Quoting a price is half the job; knowing how long it takes is the other half. Divide the area by your production rate in square feet per hour to estimate on-site time.
A 2,000 sq ft house at 1,000 sq ft per hour is about 2 hours on site — enough to schedule the day.
The example
Three jobs with an area and your typical production rate for that surface.
| A | B | C | D | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Job | Sq ft | Sq ft / hr | Hours |
| 2 | House wash | 2,000 | 1,000 | 2.00 |
| 3 | Driveway | 800 | 500 | 1.60 |
| 4 | Parking lot | 12,000 | 2,000 | 6.00 |
The formula
One division turns area into time:
How it works
Production rate is the bridge from area to hours:
B2is the area to clean, in square feet.C2is your production rate — how many square feet you clean in an hour on that surface.- Dividing area by rate gives the hours the job should take.
Add setup and teardown time for a realistic schedule; the formula covers active cleaning only.
Try it: interactive demo
Enter the area and your production rate per hour.
Variations
Add setup time
Pad the estimate with a fixed setup and teardown allowance.
Pitfalls & errors
Use a production rate for the same surface — concrete, siding, and roofs clean at very different speeds.
Track your real square-feet-per-hour on a few jobs; a measured rate beats a guessed one for scheduling.
Practice workbook
Frequently asked questions
Where do I get my production rate?
Should I include setup time?
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