I was wondering how many of you (fellow pro installers) do pre-wires on your own vs. with an assistant?

Thanks

2 people make the job go three times as fast.

So how many times faster does it go if I use 4 people? Does it increase exponentially?

We've been known to send 6-7 guys if needed. There is a diminishing return curve, but it also helps to impress the builder when you show up with three big trucks and 7 guys and get it done in one day...

The Polish version?

One to pull the wire, and four or five others to tell that one how he should be doing it....

polish version is like this... 1 to hold wire...500 to move house

really depend on the house...... most of the time 2 guys can handle the prewire
sometimes 3,4,5 even 6 guys because the house has weird runs or odd construction of some type...

one of our current houses requires 4 working on same run.... so my final answer is depends!

or hire a pro....lol

it all depends. 2500 sf or 25000 sf

One guy who knows it all and 1-3 more who know a lot less works for any home I've been to... but showing up with 40 guys and 18 trucks is cool too.

what?

Two to hold the reel and one to drill the hole and another to pull the wire. 5.

Unless I'm doing a retrofit, just me.

But, I don't get to do very many prewires anymore. Whaaa. To be honest, I'd love to just pull some damn cable for a few weeks.

Depends on the size of the job, and how motivated they are... Sometimes two guys can go SLOWER!!! Especially if you have one guy who plays on - site PM... instead of doing the grunt stuff... Then there's always, the "Hey lets go get a bite to eat, or swing by the hardware store" (together if they are traveling in the same van)!

Can work both ways I guess... but when you are the guy having to bill the client hourly... can make it a little painful at times:)

Usually 2... wireguy and helper. HElper picks stuff up and fetches... but most importantly he lets the guy stay on task. One day our wire guy was sent out wihtout helper... I kid you not took him all day to 1/2 what he normally could. Noone to stand on ther other end and feed or listen.... can really slow you down...

Push wire crawl out hunt down wire find its not where you hoped...

That is funny because a builder that I now do work for used to have his laborers pre-wire the house. This is in a gated community with their own central station for the security. They also own their own cable TV company. Anyway, it was literally 1 guy drill hole, 1 guy hold reel of cable, 1 guy push wire throw hole drilled by 1st guy. Houses range in size from 2,500sf to 5,000sf. Usually ranches with finished lower levels. Usually 6 phone, 6 TV, 2 keypads, 5 doors, no motions, no sirens, and a few weird connections for the alarm. Average time was 5 days.

The very first house they gave me was because the homebuyer insisted on an intercom. I showed up with 2 other guys, and we knocked the entire house out in 1 day. They were so impressed I have had all of their business since.

To answer the original question, it depends on the job. Track homes 1 guy can knock out phone/TV in one day no matter how big or how many runs. Customs, depending on what we are doing, can take 2 guys 1 to 4 days. Usually the extra time is because the H/O changed mind, or the builder was not at the point he said he was.

I do agree that pulling up to a job with all your trucks and a bunch of guys pilling out is very impressive.

The theme seems to be 2 or more people... Is your 2 or more person rate double your 1 person rate? or less than double?

We're the same per man no matter how many men... X,2X,3X etc...

I like to pre-wire alone, but I like things done my way. you can have as many guys as you need as long as they are all under the same direction and following the same plan. There is no reason to have more than two guys on a house smaller than 3000 square feet. no more than four guys on a house ever, as far as i'm concerned after that you just have too many cooks in the kitchen. At this day in age your builders need to realize that the A/V guy is no longer a last minute addition who can finish his job in two days and should get the same considerations as any other sub.(Hey we all have dreams)