11, 2009)

for clarification, the apartment complex is within the red lines, the blue lines are the driveways and parking spots, and then all the sidewalks inside the read lines also...

i was hoping it would only take 2 hours for snow blowing, but if need be, ill just put another snowblower on that property


----------



## forestfireguy (Oct 7, 2006)

You're looking at more like 8-12 man hours for blowing all those walks. Get a quad on it.

OR

Bill hourly for the walks and it is what it is. Fixed pricing that much walkway is tough. Unless you have the history oif what your guys actually get done (IE Production rate) in an hour. Forget what others say their guys do, or what they've done themselves......Unless they work for you. I mean the info is a valuable guidleine, but you can't bid based on what XYZ from plowsite said his guys could do.


----------



## cet (Oct 2, 2004)

I'm not sure what you guys are using to clear walks but 2 guys for 2 hours is lots. The walks are .7 of a mile long. With a 30" blower it is 3 passes. You have to walk 2 miles. So 2 guys for 2 hours is 1/4 mile/hour. I also think you are high for the plowing.


----------



## Brian Young (Aug 13, 2005)

badabing1512;1091788 said:


> Your going to need a quad with a plow or bobcat with a plow/blower attachment, no way 2 guys with blowers are getting all those walks done in 2 hours


Thats what I was thinking. A quad would be able to do it in a couple hours but a quad is 4 times as fast.


----------



## forestfireguy (Oct 7, 2006)

As far as the price goes, you mean total right? 1100 for plowing and walks? I think you're pretty high pricewise, assume 2.5 hrs to plow @ 125 Hr, thats 312.50, then you have 787.50 for the walks, if it took 8 man hours you'd be getting almost 100 an hour for sidewalk service.....NOT LIKELY.

Looks more like a 250-300 plow and 4-500 for the walks, this assuming a 0-4 inch storm, so if you're including a salt app to the lots/drives in that 1100 you're in the ballpark. I'd hope you do get the job, but I can't see winning this contract if salt isn't in that number.


----------



## djagusch (Oct 15, 2007)

If it helps I do about 2000 ft of 5ft walk in an 1.5hrs in a similiar senerio. 3 passes with a single stage. 2 600 ft chunks, 1 100 ft chunk, then 34 20-25 ft chunks that come off the 600 ft parts.


----------



## woodhe (Nov 1, 2009)

*lots of walks?*

This truck can sweep rumble strips at 15mph. I haven't had a chance to try it on snow but soon the Univ. of WI will be testing it


----------

