Hiya guys! A lot of knowledgeable people here in the comments with a wealth more business experience than myself. Great to hear all the feed back! Some people have highlighted loads more "business expenses" i didn't even consider. A few examples are; Tools wearing out Van MOT + maintaining the van Phone (Didn't take this into account when breaking down the costs) But these are all very vaild costs that as self-employed workers we should try to consider. After looking at these costs and a few others, it would probably double the original cost mentioned in the video. Again, appreciate the knowledge shared on here in the comments, not only for myself, but other viewers who read the comments and people who watch the video. The main reason i started YT was to create a community where information was shared between us all. Very aware there's so much to learn regarding thr business side of being a construction worker. We're taught to be builder's, joiner's, or whatever trade. Not often taught about business. We're construction workers at the end of the day😂 Hope you guys are well. ITB weekly to commence soon... ish
Conversation we were having last week.. we learn our trades and strive to do a good job and do right by the customer. College taught us how to add up calculate quantities of materials. And nobody told us how to price or actually make any money 😅
Izzy - Loving your stuff mate, but never forget that lost days to weather are an overhead too, probably your biggest after the van running costs, unless you have another income stream when you can't be on the tools. A word to the wise from a roofer 42 years in the game, don't fight shy of putting your labour charge up across the board to part accommodate lost time to the elements. Sensible people, who want a good job done, will pay sensible money. Keep grafting!!
The big test for me when watching videos is would I be happy to have the person working at my house. The answer in your case is most certainly YES. Great workmanship and a delight to have around. Take care , good to see you back.
As a builder for over fifty years I enjoyed repairing chimney stacks, especially in summer, sometimes you could just lift the first half a dozen courses off that’s virtually laid on dust , we found the best way to deal with damaged stacks was to take it down to solid bricks and mortar and rebuild them. They will last a very long time and not need repointing 😊
This young man is an excellent tradesman and considering his age, knows exactly what he's doing to make a first class job of anything he attempts. Very knowledgeable and his attention to detail is a first class example to other trades people. I wish he would travel out Retford to build me some brick gate pillars on my grade 2 building....
I’m just starting out doing jobs around my area, bricklaying and land maintenance work etc. Been at it 3 years and have brought a truck! More vids like this would be amazing to see over the business side of things. I’d like to see you back in action on your own jobs as the graft you do is impressive 👍🏼
Great video, Izzy. As a "ball park figure" I was taught that the running costs of a small business were X3 the workman's wage. ie, if a man earns £20/hr then the running costs were roughly a further £60/hr. (This was based on a small company with added personel in the background, secretery, etc).
@@IzzytheBricky i have this thought that anyone with a real talent, which you undoubtedly do, should always work for themselves for some reason. I'm glad to hear working for others works for you though mate and you're a good man for doing the job for your grandma. you're a credit to her.
good to see you, been a while. I too hate pricing thats why I just work for other contractors, doing the work then having to price jobs is too much hassle.
I wondered where you had gone never seem to get your videos anymore, but I suppose you don’t put up videos that often if you are working for a company, good luck in whatever you decide to do.
You should definitely mark up your overheads if you want to ensure profitability. Even if it’s just a small amount. Your labour doesn’t need marking up, but I’d definitely ensure that your overheads have some ‘fat’ on them at least.
Hi Izzy. Mix i recommend for Flaunching chimney top. 1 cem, 1 lime 2soft builders sand. 1 Sharp sand.1 Grano chippings. They all combine to make a long lasting topping. I also do a bit of a bullnose on the front sloping upwards. To stop the sharp wdge breaking up at edges. Take care mate
Good break down, although you should consider dividing your monthly expenses by how many days you are available to work in a month. I.e by 20 or 24 if you work Saturdays. 28 if Sundays too.
Hiya mate, appreciate that!, never heard of using that before! But know you lads so things different to over here! Hope your well! Currently sat in the van waiting for the rain to stop!
Izzy mate good to see a vid again.how was the big holiday.you pritty much on the Money I charge .but we do pay double that on scaffolding.they charge us twice the price in Yorkshire probably 600 for that scaf👍
Nice video. I was wondering if you go back after a few days/week to pointer the chimney? In the netherland if im not mistaken after building a wall they do the pointering after a few days/weeks.
Don't forget when you consider costs you incur, when you get paid then that's taxed, so you should add it onto your price of things you pay out of your own pocket to turn up, to make sure you aren't out of pocket!
Forgot the cost of the van and its maintenance, the cost of the tools, Consumable costs like office, ppe etc..., time taken to quote, fetch materials, there's loads to consider. Including warranty returns etc..
£636 to have a 3rd of a chimney taken down and rebuilt. It is crazy how much things cost. I know people will say it costs what it costs but it is crazy and it will only go up. This is the trouble with the system. Prices go up but not down and then people dont have money to apend on their home so their home deteriorates and the cycle gets worse.
Exactly this the increase in hse legislation means even if you are working on a domestic property you still have to abide by all the standard rules for commercial works, although unlikely if you were subject to a spot check you would be thrown into the fire for not erecting a scaffold. More so if you have guys working for you
You work 30 days a week? Divide it by 20 instead. Also, work out depreciation on the van and tools as they will cost money to replace when they wear out.
Hello Izzy, hreat video as always. Im got to rebuild a stack quite soon local to macc, its very similar to that but thd cost is 950 +vat. All prices were similar i got. Day rate has to be at least 300 to 350 otherwise when you've taken off the costs you've mentioned you're working for not a lot. But thats only if you're good with a great reputation, which you have. Just my opinion. Atb Izzy 👍
Thanks so much mate I really appreciate the comment. You're probably right with the DW, each to their own. Think every trade person needs to take into account their own running costs and go from there! Hope your doing well mate!
Don't forget your holiday pay and bank holidays!! and divide it by 48 weeks not 52. i run my own joinery business and use to think my overheads were v little until i broke it down to the hour, was robbing myself for a few years at the start.
Mice one Izzy. Looking after your Nan. LBC's cost a feckin fortune and they're all like bananas! In South West we have an alternative manufacturer doing a LBC Heather lookalike, they are good bricks and blend well. Guess you had LBC imperial sized bricks (based on age of chimney) and the new are LBC metric, minor size difference but does make a difference as you found out! Other costs you might need to include are your mobile phone costs as its a tool!
Thanks so much for the comment mate! Definitely the worst brick going those LBC's! Another oversight regarding phone and that! Daily cost is looking more like 30 quid after reading though these comments 😂!
I had my entire weathered chimney rebuilt in Yorkshire (looked exactly the same as this one) but out of engineering bricks 2 yrs back. Cost me £1800. Looks stunning now.
Good man. You sound a bit apologetic, but that’s what things cost today. I’d pay that easily IF ITS A GOOD JOB DONE. Having watched you a bit I’d trust you on my house. Crack on kid.
Perhaps I missed it in the comments, but unless you want to work until you drop, something towards a “pension”. If you go down the standard pension route at least the tax man chips in.
No two jobs are alike when it comes to pricing. I would price on how much aggravation the job would cause as a formula in my head. Such as how difficult was the location, did I like the client, how close could I get my truck and equipment to the job, how much wear and tear was this job going to cause to me and my equipment etc. that’s why I’d never discuss hourly rates with customers, I’d just quote a price based on a feeling and formula in my head. And I did quite nicely thanks.
I would have put a Flue Liner in for the gas fire whilst I was up there. Old Chimneys are leaky for gas fumes. Good job and charge a grand next time to cover your guarantee, just in case.
You should always charge for waste aswell as your paying out to get rid of other people's waste from the job so you should price for waste so the customers are paying to get rid of there own waste as you missed this out in your video when you was running down your prices good job mate looks well
Very good point. Also the van needs maintenance and needs replacing every few years. Accountancy, website fees if you have one, tools and consumables, VAT will be a reality eventually. Not to mention you won't get every job you quote for so your time spent quoting and invoicing needs considering. This is why running a business isn't for everyone, most people are uncomfortable asking for the amount of money you need to charge to stay in business, and find it hard justifying their costs when the inevitable "how much?" rears it's head.
If you don't have a drill or angle grinder to take those bricks out you sometimes can use a hand saw which works really well as long as the mortar isn't too hard and the risk of damage is minimal.
You forgot, van road tax , van running costs and maintenance, MOT. costs and associated work, also you should ALWAYS add a percentage to materials ( you sorted them out, you sourced them ) all this takes time and time is money. NEVER DO ANYTHING FOR NOTHING, unless it’s your Gran .
Hoya mate thanks so much for these things. Another oversight on my behalf. Just dropped 500 quid again on my van! I'll take this into account next time!
you would divide insurance monthly cost by 20 days; if you only work weekdays as 4 weeks x5 is 20 obviously if you work Saturdays account for that but itll be 24, also adding 30-40% profit on smaller jobs, as the money may be less and the percentage may not always work out worthwhile profit wise if you account for time spent, this is if your paying yourself per hr not day rate - also id look into setting up a ltd company as this will allow better tax relief ie, setup the business in your name and then you can claim dividends rather than taking a wage this greatly lowers your tax payments , this is different in terms of me as i work from a workshop so i have a set rate per hr of work that has already accounted for overheads and profit i also charge 10% handling fee on materials
Nope, it costs to run a business 365 days a year. You need to be allowing for costs every single day. You don't pay road tax only on the days you drive the van, you don't pay insurance only on the days you work, you pay these costs 365 days a year.
@@stuartcraigon2003 i mean thats like saying i need a length of box for a job which is 7.5m but i only need 1 metre of box for the job you gonna charge for the length or what was used? No one works 365 days a year lets be honest, it only works out at about 2 months a year youd need to find the extra money for, if you price your jobs right you can just pay it from the profit
Mate come to Australia, most brickies here pick numbers out the air and charge what they like, so much work they can pick and choose their jobs, they do a lousy job, every job needs to be acid washed to clean off the smeared cement. A an example 2 work friends had new houses built, one had all the brickwork condemned and, builder said it was "to code" had to pay for an independent inspector and threaten legal action, cement between bricks varied between 2mm to 10mm. The other paid for upgraded bricks but the job was so bad, complained to the building inspector (they are all employed by the builder!!) and again threatened legal action, the builder ended up rendering the house.
@@IzzytheBricky yes I think your pricing is too cheap if I’m being honest. Your a quality bricklayer and out perform many others by the looks of it - you can demand a premium for that! A quality tradesmen is worth every penny if you want the job done right! I reckon you should be charging about £300 per day minimum. Just my thoughts. I’m an electrician by trade but do put my hand to most things and electricians now getting £600 per day minimum in London areas maybe lots more. Bricklayers in south east £300 per day minimum. You supply your own equipment that you’ve bought too don’t forget that. Yeh I think you’re worth £300 per day minimum! You work hard and get lots done. Your self employed maybe working for another firm charging the prices you said about as a sub contractor but for Joe Bloggs deffo £300 per day minimum.
Mortar to steel, no deal. That cap is going to crack the crown, allowing water in and starting the whole deterioration process all over again. Wrap the top of the pipe just below the crown with Ceramic wool insulation. As for your cost breakdown, the way you did the insurances should have been divided by the days you work in a month, not by the amount of days in the month. Otherwise, at the end of the month, you're going to be short. I put in an allowance for breakage for the roof tiles. If I didn't rebuild the whole chimney, I would at least repoint it from the roofline up. That repointing mortar is too strong for those bricks and they will spall. And aesthetically it will look much better. Sorry for the rant. I have been doing chimney and fireplace restoration exclusively for the last 32 years.
Hi mate, sparky here. Don’t forget to add in a % for not having things like holiday pay, sick pay, paternity leave and employer pension contributions. General public doesn’t understand the big gap between what you charge and what ends up in your pocket
I would have been tempted not to put the top layers back on. The stack height was probably built to suit solid flue back in the day, gas fire would not need the height. Plus, would the flue need checking with a gas safe engineer to prove no flue leakage ?? It had been disturbed 😳!
Hiya buddy appreciate the comment! Only built it cos that's how the boss wanted it😂💪 and yes your right there...but, she doesn't actually have a gas fire anymore, it's all been disconnected and boarded over😊
That mortar does nothing to the breathability my friend.What it will do is potentially damage the brick because of its strength of too much cement content which would more likely explain why your brickwork was discovered damaged