ECN Forum Forums General Topics of the Trade General Discussion Area Bidding burn't out houses???

Anyone have any experience in bidding partial burnt out houses? Do you usually bid these the same as you do regular houses with a little extra?? Thanks Steve....

T&M.
There are too many things that can(will)show up during the demo and reconstruction such as removing wiring to allow for stud or wall replacment and then reinstalling it.Wiring will get damaged during demo.You will also spend alot of time tracing out the circuits to make sure that they have a feed that you wouldn't have to do in new construction.

[This message has been edited by txsparky (edited 01-21-2003).]

sparkync...for the most part of it.the old walls and ceiling will be ripped out anyhow do to the smoke damage to the insulation.i would look at it as wiring the whole house from scratch.now you my be able to use the existing service and panel, but that depends on where the fire started and the size of the service /panel.

As long as it isn't an FP panel....

T&M IS THE PREFERRED WAY. DON'T START WORK UNTIL AN ADJUSTER HAS APPROVED YOU'RE PROPOSAL. BEWARE OF HIDDEN DAMAGE!!!

Thanks for the input. I just got back from checking the job, and I think I'll probably bid it like a new house, PLUS. It is a story and half type house with a lot of extra's. House panel breakers have melted down, lot of unseens and even has extra baseboard heat in addition to the gas heat pack outside. I'm going to recommend doing away with the baseboard heat and having the outside unit sized right to supply the house without it. It only has a 150 amp. service which I'm going to recommend changing to 200 amps. Has Cathedral ceiling with fan and 6 outside flood lights, and bunches more of unseens, plus it's 30 mile drive one way to job. Going to have to put in a lot of PLUS's
on this bid Thanks again for the input.. Steve

Plus put some in for the heebeejeebie factor too. Nothing gives me the creeps more than a burnt out house.
TW

sparkync, "t & m" is really the only way you can make anything on these jobs. i do a lot of this stuff for a couple of "entrepanuers", (sorry, cant spell the word) who make their living "rehabing" and doing insurance work. they have asked me on several occasions why i dont just give them a set price, (depending on the size of the structure), and i continually refuse because of the many, many variables involved.
be sure to figure on plenty of demo time for yourself, too.....dont rely on others to get everything in shape according to your schedule....>wink<

your idea of using your new construction pricing isnt a bad idea....but be very flexible

have a SAFE day!


gramps

Insurance jobs scare me. Bid cautiously and push for T&M or maybe T&M not to exceed a certain figure.

SparkyNC:
Do you have an AHJ (Inspector) in the area???
Usually, MOST OF THE TIME here in NJ, if the fire was "major" (most of the time) the whole house MUST be rewired. NO re-use of existing, due to obvious or possible heat & water damage. You should talk to the AHJ before you commit to the job, unless you see a total rewire. As to pricing, T&M is the best, but if you have to give a number, don'yt overlook the demo, rip-out, etc.
John