Chimney & fireplace
Chimney Inspection Pricing Calculator
Prices inspections, where the three defined levels justify three prices.
Result
Overhead and margin are taken as shares of the selling price, which is why the cost is divided rather than multiplied. Adding 15% to cost does not produce a 15% margin. Gross profit is what is left after the cost of doing the job. Overhead comes out of that: the building, the office wages, the vans, insurance, software and advertising. A healthy gross margin still loses money if overhead is larger.
Get a Free Business AuditHow the calculation works
Direct cost divided by one minus overhead and margin together. The thing that makes inspection pricing coherent in this trade is that the levels are defined rather than arbitrary, so the pricing can follow them transparently: a Level 1 covering readily accessible portions, a Level 2 adding concealed accessible areas and a video scan, and a Level 3 involving component removal. Each is a different amount of time and equipment, which is a defensible basis for three prices.
What moves the number
- Which level, since each has a different scope and time.
- Whether a video scan is included, which requires equipment and adds time.
- Travel, which on a dispersed service area is a large share of a short visit.
- Whether the inspection is bundled with a sweep.
Where this one goes wrong
Pricing inspection at or below cost to win the repair work is a trap, because it trains the business to find work rather than to inspect, and the obvious conflict damages the credibility the service depends on. An inspection is a professional opinion and it is worth charging for as one, including when the finding is that nothing needs doing. That is also the most valuable report you can give a customer and the one that builds the relationship. Bundling a Level 1 with a sweep is reasonable and common; giving away a Level 2 with a video scan is giving away the expensive part.
Before you quote
- Price the three levels separately and explain the difference.
- Charge for the inspection even when the finding is that nothing is needed.
- Do not give away the video scan, which is the equipment-intensive part.
Where the rules come from
Questions
About this calculator
Why are there different prices for chimney inspections?
Because there are three defined levels with different scopes. Level 1 covers readily accessible portions, Level 2 adds concealed accessible areas and a video scan of the flue, and Level 3 involves removing components. Each takes a different amount of time and equipment, which is why three prices is honest rather than arbitrary.
Should a free inspection be trusted?
Treat it carefully. An inspection given away to win repair work creates an obvious incentive to find repairs, and it devalues the professional opinion being offered. A company that charges for the inspection and is willing to report that nothing needs doing is giving you something more useful.
Is an inspection included with a sweep?
A Level 1 commonly is, and that is reasonable since the sweep technician is looking at the flue anyway. A Level 2 with a video scan is separate, because it requires specific equipment and significantly more time, and bundling it free is giving away the valuable part.
The formula
price = direct cost / (1 - overhead% - margin%)
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How to use this calculator
- Labour cost ($). Burdened: wages plus tax, insurance and the vehicle, not the hourly wage.
- Materials cost ($). Enter your own figure; the page starts at $65.
- Other direct costs ($). Permits, disposal, equipment hire, subcontractors.
- Overhead rate (%). Overhead as a share of revenue. Work it out from last year's accounts.
- Target net margin (%). Enter your own figure; the page starts at 15%.
The result updates as you type, so you can try a figure, see what it does to price to quote, and change it back. Nothing you enter is sent anywhere or saved.
A worked example
These are the figures the calculator opens with. Every number in the results column below is produced by the same calculation the page runs, so you can follow it through before putting your own figures in.
What goes in
| Input | Value |
|---|---|
| Labour cost | $230 |
| Materials cost | $65 |
| Other direct costs | $0 |
| Overhead rate | 22% |
| Target net margin | 15% |
What comes out
| Result | Value |
|---|---|
| Price to quote main result | $468.25 |
| Direct cost | $295 |
| Overhead recovered | $103.02 |
| Net profit | $70.24 |
| Gross margin | 37.0% |
| Markup on direct cost | 58.7% |
Quote $468.25 to cover $295 of direct cost, recover $103.02 of overhead and leave $70.24 of net profit. That is a 58.7% markup on cost.
How sensitive the answer is
Holding everything else steady and changing only labour cost, this is what happens to price to quote. It is worth knowing which of your inputs the answer actually hinges on, and which barely move it.
| Labour cost ($) | Price to quote |
|---|---|
| $115 | $285.71 |
| $173 | $377.78 |
| $230 example above | $468.25 |
| $345 | $650.79 |
| $460 | $833.33 |
Every other input is held at the example value while this one changes, which is not how a real job behaves. Treat it as a guide to which number matters most, not as five separate quotes.
What each figure means
- Labour cost ($)
- Burdened: wages plus tax, insurance and the vehicle, not the hourly wage.
- Materials cost ($)
- A money amount, starting at $65.
- Other direct costs ($)
- Permits, disposal, equipment hire, subcontractors.
- Overhead rate (%)
- Overhead as a share of revenue. Work it out from last year's accounts.
- Target net margin (%)
- A percentage, between 0 and 80, starting at 15%.
What the results tell you
| Result | What it is |
|---|---|
| Price to quote | The headline result. A money figure. |
| Direct cost | A money figure. |
| Overhead recovered | A money figure. |
| Net profit | A money figure. |
| Gross margin | A percentage. |
| Markup on direct cost | A percentage. |
Estimating is the easy part
The jobs you never hear about cost more than the ones you mis-measure. BDEVY builds the marketing, systems and automation that bring them in.