Pricing your milled timber?

[nooie]

Hello all, I'm wondering how you price your timber? I'm milling mainly Sitka Spruce and Greenheart for a house, but I'd also like to make a bit of cash selling rough sawn timber. How do you guys price your timber? I could take a punt and just sell it cheaper than the builders yard I guess.

[Squaredy]

3 hours ago, nooie said:

Hello all, I'm wondering how you price your timber? I'm milling mainly Sitka Spruce and Greenheart for a house, but I'd also like to make a bit of cash selling rough sawn timber. How do you guys price your timber? I could take a punt and just sell it cheaper than the builders yard I guess.

Well that is the six million dollar question, and at the end of the day you will need to work out what prices work for you.

 

The only tip I can really give is to remember that what you mill will be very different from what builders merchants offer.  
 

Your timber will i guess be unseasoned.  If it is the right species (larch, douglas fir) it will have natural durability.  And you will be able to offer a bespoke service.  Eg if the customer wants beams at 135mm x 60 you can help, whereas the builders merchants will not.

 

Also I suggest always pricing up for the full length.  The customer may ask for many different lengths, but you should charge for the length your logs are.

 

And I haven’t mentioned that of course pricing should be by volume, except possibly for very thin or narrow pieces.