Total cost to Mr. Doof for the cast iron install/testing came to:
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It is is important to note that I (with help from Sweetie-pie):
1 - obtained permit my self for $190
2 - excavated the soil
3 - cut and removed driveway sections (4 hr concrete saw rental was $80)
4 - back filled soil upon passing test
5 - am now going to redo the 9 ft^3 concrete for the driveway ($130 for the premixed/just add water type)
6 - call the trash company for my once-allowed-for-free-big-trash pick up (old clay pipe/cracked concrete)
7 - did plant and groundcover install yesterday, irrigation reinstalled too (free woodships from McLlaren Park)
Why the cast iron? Looking at SF building codes, I am unsure why as well. I see parts that say clean-out and vents have to be cast, but ABS is allowed in other parts. Perhaps because the interior line was cast going to clay (which is what fractured in 3 places) and you have to hook cast iron to cast iron, or because we dug a trench that would be uncovered by concrete, or because SF has earthquake/soil updates to the code that I missed that explains things?
I simply told the plumbing company that I wanted the job to pass inspection, that would be most resistant to plant roots, environmental factors, had greatest life expectancy, and would resist damage from a bad refill or a knucklehead driving onto the dirt on top of it.
Was I ripped off? Did they really need to use cast for everything? I am unsure but I don't think so. I like to pretend everyone isn't a scumbag and do not seek to rip people off.
This $2000 covered 4 hours of solid work by two men....3.5 hrs last Wednesday and /5 hr for the inspection the following day. When they came out to scope the line, they told us they would charge $150 per hour per man. When I said I'd dig out the line and pull the permit, etc., there was some doubt in the eyes. But no additional work on their part was needed, so he set up the install date, and told me to arrange the inspection for the following day (which I did).
For similar job up the street, they paid $8000 two years back. And the house down the hill with way more work, including going out under the street (and bringing in SF City Public Works for that part), they got $16,000 bill. These houses did none of their own work and work was done pretty quickly. I'm still working on it (the concreting part is next).
How much to charge for my labor? Well, yeah, how much is my dirt digging/moving, saw wielding skill worth? That can be argued, but I put it like this: at least a new surfboard for fall 2023. But really, to me, no one is going to be more honest about the work done on your home than if you do it yourself or have a large stake in it, and considering what we went through previously with the stair rebuild, I needed the reassurance this job was going to come in under budget, done to code, and provide some peace of mind.