[PSUscaper]

Hello,

A lot of great suggestions on how to go about the installation of the stones here.

I would just like to touch on the pricing for work like this. Personally, I have found that you really have to charge a substantial amount of money.

All in all, the amount of time you will spend doing a quality job will take much longer than you can imagine. Therefore, give the client a solid price upfront before starting. Do not be bashful......charge accordingly.

I often find that setting stones like these takes about the same time as doing a paver walk. Before you know it, you are running around for materials.....such as sand....trying to work with garbage stone that the client insists on you using.....and then trying to lay them in very hard/unaccessible areas.

I have found that it may have been more economical to go and just buy all new stones than use leftover rocks, due to the ease of installation.

Another point that I cannot stress is be certain to understand what the client expectations are. Are the clients looking for a 'picture' perfect install? Are they looking for you to literally just throw them down?

This is very critical. I've been down that road where the client says 'could you just place these stones over there for me real quick' and then, when you get done, they are out there complaining about the job you did and you are relaying every single stone again.

Bottom line of work like this is do not think it is easy, cheap work. Really think about what kind of effort and time is involved. Anymore, I almost never do this sort of thing because when I tell them the price, they think I am out of my mind. That's alright though.

steve

[jwholden]

Steve,

I cannot agree with you more. I think office people see this stuff on HGTV and the stones look real easy to move around.

I told a homeowner this Spring that I would use existing rock to put some stepping stones in but when the time came I didn't like the size of the material. I find bigger is always better with stepping stones, to a point.

I said it would cost $200 more if I had to go buy the stone myself. By the time I left the stoneyard after searching for nice material from the pile I had killed one and a half hours and an additional hour of travel time. To top it off, the darn stone used up all of my budget for the material.

I vowed not to make that mistake again. When I showed up and installed the stone the lady kept saying, "Wow, those are some big stones." They were about 80-100 lbs each.

I had a job a couple years ago where the homeowner decided to lay the stone themselves. They went and bought some 2-3" thick veneer and used them to form the path, took my design down a couple notches.

I'm always amazed at how much lower the standards are when the homeowner does it themselves.

[dan deutekom]

Originally posted by jwholden

I'm always amazed at how much lower the standards are when the homeowner does it themselves. [/b]

Now that saying belongs in the great truths in buisness thread

[BRL]

"Bottom line of work like this is do not think it is easy, cheap work. Really think about what kind of effort and time is involved. Anymore, I almost never do this sort of thing because when I tell them the price, they think I am out of my mind. That's alright though."

I have also finally figured this one out the hard way, and it doesn't bother me if they say no anymore either. Great post.