Carpet seam charge

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At what point does an installer charge for seams?
Is there some sort of average $$$ per foot for those of you that add a seaming charge?
The job I am completing tomorrow is that Lees Carpet job mentioned in another topic. The customer expects invisible seams and so far that's what they are getting. I have only a 7X13 walk in closet to do to complete this job. It just got too late tonight to finish. No biggie, as the job is just a mile away from me.
The job is a manufactured home with 118 feet of thick and heavy weight nylon carpet. A cut Berber style.
This job is a whole house replacement because the customer wasn't satisfied with the previous installers seams. As an installer, I was asked to fix them if possible. I thought they were done pretty well and wasn't sure if I could re-do them and make them look better, so I left them alone. They were perfectly acceptable.
OK, so now it's my turn to re-do this entire carpet job and make it better than the nice installation that they initially got. :rolleyes:
OK, so no stops on this one. I'm doing every trick in the book and it's turning out super duper nice. Seams are pretty much invisible including peaking even tho I am stretching hard.
Back to the seaming charges:
I did some computations for reference. It makes charging for seaming quite justified if you go all out to make them nice.
118 feet of carpet, in six rooms if the hallway is counted as a room.
All rooms including the hall are over 12 feet, so all rooms have seams, most are 13 feet or more.
Very close to 90 feet of seams on this job.

That means 180 feet of seams parted with a row finder
That means 180 feet of seam edges cut
That means 180 feet of seam edges hot sealed. (I seal all seams)
Add to that, 90 feet of seams made.
Row finding, cutting, sealing and constructing the seams means I've "handled" or worked over about 630 feet of seam edges.
I even pre-stretched the long seams to eliminate seam peaking (to non believers, this does help considerably) Doorway seams are obviously pre-stretched because its the only way to do them.
I figure this is about 12 to 18 hours more work than a home with 12 foot rooms and only a couple doorway seams............. once more, in addition to a ridiculous amount of seaming because of the layout, the customer is expecting perfection or close to it.

The shop knows I will do better than the previous installer, even tho his looked just fine.
When you have this many lineal feet of seaming and perfection is expected............. what''s fair? I have probably spent more time planning the seam construction and making the seams than stretching and trimming.
Job is worth $1000 buckaroos and I have just over $1700 in time. (not including time cutting loading and delivery or disposal)
I come up with $3.50 per foot
 
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For the seems Hi? We never got paid extra for seems around here , or box steps for that matter , But your case is different . Whack em as much as you can !!
 
At what point does an installer charge for seams?
Is there some sort of average $$$ per foot for those of you that add a seaming charge?
The job I am completing tomorrow is that Lees Carpet job mentioned in another topic. The customer expects invisible seams and so far that's what they are getting. I have only a 7X13 walk in closet to do to complete this job. It just got too late tonight to finish. No biggie, as the job is just a mile away from me.
The job is a manufactured home with 118 feet of thick and heavy weight nylon carpet. A cut Berber style.
This job is a whole house replacement because the customer wasn't satisfied with the previous installers seams. As an installer, I was asked to fix them if possible. I thought they were done pretty well and wasn't sure if I could re-do them and make them look better, so I left them alone. They were perfectly acceptable.
OK, so now it's my turn to re-do this entire carpet job and make it better than the nice installation that they initially got. :rolleyes:
OK, so no stops on this one. I'm doing every trick in the book and it's turning out super duper nice. Seams are pretty much invisible including peaking even tho I am stretching hard.
Back to the seaming charges:
I did some computations for reference. It makes charging for seaming quite justified if you go all out to make them nice.
118 feet of carpet, in six rooms if the hallway is counted as a room.
All rooms including the hall are over 12 feet, so all rooms have seams, most are 13 feet or more.
Very close to 90 feet of seams on this job.

That means 180 feet of seams parted with a row finder
That means 180 feet of seam edges cut
That means 180 feet of seam edges hot sealed. (I seal all seams)
Add to that, 90 feet of seams made.
Row finding, cutting, sealing and constructing the seams means I've "handled" or worked over about 630 feet of seam edges.
I even pre-stretched the long seams to eliminate seam peaking (to non believers, this does help considerably) Doorway seams are obviously pre-stretched because its the only way to do them.
I figure this is about 12 to 18 hours more work than a home with 12 foot rooms and only a couple doorway seams............. once more, in addition to a ridiculous amount of seaming because of the layout, the customer is expecting perfection or close to it.

The shop knows I will do better than the previous installer, even tho his looked just fine.
When you have this many lineal feet of seaming and perfection is expected............. what''s fair? I have probably spent more time planning the seam construction and making the seams than stretching and trimming.
Job is worth $1000 buckaroos and I have just over $1700 in time. (not including time cutting loading and delivery or disposal)
I come up with $3.50 per foot

You want a little cheese with that whine???
The only time I have ever charged for seams is when I'm making an area rug with border work or one that has to be made up. I'm with Nick on this one-pretty much. Your labor charge should cover it.

Daris
 
You want a little cheese with that whine???
The only time I have ever charged for seams is when I'm making an area rug with border work or one that has to be made up. I'm with Nick on this one-pretty much. Your labor charge should cover it.

Daris
You meant beer. right? :D
If the carpet was supplied by the manufacture home maker I'd have 15 feet of seams and a much easier carpet to work with.

We don't charge extra for seams either. But if you can, do it.
I will, but I'm going to Chat with the shop when I turn in a bill.
I was given this job because they know I can do a better job than the guy that did a good job. His work was very acceptable even to my picky eyes. If they want it 'perfect' then I want to get paid for 'perfect'.
I went above and beyond my normal picky work practices to be sure the customer is happy.
 
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I did a bunch those homes with the original carpet. If you dropped hall and bedrooms in one piece, you had about three, 3-foot seams. I have dropped living room, hall and two bedrooms in one piece, a pain, but it eliminated a bunch of seams.
 
Yes, it's a pain because you really have to be careful in your stretching sequence so you don't end up with wrinkles down the road.
On this job, the customer was moving furniture daily as I moved along. They did a great job making rooms ready for me.
 
are you supplying tape and sealer? If so I'd hit them for half the amount usually charged for sewing seams and that would be around six fitty a ft.

Most often times they can order 13'6" goods for that and make them all drops. If not I say charge them.
 
Lucky you!!!!!! Did you work for food?

Daris
Naw, just some raspberry tea.

are you supplying tape and sealer? If so I'd hit them for half the amount usually charged for sewing seams and that would be around six fitty a ft.

Most often times they can order 13'6" goods for that and make them all drops. If not I say charge them.
My costs are less than $20 in seam tape and glue sticks for sealing and another 25 bucks for new carpet metal.

12 hours at $35 for seams is $420
90 feet of seams (your numbers) at $3.25 is $292.50

$6.50 per yard to remove the old carpet (not the pad) and install the new comes to $1022 (also includes re-nailing and adding tackstrip where needed and removing and replacing 20 feet of clamp down metal, plus R&R tackstrip in two doorways tucked to tile in order to shim the new tackstrip to a better transition height.

Hourly with attention to detail as requested on this job I'd be at $1750

Just yardage plus $292.50 for seams is $1314.50
I'll low ball my bill at $1314 and see how it goes.
 
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Sure did. He mentioned to me that he's paying $5 a yard now to the installers. I've been charging them $5.50 for quite a few years now.
.........so in all fairness, I need to raise my rates to $9 :D
 

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