Best source for tanks

[cstreu1026]

Ok, so I have determined that it is best to buy tanks from the LDS. Which is fine by me because I prefer to support local buisnesses rather than chains or internet sales. Sometimes it does make better sense to buy online, but in this case it definitely does not. Now another question or two. Is an Al 80 the best way to go? should i go bigger? And what shoudl I expect to pay for O2 cleainging for a Nitrox tank. I think that will be the first one I purchase because I would feel more comfortable using a tank that I know has been maintained properly and I would feel better about giving my tank to the LDS for a nitrox fill knowing that it is not contaminated since they do partial pressure filling (i believe that is the right term).

 

[MikeFerrara]

jamiei once bubbled...
how much do you have to bring in an hour just to break even, not paying yourself of course. This is really an straight out question, i'm not leading you into anything. If you do a quality vis for $10, then I applaud you. Mine charges $25 with no air and they don't even want to touch an old steel one like mine. They say its junk even though its still well in hydro and has had several inspections from respected shops (not theirs). Leads me to wonder about their integrity... And this is the shop I like even... The other one doesn't even fill tanks... but he'll rent you a full one (or close to full) for $12 while the other shop rents them for $7.

In reality the best way to charge for a visual would be byt time rather than a flat fee but I don't know if divers would go for that. Labbor really needs to bring in $50 or $60 an hour or your better off spending your time doing something else. Needless to say The market doesn't support that. That's why TV shops have a minimum service charge. $25 dollars for a tank in good shape is more than anyone around here is getting. We will visual anything that's in hydro. If it needs cleaning before visual like a rusty steel tank we inform the owner of the cost and risk before we do it. To be honest we charge what we charge because of what the market is not because that's what we should charge. The situation is the same with most dive shop services. I can produce the numbers to justify doubling the cost of an OW class but when other are charging $150 who will buy it. As long as shops are using equipment sales to pay for everything else things will be out of wack. Everything a dive shop does is designed to get you in to buy equipment. This is backwards for sure because time is what costs as there is only so many hours in a day. If you give it away you can't make it up. The services that take time are also the ones that require expertise and those are the things that should cost. Handing someone a mask is a no brainer and you could do that many times in a day while there is only time to do a few reg rebuilds or teach so many classes.

I think things are in a transition such that due to the internet the equipment margins are going away and nothing else ever had a margin. The fact that I understand it doesn't matter because the other shops are being run the way the equipment manufacturers tought them to run a shop. The current model WAS designed by the manufacturers and it serves them well.

 

[jamiei]

Okie, I'm not on the starship enterprize... I can't just beam myself over to someone's house 15 miles away. Did you fiqure that in? People don't come to my shop to have thier washing machine installed. Usually this involves moving the washing machine into the house, removing it from the packaging, and oftentimes includes pickup/delivery of the washing machine. Average round trip is 15 miles so thats about $2 for gas(not counting wear and tear of course), 20 minutes of drive time, and more like 30 - 45 minutes when you consider unpackaging and moving it into place. So thats $35 - $2 ga = about $33 an hour. Anybody can say it only takes 15 minutes to install a washing machine, but have you ever timed yourself from moving it in the house, unboxing, setting it in place, hooking up the hoses, testing it out, and going over the basics of operation with the customer not to mention the 15 minutes that it takes to complete paperwork with them. As I mentioned, often this does include pickup and delivery and that adds an additional 45 minutes. Call a plumber and ask him how much he'll charge you to do that. Heck, call a plumber and ask him how much he'll charge you to come to your house flush your toilet. You can pick at my prices all day long. They are the best in the area by far. I average $25/hour. That is well below the average for my area and the work I do. My customers think I'm wonderful, give me tips, ask me for dinner, etc. How many shop owners can say that? Again, its easy to say it only took me about 15 minutes to install my washing machine. You're doing it on your time and you don't figure in the trip to pick it up, that you have to install the cord for the dryer which itself takes 15 minutes or that you bought the wrong plug and have to take it back and exchange it. Usually what happens is the customer has bought the wrong plug and has a 35 year old receptacle. I have a new receptacle just in case and install it for them for the cost of the recep because it saves me time and a trip. How long would it take you to change this out? Did you figure this in? Most likely, you didnt because if you did you should go into the business if you can do it in 15 minutes.... you would make a killing.

 

[chris_b]

Do you suppose this might be a new avenue of revenue for scuba shops? House-call fills? Charge a premium, but have a van with a big compressor/banks in it, and fill tanks in the customer's driveway/garage... or hire Jamie (with his expertise at moving large objects into homes) to haul a portable compressor into the customer's living room so he doesn't even need to leave his la-z-boy to get his tanks filled!

 

[Adam Samansky]

On my schedule, I'd absolutely consider a house-call fill. I'm usually out of the house for a good 10-12 hrs/day and the wife also lead a busy life - not to mention that my doubles weigh as much as she does... If the prices were reasonable, I'd sure pay for it! Heck, I could have him meet me at the boat/beach!

Adam

 

[MikeFerrara]

jamiei once bubbled...
My customers think I'm wonderful, give me tips, ask me for dinner, etc. How many shop owners can say that?

I can. Cusomers buy/offer dinner all the time. I can't drink all the beer they buy and I have a house full of visitors almost every night. Oh...I didn't mention the other things like chilli and homemade pies and stuff.

Now you know how it feels. I don't drive a half hour to service equipment but I have to spend huge sums of money in rent and insurance and I still get to burn up vehicles like they were going out of style. I could sure tell stories about paper work. In diving there is a form and/or release for everything including visual inspections that I have to keep for like a thousand years. Oh and I know what plumbers cost but better yet the outfit that does some of my compressor service charges me $60/hour from the time they leave the shop 5 hours away and they mark up parts 100% and you guys think we charge too much for air. I avoid that charge only by having stuff done on my regularly scheduled anual (when they are in the area). Service at any other time costs me $600 before they touch a thing. Of course i do some myself but not everything. By the way that compressor shop is the best and most reasonable I have found. The others are real crooks.