Prices per Square Metre?

« **on:** October 21, 2009, 02:30:19 pm »

I know this topic has come up again recently,but most of the time people are a little shy in giving their prices.To start the ball rolling i charge £3.50 per square metre.There you go, honest and in the open!

Im doing this so the guys who dont charge enough,can hopefully be brought into line with the average prices.

I just want carpet cleaning prices,not protection, or time consuming stain removal jobs,just a standard clean.

« **Reply #1 on:** October 21, 2009, 05:20:45 pm »

What do you mean the guys who dont charge enough? They must think they charge enough.
They may charge a bit less but clean twice as fast so they still earn more at the end of each week, the established guys have prob paid for their van and all equipment and hardly have to advertise because of the reg custys. Remember its not what you charge, it is what you have left in your pocket at the end of each month that counts.
Mark

« **Reply #2 on:** October 21, 2009, 05:34:19 pm »

and at the end of the month I dont have much left in my pocket - the wifes grabbed most of it.

« **Reply #3 on:** October 21, 2009, 05:38:45 pm »

i don't charge by the meter but i'd guess it works out at around £1.50.

i think your insulting my intelect saying i don't charge enough. who says your prices are right? you?

and seeing as i think your comments are out of order, i'll comment that your prices are a rip off, cos i know i can do just as good if not a better job for less.

have a good day.

derek

« **Reply #4 on:** October 21, 2009, 05:43:14 pm »

Quote from: Joe Hatton on October 21, 2009, 05:34:19 pm

and at the end of the month I dont have much left in my pocket - the wifes grabbed most of it.

yes joe and if have any left it goes nto the wedding fund.

« **Reply #5 on:** October 21, 2009, 05:47:35 pm »

Quote from: Derek West on October 21, 2009, 05:38:45 pm

i don't charge by the meter but i'd guess it works out at around £1.50.

i think your insulting my intelect saying i don't charge enough. who says your prices are right? you?

and seeing as i think your comments are out of order, i'll comment that your prices are a rip off, cos i know i can do just as good if not a better job for less.

have a good day.

derek

Derek

I thought you would be cheaper.

« **Reply #6 on:** October 21, 2009, 05:49:39 pm »

probably am. i quote per job not per metre. is that a dig mike. or a joke or something completely out of left field? never to sure where your coming from these days.
derek

« **Reply #7 on:** October 21, 2009, 06:08:26 pm »

Sorry Derek forgot the smiley.

I think there are too many variables to get any sensible answers from these sort of questions.

You could be quoting for 1000sqm price on commercial or a small Axmister in a top floor flat with lots of furniture and dog wee.

« **Reply #8 on:** October 21, 2009, 07:27:49 pm »

Is this for a single room or a full house? Many charge all these prices. Over £4 on an average single room, this may drop to £2.50 for a whole house and maybe half this for a large commercial. The area rate may differ but the hourly or daily rate should stay similar.

« **Reply #9 on:** October 21, 2009, 07:31:02 pm »

Derek,

At this precise moment, if you charge roughly £1.50 a square metre that puts you,according to the poll, in the bottom 25% of earners,so 75% of us CCs must be rip off merchants,so as i see it your insulting us.As you often say derek,if people dont like it they can go elsewhere.

Apart from that i like your banter!

« **Reply #10 on:** October 21, 2009, 07:38:05 pm »

my comment was to return your insult. according to poles, 8 out of 10 cats prefer whiskers. do you believe that?

if i'm a low earner then so's my accountant, i earned more than he did in september.

you carry on educating us low earners, but i certainly won't conform to your price rules.

if you can run a business on one fixed price then hats off to ya buddy. its not for me thanks.

derek

« **Reply #11 on:** October 21, 2009, 07:47:50 pm »

I charge £3.50 m but i have no doubt that i am very slow, so it evens out the quicker i get the more i make but at the moment although i charge by the metre it must i think depend on where you are, because i finalise most at that price, and people seem happy before and after

« **Reply #12 on:** October 21, 2009, 08:00:18 pm »

I charge £xx per hour for one regular commercial client and last year earned just over £2000 on one job..... This year, on the same job with a more powerful machine and being a lot more efficient, I only earned £1350..... Talk about being a victim of your own succuess

But I managed to fit in domestic jobs as well this time round, so it was all good!!!!

« **Reply #13 on:** October 21, 2009, 08:07:26 pm »

I think this topic is quite a tricky one,and i agree with some of the comments other people have made.For instance if you are doing the full house,do you lower the squared metre price?Yes of course you do,to make it more attractive to the customer.Also if carpet is seriously stained do you charge the same as a slightly dirty carpet?No of course not,because the time factor creeps in.

As im fairly new to carpet cleaning, and work at a geriatrics pace,maybe when i speed up,prices could change.

« **Reply #14 on:** October 21, 2009, 08:23:31 pm »

So really the question was pointless because you said in one breath you charge £3.50 sq m, then you say on your last
post you alter it for, say, all the house doing or if there quite clean.
So you don't really charge £3.50 sq m.
I charge by the job like Derek, weigh up how long it will take and how much I want for that amount of time.
Charge by the sq m for commercial.
Last one I did 2 weeks ago I managed to get a princely £1.40 sq m.

John

« **Reply #15 on:** October 21, 2009, 08:25:04 pm »

Derek running his Tm can prob clean twice as much in the same time as a new portie user, so if you charge £3 per sq mtr and Derek £1.50 then you should both earn the same in 8 hours, bet Derek get a better % of quotes than you too, so less advertising, so that makes him better off for charging less :

Mark

« **Reply #16 on:** October 21, 2009, 10:39:42 pm »

Mark,
But you havent factored in the T.M will want replacing in 5 years time

« **Reply #17 on:** October 21, 2009, 11:08:17 pm »

No truckmounts are only in a league of their own on commercial jobs. Totally inefficient on domestics, whilst your shifting furniture and bric a brac the screaming unit outside is dumping your cleaning solution and burning off fuel.

Once you turn the key on a truckmount your fingers need to be on the wand trigger full time, take them off and its costing you big time in solution and fuel.
Just an observation whilst looking at one last week.

Matt

« **Reply #18 on:** October 21, 2009, 11:20:00 pm »

I'm no truck mount owner, but I still like my machine to be running efficiently and only when it's necessary. This means I do my work methodically and all chattels, furniture etc are moved/removed, pre vac, pre spray, agitated and left to dwell while I switch "The Beast" on

I doubt very much a TM user keeps his/her machine running unnecessarily, to be fair

« **Reply #19 on:** October 21, 2009, 11:55:59 pm »

Matt, not all truckmounts dump water, and none dump "solution" because the chems are fed in post-pump

Like Colin, I like to prep all the areas, get stuff off the floors and make it so I can whizz round all in one go, or in two halves at least. My machinery rarely runs without working and I don't march back and forth switching it on/off all the time!

Agreed, the bigger the job the more sense and time saving a TM makes but hey isn't it just a nice thought, to be able to breeze through a job rather than trot to and fro with buckets whilst tripping over your power leads?

Anyways, back to the debate.....

I've charged as much as £10/m² and as little as £1.10/m². Small domestic vs big commercial. Pointless poll because of all the variables, and duplicated for about the 100th time :

What makes you think you can poke everyone into line? The NCCA can't do it and it's been trying for 30 years!

« **Reply #20 on:** October 22, 2009, 12:37:12 am »

Interesting comments about TM from portable users.

As Jim says doing your prep upfront so you can turn the key and wand straight through is the aim. Sure sometimes you have to put the wand down and spot something or move something but on the whole it's not an issue. JKs sticky tabs are a big help here.

« **Reply #21 on:** October 22, 2009, 10:44:41 am »

Here we go again....basically we are all earning a living with whatever machine we have and what we all charge out.
Its pointless slagging of someone's machine and because he is charging x amount. Your time would be better spent canvassing......

« **Reply #22 on:** October 22, 2009, 12:37:50 pm »

If carpet cleaning pricing was all pretty uniform like carpet fitting we would have more competition until someone comes along and lowers prices again

« **Reply #23 on:** October 22, 2009, 02:33:26 pm »

Ignore what other people charge.
Price so you are making a living and covering expenses not forgetting tax at the end of the year.

Someone said we should be charging £60-70 per hour. It seems a lot but 25% will go on NI and tax, then theres van costs, 3rd party insurance and new machinery. By the end of that lot there is not a fortune left for us.

Trevor

« **Reply #24 on:** October 22, 2009, 08:58:33 pm »

I heard it was supposed to be £100/h

« **Reply #25 on:** October 24, 2009, 04:54:03 pm »

Quote from: Matt Lindus on October 21, 2009, 11:08:17 pm

No truckmounts are only in a league of their own on commercial jobs. Totally inefficient on domestics, whilst your shifting furniture and bric a brac the screaming unit outside is dumping your cleaning solution and burning off fuel.

Once you turn the key on a truckmount your fingers need to be on the wand trigger full time, take them off and its costing you big time in solution and fuel.
Just an observation whilst looking at one last week.

Matt

You obviously dont own a TM and what you claim is totally untrue. Simple correct job organisation and management means your TM is running only when its working cleaning carpets. My TM doesnt dump water anyway and it runs on LPG (half the price of petrol)
As for not being efficient on domestic jobs - are you serious. I used the best portables for 23 years before going Truck Mounted. I do mostly domestic and with my first entry level TM My production doubled, and now with my Blueline TM I get through the same amount of work even faster and with better results than ever. It has also opened the door to lucrative Tile & Grout cleaning.
Dave.

« **Reply #26 on:** October 24, 2009, 05:54:43 pm »

Hi Guys

Dave, Matt likes to be controversial, of course TM's are much quicker on domestic although it does take a bit of adjusting at first.

Other benefits I have found, are less aches and pains from lugging things around and beuing able to leave very little if any chemical in the carpet, so slowing resoling.

Cheers

Doug

« **Reply #27 on:** October 24, 2009, 10:02:46 pm »

Doug you forgot to mention leaving less chemicals and water in the carpet when using a Truck-mount they dry far far quicker !

« **Reply #28 on:** October 24, 2009, 10:23:57 pm »

I charge the same now with the TM as i did when i used the portable 35p a square foot been OLD SCHOOL only differance is I make a lot more per hour.

CHEERS TONY

« **Reply #29 on:** October 25, 2009, 08:21:35 am »

Quote from: Joe Hatton on October 21, 2009, 05:34:19 pm

and at the end of the month I dont have much left in my pocket - the wifes grabbed most of it.

Joe
Do you pay yourself monthly?

Due to the reccession and the infux of new carpet cleaners I am back to £1 a metre as suggestedon Extracta Web Site

for some reason the poll result is showing and nt the voting button so I could not vote.

I am going to Alltec Extacavanza where the blind will not be leading the blind to learn how to get £6 without scarring off the customer Jim obviously knows as he gets £10
Thats good because next 50% OFF advert can be 20x10 lounge £200 down to £100 Another point to bear in mind is you should take of the areas you do not clean

In My room I have wall units Computer Desk piano and if you do not calculate these out you are getting more per metre than you realise

Doug

Iam just wondering what test you did when you were useing a portable to see how much residue you left in carpet to cause resoiling

I also thought you were a convert to prochems version of micro spliter and green cleaning where you use a plain water rinse.

Also whe you were a portable owner how many complaints did you get about resoiling or drying times .?

« **Reply #30 on:** October 25, 2009, 08:32:04 am »

I charge in the middle of this costing and on some commercials even more as some were already paying a ihgher price when i got the contracts.

Most of this commercial work is done on a l m system as well so its quieter, qucker and can be done at my convenience and not at night time

« **Reply #31 on:** October 25, 2009, 09:16:49 am »

Ian

£ 1.00 per square metre - are you serious

Steve

« **Reply #32 on:** October 25, 2009, 09:31:22 am »

Hi Guys

Ian, the truckmount can flush out the carpet much better because of the volume of water and it's temperature.

I do usually use either a pure water rinse or add a little acid to balance pH, but when I am using a porty will quite often have pureclean in the tank, to give me the desired result as I believe getting the carpet or upholstery clean is the most important thing.

I have said on a previous post, can't remember which topic, that one fine day I will do a proper scientific experiment to see just what effect leaving chemicals in the carpet does have on resoiling.

Cheers

Doug

« **Reply #33 on:** October 25, 2009, 09:58:01 am »

Ian, I was thinking of going to the Alltec day on marketing. I've kept the Thursday free but still haven't made up my mind. Might see you there

I voted £2-£3, but I've never priced by the square Metre it all goes on the individual job, how long it will take etc..etc

I did a job on Friday, the couple had just had a new staircase installed, they got charged 3 times the normal rate due to the circumstances of the job. But I asked them right from the start how good a job do you want us to do? I told them honestly that to do the best job possible we needed to completely empty the room, so we carried all the furniture into the Conservatory and I used the T/M to dry vac the carpet ...... we were there ages

« **Reply #34 on:** October 25, 2009, 10:03:14 am »

mike
isn't dry vaccing with the tm a danger to the blower?
derek

« **Reply #35 on:** October 25, 2009, 10:11:13 am »

Derek, I use a dust downer to inject water into the vac line, also I fit a stocking into my inline filter to catch all the crap.

I used the T/M becuase the carpet was a very long shag pile, the upright vac would have just snagged the pile but it has crap deep in the pile.

« **Reply #36 on:** October 25, 2009, 10:22:04 am »

where can i get a dust downer from?
and i must admit, i'm condidering an inline, cleaning the tank filter is a pain. and the handles broke all ready. my fault for banging the cwap out instead of washing it out. oops!
derek

« **Reply #37 on:** October 25, 2009, 03:15:34 pm »

its quite easy to make an improvised dust-downer all you need to do is find a way to inject water into your vac hose.

I have a 3ft lengh of solution line with a jet fitted which fits into a small hole in my inline filter so as I dry vac it sprays water into the filter which wets down all the dry dust.

Ian, I was just thinking, if you take me as a guest it will only cost me £25 and I could pay for a slap up lunch for us both

« **Reply #38 on:** October 25, 2009, 07:17:17 pm »

As for 'new comers' we are now learning it was all deliberate!

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1222769/Dishonest-Blair-Straw-accused-secret-plan-multicultural-UK.html

« **Reply #39 on:** October 25, 2009, 07:36:36 pm »

My prices vary quite widely, depending on how dirty the carpet is and how far it is from home. In other words the price is based on how much work/expenditure is involved in doing the job.

I try to be as fair as possible whilst still making a reasonable profit. I try not to overcharge as I know how it'd feel if boot was on t'other foot.

« **Reply #40 on:** October 26, 2009, 07:34:20 pm »

No Im not bein serious about £1
but thats what half price operators qoue.

Sometimes I am £4.00 somtimes less depending on carpet and location etc
Big Office Carpets are often lower but considering the Black Water that comes out they should be more.

Mike will be good to see you on Thursday if you decide to go

Poll

What do you charge?