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  Graeme @ BGS October 26, 2009 at 8:35pm

  Etesia Bahia is a great little machine and collects plus rear roller. Useful machine due to size and can get in most gardens. It would serve you well for a lawn of that size. I hope that you can dispose of the green waste on site!
  
  Regarding charging I would suggest anything from £40 to £65 per hour but don't forget to also factor in any strimming and edging up. To be honest if it is part of the maintenance contract take an average ballpark time figure that you think it will take to mow and strim and then work out your price for either 21 or 30 cuts and add the total to your other work so that you have a total annual figure plus materials and others bits that you would cost seperately.
• PRO

  Gary RK October 26, 2009 at 9:01pm

  Agree with Graeme, the Bahia are great machines. We can get them into most back gardens easy. Simple to use, 80cm cut. These you can pick up ~£1000-1500 2nd hand. Go for the Honda or Kawasaki enginer variant if you get a choice.
  
  If you go digging around the Toro website/documentation they have a great little table to help calculate mowing times. It's a bit like a times table. It takes account of the size of the deck/blade with either 100% or80% width cut (ie overlapping or not), the area and finally (mower) speed. The only thing is it assumes you are 'letting fly', so you have to add some common sense to the time to allow for dumping runs.
  
  One thing to remember is to cost in your fuel - whether it's recovered by your charge out rate, or your machine rate or as a line item. Once into ride-on's, fuel goes quickly and with prices rising again I would keep it seperate and ensure you can recover any future fuel increases via a clause in your contrtact.
  
  Again, for us in the beginning we were alittle out, but we kept details and now know what % to add on to get our actual times.
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  Ruairidh MacDonald October 26, 2009 at 9:07pm

  Thanks Graeme. That helps a lot, the reason to the discussion. The gentlemen I spoke to said that another company could do it for £40 a cut which’s including strimming, edging plus removal of waste. I’ve estimated 2 hours to do the grass alone and finding it hard to compete with that.
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  Graeme @ BGS October 26, 2009 at 9:11pm

  I wouldn't even attempt to match that price but then again you are based in sunny Scotland so the rates might be different. When someone tells me they have received a quote at that price I always question if they will turn up week after week as it sounds more like a fill in job and they soon give up when something better comes alone or their machine packs up.
  
  personally I never break the price down by each task - just go for a total price and tell them it is £nn each month plus chargable extras.
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  Ruairidh MacDonald October 26, 2009 at 9:17pm

  I would never buy one just for one job, but looking to get several large scale jobs down the line to justify buying one.
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  Graeme @ BGS October 26, 2009 at 9:18pm

  Pro Gard has raised a very valid point and something to seriously consider but I have found that if you don't have the ride on you are loosing out to some of the more juicier contracts. The Etesia Bahia is a cracking little machine and you will be amazed at what lawns you can get it on. I try to add two or three ride on jobs on the same day so hence it is a lot more efficient and productive else it is a bloody pain to get it out just for one job.
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  Ruairidh MacDonald October 26, 2009 at 9:24pm

  It frustrates and disheartens me when companies charge that low.
• PRO

  Gary RK October 26, 2009 at 9:27pm

  One 'small' benefit of the etesia bahia was the fact we can get them inside our vans, along with a walk behind mower, strimmer etc using ali folding ramps. That way we could leave the trailers at the yard - and the fact I hate towing trawlers !
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  Graeme @ BGS October 26, 2009 at 10:43pm

  Had my Eteasia Bahia for over four years and never had any problems with it's performance and trust me it had some hammering. However only recently it is encountering fuel stavation which a general service didn't fix!
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  Lawncare-4u.co.uk October 27, 2009 at 10:25am

  PRO-GARD said: I wouldn't even consider buying a machine on the basis of one job.
  
  when I had my ride on mower ( kubota GR21) I was charging out at around £45 ph inc fuel (red derv) (2 years ago).
  
  I found that overall the storage space and unloading/ loading up and maintenance offset the benefits of it as a general tool and the biggest job I used it for I lost to a cheaper contractor. so sold it. I used to find big grass jobs boring as sin and TBH don't miss them atall.B
  
  now. - !! i have been mowing a customers lawn as he had his stolen end of last year. he was weighing up if i was cheaper than buying a new one ! he told me in no uncertain terms. i did the job and invoiced for £45? for 1.5 hrs with my fuel/ride-on(murray 12.5hp). he quieried so (as had not alot of work) submitted to £30 ! as it was local and regular (as i want it to be)
  paid by cheque.........!! anyway he knew my uncle /proffesor and i know his wife from church. so i accepted. :
  
  my fuel , my ride-on (£1000 new). trailer to suit. my fuel= £3.75 3/4 gallon used each visit= 26.25 a visit.
  
  i did it after work. or on a quiet day. it was a nice place to work. - ive had no other work from them (dont want it), even though advising about strimming and he cuts his own hedge , that nearly gave me a puncture !
  
  - im hoping for a recommendation :-) . one day.
  
  so i advise unless your mower is at home and trailer and its ''up the road'' expensive mower i agree (im in shropshire) minimum of £30.00 an hour . with minimum of 2 hrs. - its NOT worth loading, unloading, storage, insurance, fuel,transporting,invoicing .
  
  a 'good' customer gave me my ride-on (as new). - thanks Ian.
  
  ive not been to that customer for 3? months ........hes not phoned me and vice-versa. less my fuel in car= not worth it ..........
  
  after 2 visits i went on ride-on up the road to him........ easier and no car diesel ot trailer collction.
  
  sometimes i did another 1/2 hr on a rough patch and it maid it up to £40.00 so just worth it if i had nothing-else-to do.
  
  people just do-no-realise how much it costs us in : servicing, buying time, fuel and oil, new belts £50.
  cleaning, maintenance , tyres etc etc
  
  i suggest clearly 'thinking' about buying any new-kit this year. ive spent £1500 as i needed a back-pack srimmer/ and blower - which i do use regulary and it prevents white-finger / and 'fatigue'
  
  Let them do it for cost rates= i'd rather paint/clean/fix/build my own house for £10 h/r labour rate.
  
  its not funny people are trying to take advantage even though their mortgages have reduced 50%.
  
  im charging £20 an hour or £40 for chain-saw work. no questions.