Price stove installs so the liner does not eat the profit. Free, no signup. All defaults are editable starting points.
Stove installs die on one flat labor number. Quotes swing 1,500 to 4,000 dollars on the same job because the liner, the insulation kit, the hearth pad, and the permit are the real cost, not the hours. Start with your bar (75), profit margin percent (20), minimum install fee (400), and weekly take-home goal (2,000). Pick an install preset: Wood stove, Pellet stove, or Insert, each filling liner feet, liner cost per foot, connector pipe, install hours, helper hours, and the hearth option. The hearth select prices prefab or site-built pads with their hours. The leaks card prices the lines installers forget: second-story or steep-roof time, old-appliance removal, the permit fee plus its inspection hour, extra parts, and drive and miles. Results show liner materials, insulation, connector pipe, hearth, labor, helper, vehicle, true cost, and the recommended quote rounded up to 25 dollars, plus your effective rate against your bar. Verdicts are PRICED RIGHT, CLOSE, BUT LEAKING, WORKING TOO CHEAP, or LOSING MONEY. The liner-share note fires when the liner passes 35 percent of the quote. The gut check grades your instinct; the week planner turns your goal into installs with an over-50-hour flag. No signup; runs on your phone.
Example only, not typical pricing. Wood stove defaults at a $75 bar with 20 percent margin: liner is 25 feet at $40 equals $1,000; insulation kit $250; connector 4 feet at $45 equals $180; prefab hearth $350. Own hours are 8 install plus 1 hearth plus 2 removal plus 1 permit plus 50 drive minutes, or 12.83 hours at $75, which is $962.50 of labor. Helper is 6 hours at $25 equals $150. Vehicle is 40 miles at $0.67 equals $26.80. Permit fee is $150 and extra parts $180. True cost is $3,249.30. Recommended quote is max(400, ceil(3,249.30 times 1.20 divided by 25) times 25) equals $3,900. Effective rate is 3,900 divided by 12.83 equals $303.90 per hour, which clears the bar, so the verdict is PRICED RIGHT. A $3,000 gut quote would pay $233.77 per hour, sit below true cost, and leave $900 on the table. The week planner turns $650.70 of profit per install into 3.1 installs and 39.4 hours for a $2,000 goal.
Why does the liner-share note matter?
When liner plus insulation passes 35 percent of the quote, the tool warns you. Measure twice; the liner line is what kills quotes.
What if I never pull a permit?
The tool warns that one failed inspection day wipes out the margin. The checkbox adds one hour and the fee, so unpermitted work is a priced risk, not a saving.
Why is the hearth a select and not a number?
Prefab and site-built pads carry different material costs and hours. The select keeps the math honest instead of guessing one flat pad number.
What does CLOSE, BUT LEAKING mean?
Your effective rate sits between 95 and 115 percent of your bar. Liner cost, helper hours, or drive time are usually the leak.
Why does the planner flag over 50 hours?
Installs are long days. Past 50 hours a week the tool says raise the quote, not the hours.