# Plain old field mowing



## BWfarms (Aug 3, 2015)

A guy requested a quote from me to Bush Hog roughly 8-10 acres. He was looking at buying the land from his in-laws and said it was great grass for horses. I said I don't like quoting things sight unseen but threw out $1500 depending on lay out of land and what was there (short, tall, weeds, saplings, rocks, you get the gist). He accused me of highway robbery, that it was just gouging. He got a quote from the guy who was mowing it for his in laws and 3 other guys. All were $2000 plus. He apologized and I explained travel, fuel, time, and wear and tear on my equipment, risking things like a punctured tire or mangled mower from hidden treasures they forgot about. I then found out the whole place was broom straw and I told him that wasn't good grass for anything and would take even longer to mow. Told him to light a match to it. He has since realized that I wasn't trying to take advantage of him. I think I under priced myself, $500 is healthy change.

What are your current rates?


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## JD3430 (Jan 1, 2012)

I always go look at the job whenever possible due to the "BS factor" of most customers.
My goal is $125/hr for "normal" field mowing or light brush. 
If it's got saplings, honey locust, Osage orange, etc., then I tweak it a little higher. I also charge from the minute I leave my shop. I can mow 8-10 acres in say 3 hours going slow and not leaving a lot of stragglers. Throw in 1/2 hr of drive time and it would be 3.5x$125 or about $450.


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## slowzuki (Mar 8, 2011)

I don't mow anything I can't see in the spring laying flat. People just don't have an eye for what wrecks bushhogs and tires.
Edit I should add to this I used to do rough cut mowing regularly for maybe 5 years. The short of it was people living next to overgrown areas use the space as a garbage dump for appliance parts, car parts, mattresses, rocks, cinder blocks, etc. If you can find a proper field away from residential areas you might be ok.


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## BWfarms (Aug 3, 2015)

My philosophy is I work by the job, nobody needs to know what I make per hour. If a lawn company can charge $40 to mow a 1/4 acre yard. Then that's $160 per acre. It shouldn't matter if I'm operating larger equipment and get it done faster.

I wouldn't commit to a contract until I saw what I was dealing with and made the disclaimer that it was a ballpark. I don't have to work, but if I'm going to do it, I'm going to be paid well.


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## JD3430 (Jan 1, 2012)

BWfarms said:


> My philosophy is I work by the job, nobody needs to know what I make per hour. If a lawn company can charge $40 to mow a 1/4 acre yard. Then that's $160 per acre. It shouldn't matter if I'm operating larger equipment and get it done faster.
> I wouldn't commit to a contract until I saw what I was dealing with and made the disclaimer that it was a ballpark. I don't have to work, but if I'm going to do it, I'm going to be paid well.


I feel the same way, but I'd get laughed off a property if I asked $1,500 to mow 8-10 acres. I mean, that's $400-500 bucks an hour with my 15' mower. All the competition in my area is in the 125/hr range.
If you can get $1,500, that's terrific. 
I thought the idea was to share our current rates, so that's what I did.


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## PaMike (Dec 7, 2013)

slowzuki said:


> I don't mow anything I can't see in the spring laying flat. People just don't have an eye for what wrecks bushhogs and tires.
> Edit I should add to this I used to do rough cut mowing regularly for maybe 5 years. The short of it was people living next to overgrown areas use the space as a garbage dump for appliance parts, car parts, mattresses, rocks, cinder blocks, etc. If you can find a proper field away from residential areas you might be ok.


Heck my parent's tenants leave aluminum baseball bats in my field, and they only have 4 weeks between cuttings to get them in there...


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## slowzuki (Mar 8, 2011)

I hit a drone once with the mower! Someone had lost in in the hay field.


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## somedevildawg (Jun 20, 2011)

BWfarms said:


> I don't have to work, but if I'm going to do it, I'm going to be paid well.


If I didn't have to work for income, I wouldn't work for income.....I'd do it for free depending on the person and circumstances of course


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## JD3430 (Jan 1, 2012)

If I went by acre, I'd be like $25-$30/acre on field grass. Maybe $35-$40 on brushy stuff.


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## Hayjosh (Mar 24, 2016)

So I'm wanting to get into some custom brush hogging and am trying to figure out pricing. Wondering if I should charge by time, clock starts when I leav my place. A guy wants to know how much it would cost to mow a one acre lot he has that is 6 miles from my house.

Drive time there would be 20-30 min. I have a 5' mower. If the grass is not to tall I mow 6 mph. I figure I'd be able to mow about 2 acres/hr. If grass is taller and I have to go slower then it takes more time obviously.

Or do I charge a minimum of 1 hr mowing + drive time?


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## hillside hay (Feb 4, 2013)

Probably a $200 minimum. Roads eat tires


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## cjsr8595 (Jul 7, 2014)

smaller tractor, 6 foot hog, 50.00/hr, 2 hr minimum plus transpo.


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