Heavy equipment isn’t cheap to purchase, but renting is a comparatively affordable option for businesses that need a forklift, excavator or other piece of machinery only periodically. Below is a breakdown of how much renting heavy equipment could cost. Exactly what your business’ rental fees will be depends on many factors.
Budget Several Hundred Dollars a Day
In general, budget several hundred dollars a day for each piece of equipment that you rent. How many hundreds you need varies depending on what equipment you’re renting, but most of this machinery starts around $100 or more per day:
- Scissor lifts tend to start around $95 per day
- Small skid steers tend to start around $150 to $200 per day
- Larger skid steers can run $260 to $310 per day
- Forklifts often cost between $225 and $800 per day
- Excavators tend to start around $200 to $400 per day
Of course, you’ll need to include transportation time and downtime in your daily estimate. Weekly and monthly rates are often slightly lower than these rates when averaged out by the days covered in the rental.
Consider Downtime Caused by Inclement Weather
Should you need the rented equipment for longer than expected, you’ll have to pay for the added rental time. This added time usually isn’t charged at the same standard daily rate, however, and this rate is often negotiable. Some companies will charge as little as 50 percent of the daily fee if you need equipment for longer because of weather.
When budgeting, make sure you account for this added cost. Even though the rate may be substantially less, 50 percent on a $200 daily rental is still $100 per day.
Include Insurance Charges
Also, make sure that you’re including insurance charges in your budgetary calculations. Your business likely already has a sufficient liability policy, but you may have to purchase insurance for the rented equipment. Depending on the value of the equipment, this may cost a few dollars or several dozen dollars per day.
Calculate Your Total Construction Equipment Rental Costs
With these three factors, you should be able to accurately estimate your construction equipment rental costs. Be sure to include some margin for error, as even with accurate estimates, there can be unforeseen events that delay a construction project or cause rental costs to increase.
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