Side work

[Artcwolf]

I do a bit of moonlighting to suppliment my piss ass pay from my full time IT job. The other day, I stopped by a customers house to assess the damage on their hdd. It was dead. The customers made the decision to buy a new one and may possibly replace the hdd in the dead one to give it to the grandkids or kids. After helping them put together a new Dell, they asked if I wanted a 19" CRT monitor that was hardly used and only one year old (They were using LCD's).

Monitor...19" Sony Trinitron. Same as I'm using now that has an absolutely stunning picture (which I picked up for $100 that the orginal customers paid over $600 for and was used less than a year).

Needless to say, I didn't charge them anything except the monitor. They told me they had been trying to give it away but no one wanted it. I won't kick a gift horse in the mouth.

:Wink

[egarrard]

That's exactly how I got the monitor I have now... :rofl2
It's not a Sony Trinitron though. :Sigh :lmao

[das7282]

Originally posted by Artcwolf
I do a bit of moonlighting to suppliment my piss ass pay from my full time IT job. The other day, I stopped by a customers house to assess the damage on their hdd. It was dead. The customers made the decision to buy a new one and may possibly replace the hdd in the dead one to give it to the grandkids or kids. After helping them put together a new Dell, they asked if I wanted a 19" CRT monitor that was hardly used and only one year old (They were using LCD's).

Monitor...19" Sony Trinitron. Same as I'm using now that has an absolutely stunning picture (which I picked up for $100 that the orginal customers paid over $600 for and was used less than a year).

Needless to say, I didn't charge them anything except the monitor. They told me they had been trying to give it away but no one wanted it. I won't kick a gift horse in the mouth.

:Wink

Lucky b*stard! :KICK ASS :thumb

[Artcwolf]

Originally posted by egarrard
That's exactly how I got the monitor I have now... :rofl2
It's not a Sony Trinitron though. :Sigh :lmao

I've got three 15" Monitors that have been given to me in the past. I use those to do my side repairs when the boxes make it back to my house.

[wazman]

You will send it to me. Now.

(JK - enjoy your monitor!) :)

[Maro]

Sounds like me and my 19 inch I "Aqquired" from work. remember the bent Pin? I told them I could fix it but they just told me to throw it away.

Halo looks great on it and it goes really well with my black and silver Keyboard and silver Antec Super Lanboy!

You gotta take the perks!

Besides, I reckon you are like me, I do a lot of stuff for free for people at work - installs etc. I usually get a case of beer or a nice Red wine. Plus it makes you feel good about yourself as you are helping people!


:thumb

[eire1274]

LOL!

Yes, I've had that happen before.

Last year, while I was still working for a Circuit City store, a (wealthy) friend of my father-in-law's came in looking for a replacement for the full size receiver that powered her home music system (switchable speakers in 6 rooms in the house). The receiver sat on a shelf in her kitchen, and was quite ugly, to say the least.

We shopped through the audio department for a while (I had just gotten off work at the time) and found a suitably small Panasonic set... only the speakers were, each, about twice the size of the receiver/CD player unit.

She bought that (at $600), plus a 15" plasma TV for the extra space she was freeing up.

For hooking it up, I got the comission for the sale and a pair of high-end Panasonic speakers, which are now my rear channels on my 5.1 system. I found out later they're available seperately for $250 a pair, so not a bad deal at all!

[tanman_sg]

Originally posted by egarrard
That's exactly how I got the monitor I have now... :rofl2
It's not a Sony Trinitron though. :Sigh :lmao

same

[Artcwolf]

Originally posted by Maro
Besides, I reckon you are like me, I do a lot of stuff for free for people at work

Used to, now I charge for my services.

It was either that or get a second job to pay the bills. This has become my second job.

Although, in this case I took the monitor as payment. I wouldn't feel right if she had paid me and gave the monitor (although, she offered, I didn't even know about it until she insisted I take it).

[Sky Rookie]

How do you find these kinds of jobs??? I'd like to do that while in school full time. I never know where to find these things though. I tried starting a business but the only customers I had were through ebay, so of course I made very little money at it do to the auction prices. Then sold to my mom's work, she was the office manager so I was able to mark up a nice amount (it was still a fair price however).

Thanks for any help.

[egarrard]

Originally posted by Artcwolf
Used to, now I charge for my services.

It was either that or get a second job to pay the bills. This has become my second job.

Although, in this case I took the monitor as payment. I wouldn't feel right if she had paid me and gave the monitor (although, she offered, I didn't even know about it until she insisted I take it). What do you all charge for your services? The lady I got the monitor from said the computer shops in town are charging $60/hr just to look at the thing. That seems a little high to me.

[Artcwolf]

Originally posted by Sky Rookie
How do you find these kinds of jobs??? I'd like to do that while in school full time. I never know where to find these things though. I tried starting a business but the only customers I had were through ebay, so of course I made very little money at it do to the auction prices. Then sold to my mom's work, she was the office manager so I was able to mark up a nice amount (it was still a fair price however).

Thanks for any help.

It starts by word of mouth, then moves from there. I don't really actively pursue customers anymore.

I work for a school district and it started w/ a few teachers. I printed up a few business cards and handed them out. From there my number was passed around to different people and now I get phone calls to help out with peoples computers. I treat the customers with respect and give them good prices (I'm supplimenting my income, look at each job as a learning experence, have fun with my side work, and do not get greedy).

If your serious about doing it, get an address you can toss (p.o. box) and set up an e-mail account (hotmail, yahoo, or other web mail) that is not your main e-mail account. Have some business cards printed and pass them out to friends and aquantinces. Make sure that you know what the local shops charge for work and go from there. If you can, post the cards on the bulletin boards on campus or on your apt. complex so that your name will get out there.

I will warn you, if you fubar someone's system you will be responsible for it. If something happens to someone's system while it's in your hands, you'll be responsible for replacing it. If you lose a customers hard earned prOn collection, you get your ass kicked.

[Maro]

That's why I don't charge.

1). If I charged my hourly rate they would be better off buying a new Dell (not that I get paid that much but older systems need much more work).

2). Sometimes it is fun to play with some different kit - half the time it takes longer to figure out how to take the case off more than anything!

3). I'll always look for free and if it is something I don't want to touch I point them towards a reputable guy I know.

[Artcwolf]

Originally posted by egarrard
What do you all charge for your services? The lady I got the monitor from said the computer shops in town are charging $60/hr just to look at the thing. That seems a little high to me.

Depends on the area, I guess. I wouldn't think that the amount charged here would be the same as in LA, for example.

But, since that's not what you asked, I personally charge $30.00 per hour and by the hour. For example, if I'm working on X problem for an hour and twenty minutes, it's $60.00. If I'm there for 45 minutes, it's $30.00, and so on.

For hdd rebuilds it's $100.00 flat rate.

Parts and software are extra. I do not install any warez or illegal software even if the customer provides it. Period. No exceptions.

Upgrades are handled on a per case basis. If someone were to add a cd-burner and memory at the same time as they had me doing a hdd rebuild, I'd charge $100.00 flat. If done seprately, it's extra. If I have spare parts in the bin, I don't charge for them (typically, these parts are for older boxes they just want to keep working for a year or so longer). If they are upgrading they buy new parts. The bin usually gets filled from people that have asked me to look at their boxes that turn out to not be worth repairing. Sometimes they will buy a new box and give me their old one which I will rob for parts, put the usable parts in a bin, and toss the remainder in the trash.

I've done some small networking jobs where I've run wire through walls for customers. That is expensive. I charge depending on the length, complexity, and number of drops installed. Thus I cannot give you an exact price but it starts at $100 per drop and goes up from there.

[Artcwolf]

Originally posted by Maro
That's why I don't charge.

1). If I charged my hourly rate they would be better off buying a new Dell (not that I get paid that much but older systems need much more work).

2). Sometimes it is fun to play with some different kit - half the time it takes longer to figure out how to take the case off more than anything!

3). I'll always look for free and if it is something I don't want to touch I point them towards a reputable guy I know.

1) I need the money, my primary job pays less than what I make on the side, almost.

2) I agree, plasma cutter, fixes those I can't figure out. :devil

3) I don't much muck with laptops. Those I send them to warranty repair centers.

[Maro]

I tend to work for favours in the "Bank" as it were.

One of our friends has his own electricians business. I have rebuilt his old machine and also am about to configure his new mahcine for his home office - when we eventually buy a new house he will come and check the electrics and fix up any problems.

Barter economy!
:thumb

[Maro]

Originally posted by Artcwolf
1) I need the money, my primary job pays less than what I make on the side, almost.

2) I agree, plasma cutter, fixes those I can't figure out. :devil

3) I don't much muck with laptops. Those I send them to warranty repair centers.

Plasma Cutter?:jawsdown :jawsdown Looks like I should charge if I can get me one of them!

I like to fiddle with Laptops - I used to be a Hardware tech so it is nostalgia for me!