Profitability of buying a bucket truck

[Tucker943]

Buckets come up short on the tops around here all the time. No biggie. The top is usually a lot easier then the lower stuff. The top has height. Height is my friend when there are obstacles underneath. Just gotta throw the hooks on an jump out and finish spankin that sucker.

 

[sotc]

You know, this last year was amazing, I was doing 8-10 bids a day, 5 days, all summer long. We stay busy just doing good work. Granted I just won a large municipal bid and left a boat load of money on the table But that happens to us all I think. Mostly, I am not the low bid . Equipment does allow you to finish sooner and keep more, pay less out in comp etc. I have a few short days here and there but otherwise were booked out 4 weeks right now. Pretty good for us this time of year. We have slopes, (valley floor is 1500' and we work up over 5000' sometimes) fences, gardens, pools etc, same as everyone else. We just climb what we have to use equipment where we have to. I don't think it matters how many bucket trucks are around, if you have work you can get the truck to, it likely can be done more efficiently. Nearly any removal you can use a bucket on can be done faster that climbing. Some can be done much faster, a former employee just subbed us in to wreck a tree for him because paying us was cost effective. I'd love a rear mount but it pencils for me to have forestry boxes.

 

[Tucker943]

There's no question whatsoever that a bucket is a money maker. Wraptors are a great tool. But they make you go up. I can set up some sweet rigging with a bucket in a matter of moments. It's not so much about going up, but about moving every which way effortlessly and accessing even the trickiest parts of the tree in seconds.

 

[cory]

I'd love a rear mount but it pencils for me to have forestry boxes.

pencils?

4 weeks this time of year is really good imo, but then it makes you wonder how far out you will be when things get busy, will custys wait 8 weeks?

 

[SouthSoundTree-]

Pencils out. works out at the end of the day.

 

[SouthSoundTree-]

Thanks for explaining, Willie.





I will take a bit of a look at jobs and bids coming up for bucket access and such. Try to see it through unbiases eyes. Just seems like I don't get as many bid requests with access.

Worker's Comp rates play into the equation a lot for most people. WA State Dept of Labor and Industries runs WC here. I used to pay $3.xx, now up to $4.xx per hour. not 41% of their wage, as some people do.

Do you find you have to do much for access like cutting out or digging out plants, a fence post, etc?

 

[cory]

Ok, pencils, I get it now, never heard that before

 

[Tucker943]

Often times removing a section of fence is the case. But the 30 minutes of effort shaves hours off many jobs. Occasionally you'll have to elevate a few droopy limbs on trees to get in place but most homeowners are happy see those droopers lifted up.

 

[treebilly]

I keep tools for removing fences and posts in the truck. And a spade shovel to dig out small bushes, trees, and prized flowers. Occasional low limbs. Mats ( and a good clean up) and you can hardly tell I just drove 28,000 lbs over the yard.
No matter how tall of a bucket, you're gonna come up short in a lot of situations. As I don't own a wraptor(yet), I take the free ride to 60' when ever I can.

 

[cory]

I keep tools for removing fences and posts in the truck. And a spade shovel to dig out small bushes, trees, and prized flowers. Occasional low limbs. Mats ( and a good clean up) and you can hardly tell I just drove 28,000 lbs over the yard.

 

[sotc]

4 weeks this time of year is really good imo, but then it makes you wonder how far out you will be when things get busy, will custys wait 8 weeks?

Yeah, I'd like to find another qualified climber this year so we can be one big crew, or 2 small crews or?....

Thanks for explaining, Willie.





I will take a bit of a look at jobs and bids coming up for bucket access and such. Try to see it through unbiases eyes. Just seems like I don't get as many bid requests with access.

Worker's Comp rates play into the equation a lot for most people. WA State Dept of Labor and Industries runs WC here. I used to pay $3.xx, now up to $4.xx per hour. not 41% of their wage, as some people do.

Do you find you have to do much for access like cutting out or digging out plants, a fence post, etc?

I like the per hour rates better than the percentages. Percentages make you hold back on raises.
I don't do much fence or plant moving. If I can't drive over the shrub I'm afraid of shocking it if I dig them up. Occasionally I can cut the owner some slack if they are ok if a shrub may die.
My trucks both have about 40' side reach max, sometimes just reaching out and taking the ends off that you can reach makes the climbers job cake.

 

[MasterBlaster]

Ok, pencils, I get it now, never heard that before

That's a new one for me, too.

 

[sotc]

Short for "it pencils out". As in doing the math.

 

[gf beranek]

"Writing bids takes a sharp pencil." a logger told me once.

 

[cory]

That's for sure. And being in bidness, its tough, it takes a thick skin; today I worked next door to a custy I have worked for several times before, usually once every 3 years or so, we always had a great relationship I thought, I always gave him great prices cuz Im fair anyways and cuz we were friendly I made sure the price was nice. So I look over and see he had his back yard more or less clear cut since the last time I was there….smh

 

[Reddog]

New owner maybe?

 

[cory]

Nope. He still lives there, drove by today and waved but didn't stop to chat. He had a bunch of landscaping done, could possibly have been a "package deal", plant trees, do masonry, cut trees. But it still stinks. Oh well

 

[Tucker943]

It bothers me when I "good" customer moves on. I don't see it happen often. But those customers that you've worked for time and again and gotten along really well with. I'd be lying if I said it didn't bother me and make me wonder if I should have done something differently.

 

[cory]

Good custys are hard to find.

 

[cory]

But seriously, you know what I mean? You break your back for somebody and then they hire someone else later. Hey, maybe I didnt do as good a job as I thought for the guy.

 

[Tucker943]

That's exactly how I feel about it. But then I try and remind myself that I pickup new customers all the time and their last tree company wasn't always a bad one at all. Sometimes I pickup new customers from great tree companies. It's just how it goes I guess. The new company might have been in the neighborhood and the customer might have been curious what they could do while they were nearby? I try and just chalk it up as business. After I get done wondering what I didn't do right, that is.

 

[cory]

I try and just chalk it up as business. After I get done wondering what I didn't do right, that is.

Yeah that's the bottom line.

 

[sotc]

Yep, worth a few minutes consideration, then it's time to replace them with another client

 

[SouthSoundTree-]

Sometimes people get tipped off to the new in business guy that doesn't know all the longterm costs of business but has good enough tree work experience to do the job.

Sometimes a relative or friend of the family gets going in trees, or the new in-law gets a business going.

Sometimes, its off the book and cheap.

When a lot of landscaping goes away underneath, to be replaced with new landscaping, the climber's skill set can be lesser, and you don't need as much expensive experience to remove the trees. Could easily have been a package deal.

 

[cory]

Yup all good points.