Where in the World Isn't Bob Saget?

Goofyernmost

Goofyernmost

Well-Known Member
trr1 said:
you need a flame thrower or

Heated Snow & Ice Melting Driveway Mat, 24" x 25FT, 240V​

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So $2100. plus the cost of creating a 240V power connection. Just seems a lot cheaper to pay a kid $20. when needed plus get a bag or two of salt and sand. Since I have never been fabulously wealthy the whole concept feels foolish to me. If I were very wealthy I'm sure I would have a different outlook. That much money, using my extremely generous payment to my young shoveler, would be sufficient to cover 105 major storms. The cost of the electrical hookup for an outdoor power line I can't even begin to guess, however, it would cost, on average, $40. per cubic yard of Sand/Salt. That's 3'W X 3'L X 3'H. That $40 wouldn't even get you a circuit breaker for the electrical hookup.
 
JenniferS

JenniferS

When you're the leader, you don't have to follow.
Goofyernmost said:
So $2100. plus the cost of creating a 240V power connection. Just seems a lot cheaper to pay a kid $20. when needed plus get a bag or two of salt and sand. Since I have never been fabulously wealthy the whole concept feels foolish to me. If I were very wealthy I'm sure I would have a different outlook. That much money, using my extremely generous payment to my young shoveler, would be sufficient to cover 105 major storms. The cost of the electrical hookup for an outdoor power line I can't even begin to guess, however, it would cost, on average, $40. per cubic yard of Sand/Salt. That's 3'W X 3'L X 3'H. That $40 wouldn't even get you a circuit breaker for the electrical hookup.
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Sometimes people who have a steep driveway leading to a sunken garage have a heated driveway ... otherwise, yeah - $20 to a local teen is the way to go if you can’t shovel your own.

We have local programs where seniors and disabled homeowners can have their shovelling and leaf raking done for no charge. It’s called Snow Buddies.

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MinnieM123

MinnieM123

Premium Member
Goofyernmost said:
So $2100. plus the cost of creating a 240V power connection. Just seems a lot cheaper to pay a kid $20. when needed plus get a bag or two of salt and sand. Since I have never been fabulously wealthy the whole concept feels foolish to me. If I were very wealthy I'm sure I would have a different outlook. That much money, using my extremely generous payment to my young shoveler, would be sufficient to cover 105 major storms. The cost of the electrical hookup for an outdoor power line I can't even begin to guess, however, it would cost, on average, $40. per cubic yard of Sand/Salt. That's 3'W X 3'L X 3'H. That $40 wouldn't even get you a circuit breaker for the electrical hookup.
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Only $20 for a kid to shovel a driveway?! (Maybe back in the 1960s . . . ;) )
 
JenniferS

JenniferS

When you're the leader, you don't have to follow.
MinnieM123 said:
Holy cow! :jawdrop: (My brothers used to make $20, and that was many years ago. ;)) Up here, it's more like $50- $60 for a full driveway. (Private plow drivers charge $100 for a driveway.)
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That’s crazy!

I just checked on Kijiji - the going rate for a professional snow removal company (outside of a seasonal contract) is $30 to $40 depending upon the size of the driveway.

A teen/kid can do a sidewalk and driveway in less than an hour. $20 cash is the equivalent of $25 or so on the books. That’s way above minimum wage.
 
trr1

trr1

Well-Known Member
Goofyernmost said:
So $2100. plus the cost of creating a 240V power connection. Just seems a lot cheaper to pay a kid $20. when needed plus get a bag or two of salt and sand. Since I have never been fabulously wealthy the whole concept feels foolish to me. If I were very wealthy I'm sure I would have a different outlook. That much money, using my extremely generous payment to my young shoveler, would be sufficient to cover 105 major storms. The cost of the electrical hookup for an outdoor power line I can't even begin to guess, however, it would cost, on average, $40. per cubic yard of Sand/Salt. That's 3'W X 3'L X 3'H. That $40 wouldn't even get you a circuit breaker for the electrical hookup.
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if I could find a kid in my neighborhood around here when it snows they have remote learning
but here is the budget friendly one

Heated Snow & Ice Melting Driveway Mat, 24" x 20FT, 120V​

 
MinnieM123

MinnieM123

Premium Member
Goofyernmost said:
In 1960 it was about $3.00
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Perhaps in Vermont. ;)

JenniferS said:
That’s crazy!

I just checked on Kijiji - the going rate for a professional snow removal company (outside of a seasonal contract) is $30 to $40 depending upon the size of the driveway.

A teen/kid can do a sidewalk and driveway in less than an hour. $20 cash is the equivalent of $25 or so on the books. That’s way above minimum wage.
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Glad to hear your prices are lower. :)

Please also keep in mind, I'm quoting city prices here -- very different from where you are.

Anyway, it's moot for us, because landlord hires the plow guy to do the driveway. All we shovel is the steps and a little path to the driveway.
 
Goofyernmost

Goofyernmost

Well-Known Member
Goofyernmost said:
In 1960 it was about $3.00
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MinnieM123 said:
Perhaps in Vermont. ;)
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The only flaw in your logic is that in 1960 I lived in New York State. Even though geographically close, the culture might as well have been on another planet. My guess is that if NYS was $3.00 in Vermont the person doing the shoveling probably had to pay the homeowner for the privilege of clearing their drive way.

We lived in a rather large company house next door to a fairly good sized trucking business that my Father managed. Between the two there was close to two acres of lawn. My job was to mow that lawn, which I did for years. I probably started doing that in 1958 with a regular "reel" hand powered type lawn mower for $4.00 total. By 1963 when we moved to Vermont, I was raking in $6.00 total, but we had a riding mower. Man, I was living in the lap of luxury. If my Dad had the presence of mind to get one with a steering wheel I probably would have done it for free.

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MinnieM123

MinnieM123

Premium Member
NYwdwfan said:
Same here. Plus good luck finding a kid that will do manual labor.
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Yup, snow removal in my area and yours is a lot higher priced. I don't doubt the others when they say that it's lower in their area, but it's whatever the local market will bear.

And as for kids walking around with shovels after snowstorms, I rarely have see that here. When I was a kid, there were plenty of kids that would go around the neighborhoods and ring doorbells, looking for shoveling work (which is how both of my brothers got their jobs -- they even ended up with a few "regulars" that they'd go to, after every storm).

Goofyernmost said:
Well, back then if you wanted ANYTHING that wasn't a basic necessity you had to have cash to get it, and the only way to get it was to earn it doing whatever was needed. It was more or less a forced work ethic.
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Same with my brothers. The elder one saved up for stereo equipment, and the younger one saved up for a bicycle. They made some good money shoveling snow, back then. (Also, my brothers had paper routes, so with their side gigs, they saved up their money for fun things!)

JenniferS said:
We used to collect pop bottles!
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Down here, we called those tonic bottles. (One of the few areas of the country that used that term. Most areas refer to them as soda bottles.) I remember cashing those in for change. I didn't save my earnings -- I immediately bought candy! :hilarious:
 
Goofyernmost

Goofyernmost

Well-Known Member
MinnieM123 said:
Down here, we called those tonic bottles. (One of the few areas of the country that used that term. Most areas refer to them as soda bottles.) I remember cashing those in for change. I didn't save my earnings -- I immediately bought candy! :hilarious:
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That reminded me of someone that I was taking basic training with. We used to tease him all the time because he had roommate named Larry and every time Larry left the room you could hear him yell out... "Larry, Larry bring me back a tonic" in one of the most pronounced Boston accents I'd ever heard. I wish I could express it in type, but I can't. you probably can imagine it in your mind. You had to be there to find the humor in that whole situation.
 
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SteveBrickNJ

SteveBrickNJ

Well-Known Member
SteveBrickNJ said:
Will all this cold air benefit the earth globally? Putting a pause on glacier receding? Ice cap melting? etc?
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I wish that would be the case...yet somehow I predict the answer will be "no" Anyone have any thoughts on that topic?
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No one had any thoughts but I was undeterred. The answer to my question above is "No". Actually I found numerous Youtube videos that explained that the earth's "Climate Change" (formerly "global warming") is causing the more severe and snowier winters.
Here is one such video....
 
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trr1

trr1

Well-Known Member
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