Guides
What the data shows, and what moves a price
Each guide takes one choice, such as the shingle grade or the kind of water heater, prices every option the same way and shows where the difference comes from. Figures come from the same engines as the calculators.
- What shingle grade and old layers add to a roof replacementRoof replacement (asphalt shingles)Four combinations of shingle grade and tear-off layers, priced the same way, so the difference each one makes is visible.
- Insert or full-frame window replacement: what the data showsWindow replacement (vinyl)The same standard window, fitted two ways, with the labor hours and parts that account for the gap.
- Electric, gas and power-vent tank water heaters: the cost rangesWater heater replacement (tank type)Three kinds of tank heater priced from shelf prices and plumbers' wages, with a federal database as a cross-check and the energy prices behind running them.
- Wood posts, steel posts and overlapping pickets: parts and costWood privacy fence (6 ft)Three ways to build the same fence, with the parts count and the cost range for each.
- What tear-out and leveling add to a vinyl plank floorVinyl plank flooring (installed)The same 500 sq ft of vinyl plank over three starting floors, and the labor, materials and disposal that change.
- Heat pump or gas furnace: where running costs cross, and what moves itCentral air or heat pump replacementThe crossover temperature under nine combinations of electricity and gas prices, and the seasonal swing in the gas price behind it.
How to read them
A guide states what a figure is and what can move it. It does not say what to buy, whom to hire or what to pay. Where a number is a guess it is marked as an estimate, and the sources are listed at the foot of each page. How the numbers are built.