Hedgelaying... rates, costs, profit?

[Daniël Bos]

Hi all,

 

I do a bit of hedgelaying, though not as much as I'd like to due to having moved last year and it takes a while to build a local name/customer base etc.

 

I cut about a mile of hedge last winter. Average of about 20m/day plus a few days of sorting so about 100 days work. I do not start very early if I work close to home as I'll take the kids to school first, so a 9:30 start (just in time to cut a bit od dead wood for the 10:00 stormkettle:thumbup:) and make sure to finish to be home for tea at 6. If I work more than say 20m away I try and get the most out of the daylight.

 

I charge between £7.50/m to £12.00/m depending on length, size, surrounding and number/make of cars on clients drive.

 

Costs of materials, fuel, cake and pies about £3/m, but more on the horrible job I charged £12.00 for as I went throuh about 5 chains for 112 m of hedge.

 

 

 

Anyone else willing to share their hedge-fund figures?

I'm just curious to know if I'm cheap or expensive, work fast or slow etc. I don't know any other hedgelayers around where I live now so have nobody to compare with.

[Hedge Chopper]

Hi all,

 

I do a bit of hedgelaying, though not as much as I'd like to due to having moved last year and it takes a while to build a local name/customer base etc.

 

I cut about a mile of hedge last winter. Average of about 20m/day plus a few days of sorting so about 100 days work. I do not start very early if I work close to home as I'll take the kids to school first, so a 9:30 start (just in time to cut a bit od dead wood for the 10:00 stormkettle:thumbup:) and make sure to finish to be home for tea at 6. If I work more than say 20m away I try and get the most out of the daylight.

 

I charge between £7.50/m to £12.00/m depending on length, size, surrounding and number/make of cars on clients drive.

 

Costs of materials, fuel, cake and pies about £3/m, but more on the horrible job I charged £12.00 for as I went throuh about 5 chains for 112 m of hedge.

 

 

 

Anyone else willing to share their hedge-fund figures?

I'm just curious to know if I'm cheap or expensive, work fast or slow etc. I don't know any other hedgelayers around where I live now so have nobody to compare with.

 

Hello Rover,I'm in the same game-had a good winter last time around and did just over 3500 metres but normally do around 1500 metres a season.

 

You are charging about the same as me,though there are always folks that will do it for nothing(or next to nothing).I'm lucky in the fact that I have a free run on about 70 acres of willow coppice so can source binders very easily which helps alot.

 

I had a cracking lad helping me out last time who does look in here occasionally,most days we averaged about 40-45 metres depending on weather etc but if i'm on my own its probably about 18 metres a day.

 

He did a time lapse of us dropping a bit of hedge,hope the link works

 

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCBts7kXzMs]Hedge Laying - Gedney Drove End - YouTube[/ame]

 

Here's a bit of the finished job.

Edited September 17, 2011 by Hedge Chopper
add pic

[slack ma girdle]

If it is an easy hedge, then i charge by the yard, £4-£7 per yard, if it is a nasty/horrorable hedge then it is a day rate.

Bearing in mind this is for the Pembrokeshire style, so none of your fancy styles in west wales

[Jack]

Excellent stuff Hedge Chopper.

[Graham]

I only lay Midlands and Stafford styles. Mostly Midland on old hedges so vary from £10-15ish. Cut my own stakes and wrappers.

[Hedge Chopper]

Excellent stuff Hedge Chopper.

 

Cheers

[Pete Hart]

very impressed hedge chopper - quality work mate!!

[Essex arborist]

Great video what camera/software did you use to create it?

[Hedge Chopper]

Not sure what software he used to be honest,but the camera was a Canon 10D with a 35-75mm Canon lens at 2 frames/minute.I'd like to do another one sometime.

[Adam Bourne]

wow very impressed......

 

you guys need to stick your rates up, its seems a lot of work and with such a excellent finished product for such a low price????

 

or does it not take that long????