Home renovation or any major construction project can be a piece of cake with all the right construction tools and equipment. However, construction equipment is not cheap.
Purchasing your own construction equipment can be quite an investment but it can also be a complete waste, depending on many circumstances. Thankfully, there is also the option of renting construction equipment for projects.
If you’re unsure of which of these options is better for you, here are some answers you may find useful.
Frequency of use
The first important thing to consider before you decide to either buy or rent equipment is the frequency of use. How often will you use these tools and equipment after this one project?
For one-time DIY renovators, and people working on a single large project, investing in construction equipment is pointless. After that one job, you won’t be needing all that equipment any time soon, if ever really.
In case you’re a contractor who works on multiple big projects and job sites every single day, proper equipment and tools are something that will significantly improve and speed up your work. It seems logical to invest in some equipment in this case.
However, no one can guarantee that the next work season will be as busy as the current one. Then what, you’ve invested huge amounts of money on equipment that is not being used.
Deciding whether to buy or rent equipment is a big decision that needs to be taken into consideration carefully.
Purchase costs
Purchasing completely new construction equipment is extremely expensive and as such it’s a long-term investment. This means that you won’t be able to upgrade the equipment whenever new and better items come out. And in this day and age, new and improved items are coming out really fast.
On the other hand, if you consider renting the equipment you need, not only are you avoiding the purchase costs, but you’re also getting the chance to rent the newest technology and equipment out there. And with so many industries using all kinds of equipment, renting is becoming ever more popular. This means that all kinds of equipment are more readily available.
Maintenance and repairs
We mentioned the initial purchase costs of construction equipment being really high, but what about other costs such as repairs and maintenance? Heavy-duty machinery and vehicles such as forklifts, bulldozers, cranes, and so on, require proper and frequent maintenance to work at optimal levels.
And not just maintenance, what happens when a machine breaks down? Additional, costs for repairment, that’s what happens.
If you decide to rent the equipment, you can avoid the costs of maintenance and repairs. With that said, you should, of course, take care of rental equipment as well, but the price is nowhere near as high as if you had to take care of your own items.
For example, if you need a forklift hire for a day, week, or month, before renting check to see if the equipment is safe to use, make sure all the parts are in good condition and that the equipment has been serviced recently. This will save you the headache and money as well.
Storage fees
You won’t need to use all the equipment you own at the same time. This means that the equipment that isn’t being used needs to be properly stored. In addition to that, a great part of the maintenance of heavy-duty equipment lies in how well it’s stored. And huge machines and vehicles need appropriate, dry, and safe storage space.
Large storage spaces come with fees of their own, plus these spaces need maintenance as well. This only adds up to the price of owning your own construction equipment. Whereas with rented equipment, you don’t need to worry about storage.
Transportation costs
Unfortunately, that’s not where the expenses of owning your construction equipment end. Transportation of equipment is just another investment that you should take into consideration.
All this machinery needs to be transported from storage to construction sites and vice versa. Transporting heavy-duty machinery is no problem, it’s done daily, however, it’s something that will significantly affect your budget.
With rented equipment, transportation is almost always included in the contract. This means that rental companies take care of transportation because it’s in their best interest that the equipment is safely delivered and returned without any damage.
Availability
One downside of renting or leasing equipment is its availability. In the peak construction season, some machinery and vehicles are going to be difficult to find. Rental companies often have the equipment booked weeks if not months in advance.
In this situation, it would be smart to plan well ahead of your project and book any piece of equipment you may need. Planning for projects can be your best friend when it comes to renting construction equipment.
From a financial standpoint, purchasing construction equipment is not always a smart move. Instead, you have a much more affordable option – to rent construction equipment.
In many situations, renting construction equipment is not only cheaper but a much more logical option. If you’re still not sure about what to do, put all the numbers on paper and you’ll have your final answer.
