Going Rate For Carpet Install
Hello everyone,
I live in the metro Detroit area & had a very high quote for carpet installation. I was just wondering if anyone knew what the going rate per sq yd was just to install standard pad & carpet. Thanks for your time.
How do you know it is a high quote?
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In our area, $3.00 per sq. yd. is standard to lay pad and carpet.
Floor prep, stairs, patterns, etc would be considered extras and add to the price.
[addsig]
Thank you bargain. That is all I needed to know.
Quote:
On 2005-12-14 06:00, bargain76 wrote:
In our area, $3.00 per sq. yd. is standard to lay pad and carpet.
Floor prep, stairs, patterns, etc would be considered extras and add to the price.
Around the same here...
I am in Metro Detroit and pay $2.25 per sq ft.
Do you mean $ 2.25 per sq yard? If so can you give a contact name & number? I would greatly appreciate it.
Thanks again
here in MN its about 5/yd for stairs, everything but haul away...
I have two companies that both charge $1/sqft and that includes everything. (Phoenix)
HERE IS a link of a solar map of USA to see how WHR/sq in per day.
http://www.homepower.com/education/solar_map.cfm
I live in southern part of NJ which would in theory work for how much electricity I use per day.
Thanks Rehabinator for your comments. Anyone else have pros / cons?
STEIN
One thing to note is that thousands of people are living completely off the electric grid now—some who have no other electric source, others live in the middle of big cities—and tens of thousands more are producing renewable energy that they sell back into the grid to reduce their electric bills. One drawback is that most of these people are creative tinkerers, and find pleasure in designing and ‘doing’ all this themselves. They probably wouldn’t be your customers.
It sounds like you’re considering a combined battery/grid-intertied system, which is a plus (remote power during outages) and a negative (batteries always entail more maintenance than the panels). I assume you’re familiar with all the tax incentives as well (http://dsireusa.org/) for solar systems. Often you can double or triple dip them.
I’ll echo what some have already said. Not to be discouraging, but unless you start with a totally efficient, well-designed house, your money is probably better spent in efficiency upgrades. You know the drill, insulation, efficient windows, maximize southern exposure to capture passive solar, etc. Solar panels sure look cool and have a role, but cannot feasibly offset fundamental inefficiencies. Check with your electric utility, too, as some aren’t hip to the technology and put up huge hurdles to installation. My friend down the road had to use a licensed electrician and had to increase his liability insurance to $5 million to satisfy the electric company when he put up his grid-intertied 2 kw system last summer (there were worried his system would ‘island’ during an outage, keep pumping watts in, and put linemen in danger). By law they have to buy your kw, but they don’t have to make it easy for you.
Note also that load management is crucial. When I worked in the field we once installed a big 5 kw solar electric system in Aspen Colorado. When I’d go inside to use the bathroom, I noticed the two mirrors in there were ringed with those big round incandescent 150w light bulbs. Those bulbs alone, when turned on, used up the entire output of the $30,000 solar system. The wealthy homeowners wanted solar power for some reason—I never even actually met them--but resource-wise were essentially slapping a small band-aid over a big wound. The key to an effective renewable system is to reduce overall energy use through efficiency, and to avoid heat-producing electric appliances (water heaters, electric heat, even curling irons). Many systems, esp. the ones designed by the tinkerers and rural refugees, use wood and/or gas for their heat, stoves/ovens, and water heating needs.
As to resale, unless you’re well-connected to the Renewable Energy community, it’s probably not the best bang-for-your-buck investment. Some homes have appeal to the back-to-the-land movement (see Mother Earth News and Home Power mags., for example) and some people will pay a premium for an already-set-up home. To many homebuyers, it will look weird, and may not be a benefit. When marketing, target progressive people who want some independence from the electric grid and fossil fuels, the kind who are buying hybrid cars. Also have flyers that describe how low-maintenance it is, how many pounds of CO2 you save, etc. At the very least you’ll help educate folks about renewables.
As the board chair of a renewable energy 501c3 non-profit (rreal.org), I’m glad to see renewable energy discussed in the context of REI. There are entire planned communities now, here and in Europe, that produce their own power locally, and more are being built. Though it may not be the best use of REI rehab money yet, it’s becoming an important field worth keeping an eye on.
Loon thanks for that reply!!
If I had to make a decision right now, I would hold off on installing solar in this house. Mostly because this is a house I plan to live in for at least a few years, so it really comes to down to reliability and low maintence for me to sold on ths investment.
From my research and from what everyone has said on this board, I really see a better investment in making the home more efficient. I think adding, more weather tight windows and doors will turn on a future homebuyer for the added efficiency and also the look of new windows and doors.
Any updated house seems to sell better than one that is out of date with old appliances, windows, doors, electric, etc. That seems to be conventional.
I also agree that the masses might not think outside of the box and consider a home that uses renewable energy and enjoy the look of solar panels.
Risk vs Reward? Too much risk with capital and possibly turning off homebuyers when I choose to sell. Reward seems to be nil or possiby in the negative numbers from DD.
THANKS everyone!
STEIN[ Edited by steinsmith on Date 02/16/2006 ]
The return on a solar system for a house mirrors the same perception vs reality of the return on installing new windows. It takes a life time just to break even on both when the measuring stick is the difference in your utility bill.