what is a fair price for a diver to charge

[fstbttms]

I paid my top diver $106K last year for hull cleaning in the SF Bay Area. But you guys go ahead and work two or three jobs and complain how there's no way to make a living in the water...

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

I paid my top diver $106K last year for hull cleaning in the SF Bay Area. But you guys go ahead and work two or three jobs and complain how there's no way to make a living in the water...

Yeah, that’s SF and surrounding area where money flows out of peoples pores.
Try Bodega Bay and north where all you have is a bunch of broke fishermen and broke wannabe yachtspeople. They wait until the bottom is so bad, all zincs rotted off, sponge growth like mad, barnacles, even scallops growing on one dudes boat!!!
When I tell them it’s going to be by the hour at $90 hr. they just about puke.
The whole time I worked there I only had two scheduled regular customers and they would only go for every six months. Trying to get them to sign up for every four months was like pulling teeth.
I haven’t dived in BB for years now, not worth it.
When I got fouled prop calls during crab season, I used to get $150 to go from Santa Rosa, to Bodega Bay, do the job which took about 1 minute, and back to SR, clean my gear. Now it’s at least $250 and they won’t pay that.
I let another good-ol-boy crab guy (who used to be an urchin diver) do all the fouled props for $50 bucks each. He can have them all!

 

[fstbttms]

Yeah, that’s SF and surrounding area where money flows out of peoples pores.
Try Bodega Bay and north where all you have is a bunch of broke fishermen and broke wannabe yachtspeople. They wait until the bottom is so bad, all zincs rotted off, sponge growth like mad, barnacles, even scallops growing on one dudes boat!!!
When I tell them it’s going to be by the hour at $90 hr. they just about puke.
The whole time I worked there I only had two scheduled regular customers and they would only go for every six months. Trying to get them to sign up for every four months was like pulling teeth.
I haven’t dived in BB for years now, not worth it.
When I got fouled prop calls during crab season, I used to get $150 to go from Santa Rosa, to Bodega Bay, do the job which took about 1 minute, and back to SR, clean my gear. Now it’s at least $250 and they won’t pay that.
I let another good-ol-boy crab guy (who used to be an urchin diver) do all the fouled props for $50 bucks each. He can have them all!

Last week I got two calls from Bodega Bay boat owners. One of them had two powerboats, 40' and 49'. I initially turned him down because we don't service Bodega Bay. Then he asked me what it would take to get us up there. I told him that I'd send one of my divers up for $1300 and get both boats cleaned. Haven't heard from him since.


BTW- Are you not a member of the hull divers Facebook group?

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

Last week I got two calls from Bodega Bay boat owners. One of them had two powerboats, 40' and 49'. I initially turned him down because we don't service Bodega Bay. Then he asked me what it would take to get us up there. I told him that I'd send one of my divers up for $1300 and get both boats cleaned. Haven't heard from him since.


BTW- Are you not a member of the hull divers Facebook group?

I am not.
I’m actually not doing any hull work at the moment.
My other business (completely non diving related) keeps me very busy.

 

[wgw04024]

These are really, really wise words. SCUBA and industrial work do NOT go together. A freakishly large number of deaths in commercial diving happen while the victim is working on SCUBA. It is a mistake. If you choose to go ahead, make sure you have a dressed standby diver, and you have comms. Its not worth the handful of bucks you will make.

I assume the poster has read the last few years of this? ..... Accidents & Incidents