Unconditioned Space On Residential New Construction Bid

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OnPointElectric

New User
Location
Redding
Occupation
C10 Contractor
I am bidding a Residential New Construction Job here in Ca, the home is listed as 2157 sq ft but it has almost 800 sq ft of "unconditioned space" between the garage and attatched shop. Both spaces are attatched to the main structure the 500 sq ft garage has 8 Receptacles and 6 led lights and the shop has 5 receptacles and 3 LED lights plus a 50A 240v receptacle. I bid new construction by the square ft but I generally dont include the unconditioned space. I was hoping to get some feedback on wether or not others are charging for unconditioned space. Thanks
 

Dennis Alwon

Moderator
Staff member
Location
Chapel Hill, NC
Occupation
Retired Electrical Contractor
I never bid by the sq. ft simply because there can be 8 fixtures in every room and who knows what else they may have. If there is a plan then I would just count receptacles, switch, lights etc and then add in service, heat, dryer etc.
 

brantmacga

Señor Member
Location
Georgia
Occupation
Former Child
I don't bid Sq/Ft, but most guys I know here that do it are now basing their price on "under the roof" totals for the same reasons you stated.
 

Little Bill

Moderator
Staff member
Location
Tennessee NEC:2017
Occupation
Semi-Retired Electrician
I just finished a 5900 sq ft house (including basement). They had covered porches in front and back. I had a total of 20 recessed ceiling lights plus wall sconces on the porches. Also had receptacles on the walls plus on a fireplace and in the soffit, and two ceiling fans. These areas would not have been in the sq ft area had I bid that way.
I would suggest either you use the afore mentioned "under roof" plan for sq ft or get a better pricing/bidding plan, such as "per opening".
 

James L

Senior Member
Location
Kansas Cty, Mo, USA
Occupation
Electrician
Per square foot...nah.
As soon as you bid per square foot, you find the UFER on the other end of the house from the service, (2) 20kw furnaces, electric water heater, 2 car chargers, heated bathroom floors, flood lights on every corner, 6 cans and 2 ceiling fans on the back porch....dang
 

brantmacga

Señor Member
Location
Georgia
Occupation
Former Child
I’m against sq/ft pricing but also realize that’s the only form of pricing some builders accept, so you have to work with it. The largest national home builders around me all do sq/ft pricing on electrical. But there are no extras. Just purely by the base plan.


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blueheels2

Senior Member
Location
Raleigh, NC
Occupation
Electrical contractor
I never bid by the sq. ft simply because there can be 8 fixtures in every room and who knows what else they may have. If there is a plan then I would just count receptacles, switch, lights etc and then add in service, heat, dryer etc.
This really is the best way and quick if you spend the time working out your assembly pricing. Count it up, do the math and you are close to done.
 

arits74

Senior Member
Location
dixie arkansas
Occupation
working owner electrician
I'm curious what constitutes basic?

Receps I get. We have spacing requirements for minimum

But lighting and circuits? Who determines basic?
basic lights would be a light in each room and bedroom and bedroom closet,1 water heater,1 dryer,1 ac and furnace,1 range,when they want recessed or disc lights all over then thats extra.most of the customs we do are given a rough price off a blue print they have.most blueprints around here are very basic.when the house is framed up with a roof we walk through with the customer and lay out exactly what they want and its always different from the plan.i have been doing this 30 years and have only had 1 house the customer wanted exactly as the plan showed and it was a small home.
 

James L

Senior Member
Location
Kansas Cty, Mo, USA
Occupation
Electrician
basic lights would be a light in each room and bedroom and bedroom closet,1 water heater,1 dryer,1 ac and furnace,1 range,when they want recessed or disc lights all over then thats extra.most of the customs we do are given a rough price off a blue print they have.most blueprints around here are very basic.when the house is framed up with a roof we walk through with the customer and lay out exactly what they want and its always different from the plan.i have been doing this 30 years and have only had 1 house the customer wanted exactly as the plan showed and it was a small home.
I'm curious, how do you make a price change? Do you keep the basic square foot price and all of its openings, then add all the other lighting on top of the lighting you already had figured by the square foot or do you scrap the square foot price all together and charged by the opening after your walkthrough?
 

arits74

Senior Member
Location
dixie arkansas
Occupation
working owner electrician
I'm curious, how do you make a price change? Do you keep the basic square foot price and all of its openings, then add all the other lighting on top of the lighting you already had figured by the square foot or do you scrap the square foot price all together and charged by the opening after your walkthrough?
we keep basic square footage price and add all the other lighting on
 
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