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#9015 04/20/02 01:11 PM
Joined: Mar 2002
Posts: 22
A
Member
We do all residential and we can do them pretty fast. So key points that really help are..
Having proper tools.
a Method, 1 guy lays the house out, other guy, bangs up all over head and boxes.
1guy pulls HRs, as the other guy, drills the house out. The guy drilling, drills threw the walls not just over the box.

I think one of are most valued speed tools
is how the circuits are laid out. We do 'drops'. I see alot of companies keep the upstairs circuits upstairs and the downstairs circuits downstairs. We try and pull most our HR upstairs, and drop out of upstairs boxes to feed downstairs boxes. This makes pulling the upstairs a bigger job, but when you go downstairs you have drops over 80% of your boxes. There is less drilling and pulling. (also less drilling through lam beams)
Doing it this way you cant label your HRs specifiec rooms, you just have to label 'general lighting'. And when the gfci protecting bedroom plugs becomes more accepted this method will be less effective.
but it works for us. 2 guys can pull a 4500sq. ft. home, 15 recess, tall great room ceiling, j-tub, garage, bang up and cut in panel, in about 4 or 5 days. This also includes sitting in the van for an hour before working, and 1 hr lunch.
But we young guys.

#9016 04/20/02 02:46 PM
Joined: Feb 2002
Posts: 840
C
Member
Is it really necessary to use 12/2 for all household circuits? It seems like overkill to me. I wired new houses for a while and we used 14/2 all the time and never had any problems with overloads (we didn't use it where it was forbidden by code, of course). Can somebody enlighten me?


Peter
#9017 04/20/02 03:06 PM
Joined: Apr 2002
Posts: 257
M
Member
Fred, I did exactly what you do. I explained to the customer that the service was copper in conduit with a panel with a copper buss, no wire smaller than #12, dedicated circuits for all major appliances, etc...
I usually tell the customer its like buying a Cadillac instead of a Volkswagon. Either one will work but you pay more for quality. (No offense to Volkswagon).
When the customer called to let me know that they gave the job to someone else for under 4K, they told me jokingly that they couldn't afford a Cadillac so they had to settle for a Saturn...
I have always tried to cater more to higher end residential customers and facility owners that care about quality and want things done right but, it seems that they are getting fewer and further in between. The steady customers that we do have trust us immensly to do a good job that "meets or exceeds the requirements of the National Electrical Code" and that means a lot to me. I just wish that there were more people around here that thought that way.

#9018 04/20/02 04:19 PM
Joined: Jan 2002
Posts: 324
A
Member
AndrusT, a hour in the van? a hour for lunch? Are you guys hiring?

#9019 04/20/02 11:12 PM
Joined: Mar 2002
Posts: 11
S
Member
I started out in the trade working for a company that wired over half of the houses built in a city of 50,000. The key was standardization and buying material in mass quantities. Rarely went to the supply house. Everything you needed to rough and trim was in the shop. Load the truck and go. Every house was wired with the same standard.

I wired a 6,500 s.f. ranch style home a couple of years ago. We did everything; 400A service with subpanels, lighting control, home automation, structured wiring, audio, networking, home theater. Bid the job directly to the homeowner. He said my electrical bid was 30 percent higher than the other bidder. I told him to hire the other guy. He said he wanted me to do the whole job. I told him my bid was final. We did the whole job. The house next door was even bigger than this one and had a 200A 40 circuit service, no subpanels, wires doubled up on breakers, and was wired by the low bidder on my project. Some people have a hard time understanding the cost of quality work.

#9020 03/02/04 08:48 PM
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 11
M
Member
im in california and i have 3 price packages.

$3.25/sq. ft is basic
$4.00 upgraded
$4.75 premium
you can imagine what s included in the premium package. therefore, your 4406 for a basic installation in az may have been a little high. something more like $2.75-3.25/ sq.ft would have won you the bid. then once you get the job for the basics, introduce the homeowner to a wide range of extras he just cant live without. I've lost a few houses and sometimes i think i'm a little high, but for the most part i think i'm in the ballpark.
I would've bid your job at $3465
this includes your profit and overhead.
works good for me, i have an 80% hit ratio

[This message has been edited by marixelectric_dfw (edited 03-02-2004).]

[This message has been edited by marixelectric_dfw (edited 03-02-2004).]

#9021 03/04/04 10:18 PM
Joined: Jun 2003
Posts: 1,143
D
Member
Master66 - your comparison (Caddy v. VW) reminds me of the customers that used to complain about my "expensive" receptacles. (When I first started out, I tried the (then) .39 Big Orange Box cheepos - found out quickly why the extra $ for "commercial grade" is worth it - to me AND my customers). I would give them refs to previous customers, and ask them to call, and find out when the last time was that they needed an outlet that I installed replaced due to normal use and abuse (teenagers).

I also would get the customers who would ask if "all that stuff" was really necessary - (you know, 12 AWG for 20A circuits... that sort of thing...) back when I was "handymanning". I'd tell the customers that the City might be able to get me for not being licensed, but not for doing non code compliant work.

Admittedly, I'm working in a much more "lower middle class" community, but you see the same "$ v. quality" mentality down here.

I have to agree with you - someone who spends $65k on a car that's "safer" for their family will choose the lower bidder with no research, and no background info to make an educated decision. Kinda makes you wonder.

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