main drain is blocked

[toolaholic]

Originally Posted by jaylyn

hi rick, thanks for being an awesome plumber. I live in michigan and bought my house in summer 2003. I've had my main drain back up on me. I can't remember when it started but i had it happen maybe about once a year until last december 2008. I had it cleaned and just barely over 30 days later it backed up again. No problems until 4th of july of 2009. Now its early november and i'm backed up again. This time i had them run a camera. It was not recorded for me but i did view the line as he went through and pointed out where i had shifts, where i had roots coming in and where the pipe had deteriorated badly. He was almost $100 cheaper than the lowest price i was quoted out of 4 calls. Now his recommendation is to replace my main drain which his price was $2750. Is this fair? I live in the city and do not have a large property. I would think i'm probably 100' out from the city sewer on a guess.
Also, please excuse my ignorance, but how does this line get replaced, does he excavate to under my property? What should i expect property/landscaping wise? Many thanks!

wow that's a deal for you!

[taddeeper]

my prices are higher than anyone who has posted so far. i am flat rate. i don't see how it is unfare or a rip off. my service call is 39 dollars and i clean any single line for 99 dollars. i am also use up front pricing. of coarse my 99 dollar drain is a way for me to get more work. i have never offered a client something they did not need. it does piss me off a little that some guys say i'm too high, who are you to tell me what my service is worth? do you call ford and chevy and ***** that a truck is too much? it's guys that do t/m that i feel are the robbers. they charge for their drive time, they charge the client whil they are talking on their phone, going to lunch and standing in the supply house talking about how much they are going to charge someone. ever notice how a t/m guy always knows what toime he will be off work? it's kinda funny that the job is always done right around 4 pm. btw i charge 260 to pull and reset a toilet.

[MoJourneyman]

I'm T&M, I don't charge for drivetime, I call people back when i'm between calls. but I do charge for a supply house run, I have a stocked 16 foot box truck, so that doesn't happen often.

I charge 70 an hour, with a 20 dollar charge for sewer machine usage. So if the drain takes an hour or less, it's a $90 call.

being up front with your pricing is admirable, but a lot of flat rate companies aren't so courteous about it.

I'd love to make 260 bucks to yank and reset the toilet to clear the drain, but I just charge for how long the call takes, the customer knows what to expect, and so do I.

Originally Posted by taddeeper

my prices are higher than anyone who has posted so far. i am flat rate. i don't see how it is unfare or a rip off. my service call is 39 dollars and i clean any single line for 99 dollars. i am also use up front pricing. of coarse my 99 dollar drain is a way for me to get more work. i have never offered a client something they did not need. it does piss me off a little that some guys say i'm too high, who are you to tell me what my service is worth? do you call ford and chevy and ***** that a truck is too much? it's guys that do t/m that i feel are the robbers. they charge for their drive time, they charge the client whil they are talking on their phone, going to lunch and standing in the supply house talking about how much they are going to charge someone. ever notice how a t/m guy always knows what toime he will be off work? it's kinda funny that the job is always done right around 4 pm. btw i charge 260 to pull and reset a toilet.