How to Bid Brick Pavers

Bricks are bid by the square feet. But be careful when you are bidding a job for your client that you take all factors into consideration.

A client calls you to ask what you charge per square feet for bricks, and you give your basic price. What that client may have not told you is that the brick paver work is not accessible to you with any machines. What if the project is at the bottom of a large hill and your crew would have to use wheel barrows or even worse, buckets? What do you do now?

You had already opened the door for that client to think that the price you gave is applicable to all situations and conditions. Remember, excavating in sandy soil is much faster than digging in clay soil. You must have a good idea of how long it takes one laborer to dig 3′ x 3′ x 8″ – that is 9 square feet and 8″ is the minimum depth for brick pavers. If the soil is a loam, it takes one of my laborers an average of 20 minutes to dig this size area.

Then you must know how long it takes to install and compact the gravel base, you must answer this based on your employees. With mine, the average is about 20 minutes for one laborer.

For my company, I must get $10.50 per square foot to excavate and install the base and sand and lay the bricks. And I keep my overhead low. This number applies to the easy access job and using typical brick pavers, meaning an average size brick – no really big or odd sizes, like the Euro paver.

The client then chooses her bricks and those run $2.00 to $8.50 per square foot.

When the conditions are not easy access or difficult soils, I increase my price based on the additional man hours I think it will take to complete the project.

It is cut throat sometimes, bidding landscape jobs against competitors who are desperate to turn dollars and will bid brick jobs at a price that no one can stay in business for. Don’t fall into this trap. It hurts the client when you cut corners in order to try and make money off a too-low bid. Do the job right, be proud of what you do and expect that your client will value your expertise and quality craftsmanship. Clients consider their landscape projects long-term investments, and so should their landscaper.

Flagstone costs more than bricks

Flagstone patios cost more to install than brick pavers. Two significant variables factor into this cost difference.

First, flagstone is natural stone, not manufactured, and natural stone is quarried and mined. The flagstone material itself costs more than bricks.

Secondly, flagstone, for the most part, are larger pieces than brick and have different thicknesses, unlike brick’s uniformity. Each flagstone piece must be set individually, and the pieces must fit together much like a jigsaw puzzle. This increases the amount of time required to construct a flagstone patio or walk rather than using brick. More labor, more cost.

Brick pavers are uniform in thickness and size; you can set the base level off the bedding sand and start laying bricks fairly quick. Not so for flagstone.

The basic foundation for flagstone is the same as brick pavers – 5 to 6″ of compacted gravel base and bedding sand.

In my opinion, natural stone is more aesthetically pleasing.

I built this flagstone patio in 2007:

Have A Proper Base for Brick Pavers

When installing brick pavers, make sure the installer uses a compacted gravel base.  I recently looked at a brick job that is only three years old, but has a lot of settling. Her brick pavers are wavy, sinking and some are loose.The homeowner informed me that the contractor did not use a compacted gravel base.  The loose bricks can also be a result of improper sanding. Now, this homeowner is completely against using brick pavers to complete the rest of her project.

As a homeowner, protect yourself by knowing the industry standards. The most commonly accepted standard is a minimum of 5 to 6″ of compacted gravel (21AA or its equivalent) for sidewalks and porches. Although porch base depth is determined by the height of the porch. When bricks will sustain vehicular traffic a minimum of 8″ is required.

Slag +/or sand should be used for leveling only, approx. 1 to 2″.

Building a proper base for a brick porch

Building the base for a porch

 

The finished project: A beautiful brick porch

One of My Favorite Trees

Japanese Stewartia

Common name: Japanese Stewartia

Latin Name: Stewartia pseudocamellia

Size: 20′ tall and 15-18′ wide, moderate grower

Stewartia is an uncommon ornamental decidous tree that compliments any garden. Its shape is narrow, more columnar; although it is not a true columnar. It flowers in late summer when most other flowering trees are done.

The single, five-petaled flowers are about the size of a sand dollar and white with yellow centers. But not known for a fragrance.

The flower of Stewartia

The bark of the Stewartia has a reddish-gray camouflage look, some describe it as a lightning bolt pattern. The bark exfoliates when the branches are approximately 2 to 3 inches in diameter. Ask your landscaper to plant a 2 to 3 inch caliper tree and it should be exfoliating.

Stewartia is climatically tempermental though. It grows in Zones 5 to 7, potentially 4 but here in Zone 5 the tree will need winter protection. This protection can be accomplished by its placement in the landscape garden. I tend to plant them on the Eastern side of a house or building, away from winter prevailing winds and the closer winter sun. The closeness and angle of the sun and the resulting snow glare can sunburn the Stewartia. Another option is a burlap wrap for winter.

I did plant Stewartia on the western side of one of my clients’ homes, but the houses are built closer together there and the other large trees planted nearby created a wind buffer.

Landscape Bid Wars

I don’t engage in bid wars. That’s not to say I don’t work within my clients’ budgets. And that’s why when a landscape designer meets with a customer, it is important for that customer to divulge their budget.

A homeowner can expect to spend approximately 10% of their home’s value on landscaping. Some homeowners are able to spend far more than that, desiring to add special landscape elements for their personal enjoyment, such as fountains, waterfalls, gazebos and outdoor fireplaces. Other homeowners need to spend far less and want to add landscape elements to their yard over the years. They begin with a stone patio and some garden beds or a front walk made with brickpavers.

I tailor my designs to the needs and wishes of my clients, taking into consideration their budget. And I work with all size budgets.

There are simple cost-cutting ways to get a design built into place while working within a budget, including changing hardscape materials used or size of plants used. I can offer many suggestions in this way.

What you as a customer want to avoid is coming within your budget by the cutting away of construction details that by their absence will impact the longevity of your project. For instance, a landscaper not using a liner in your pond or not constructing a stable base for bricks. Don’t pay for a retaining wall not built properly that will begin to lean in a couple of years.

I don’t engage in bid wars because my estimate takes into consideration the needs of keeping my business stable and in place for many years. This enables me to guarantee my work.

So, what is it you are paying for when you pay for your landscape project?

First, you are paying for the materials that are installed in your yard: stone, bricks, plants, topsoil, sod, etc and you are paying for the design of your project. Unless, you have purchased the drawing separately.

Secondly, you are paying for me to be on the job, not only building the elements that require expertise, but also supervising the other landscapers and you are paying for those other landscapers to be there. My employees are paid through a payroll system and I pay my employer taxes and workmen’s compensation on their wages. Landscaping is hard work, physically intensive and demanding, employees in the industry in Michigan demand competitive wages, rather than minimum wage. The more skilled the employee the more their wages should be. Lawn maintenance employees are not paid as much as skilled laborers in the landscape construction industry, at least not here in Michigan.

If a landscape laborer gets hurt on your property, are you covered through the company’s workmen’s compensation? Be careful working in a “cash system” in the service industry. We all need to cut corners but this is one way we should not be. The last thing you need is a landscape laborer getting hurt on your property and going after you for his medical care.

And of course, as we all know, you are paying for my company to have a yard to keep its trucks and tools, the trucks and tools, the heavy equipment, diesel fuel, my office and bookkeeper, liability insurance, commercial auto insurance, single business taxes, and all the other hidden costs we all have when operating a small business. Landscapers are no different.

I think we are worth what we charge. I bid competitively – my bid will not necessarily be the highest, but it will never be the lowest. If another contractor comes along and after hearing my bid, guarantees that he/she can build for you (apples for apples) what I have estimated that I can do, for half or for significantly less – there is nothing I can do about it. All I can tell you is, I know what I am doing and will complete your job to my high standards.

But you should ask lots of questions. Make sure if you get that super deal on that brick sidewalk you won’t be calling someone else in a couple of years because all of the bricks on the edges of the walk are falling off or sloping at strange angles or the walk is dipping up and down (I see this all of the time). Ask for references and call them. Be careful.

 

 

Stone Bench Adds Perspective to the Garden

copyright 2008 Mark Kelly

I built this bench this summer for a residence in Detroit. The top block is salt & pepper granite — one piece that I hand picked out of pieces sold as step units.

The legs are two seperate pieces, each chiseled to shape and then epoxied together.

The top is epoxied to the legs. I used landscape block adhesive for the expoxy.

Each leg rests on a 10″ deep compacted base of 21AA gravel footings, with sand between the gravel and legs for leveling.

The bench was placed inside a 6′ x 5′ landscape garden bed. It is mulch that you can see beneath the bench.

The price of a custom built bench depends on the material, the size and the location of its placement.

My benches run from 500$ to 1500$.

Tips, Ideas & Advice on Residential Landscaping

Hi- My name is Bob Porter. My purpose for creating and writing this blog will be to share tips, ideas and advice on residential landscaping. I have been in the landscape industry since 1981 — and am the owner of my own custom residential landscape construction and design company in Oakland County, Michigan.

Please feel free to leave me your questions and comments.