Professional Aquarists

Hello everybody,
I just got off the phone with the manager of Bass Pro Shops live exhibits. I was talking to her because there is a Bass Pro Shops opening not far from where I live right now, and one of my professors recommended me for the position of the Aquarist at the Bass Pro. So, here's where my questions come in. This is directed towards people who are/have been professional aquarists; What do you charge as an hourly rate? I will be doing 25 hours a week of work on these aquariums, but it's contracted work, so I have to determine a rate. Also, she said that they require a $1 million liability insurance. She says this is standard now for contracted work. Any idea the cost of such a thing? I have to come up with a rate that will cover insurance and make sure I can pay my bills. Any help would be appreciated. I know I'll have to go to an insurance company to talk to them about insurance rates, but I was just wondering if anyone had experience with this because I feel pressure to come up with a "good" pay rate because I'm probably not going to be the only one trying to get this position.

-Nate

Good pay and a professional aquariust position is like oil and water. I interviewed for fulltime jobs several years ago whenI was still thinking of that direction at the entry level and hourly rates were 8-11 an hour. I remeber seeing several BPS positions listed in the past via NANFA and somewhere else and the pay seemed in that range.

Since you're a contractor you will have to charge much more than the normal hourly rate of a full time aquarist. You have to pay both portions of social security, you will have additional business/accounting overhead, must pay for your own health insurance, business liability insurance, etc.

When you hear about computer geeks making $100 an hour (or more) as consultants, this is part of the reason why!

Usually when I do outside work the minimum is $65.00 an hour. Variables in this are the travel time, the nature of the work, the type of system, and so forth. This generally does not include any insurance as it is work for private individuals. Your insurance need is larger because of the corporation that you are dealing with could be sued for a much larger amount if something happens to you or they stand to lose much more if you do something to them. In this type of case you should submit it as a bid for a certain length of time to ensure you will be doing it long term. They may try to get you to do a week to week deal. This allows them to keep shopping around for someone that will give them a better rate. Part of the bid process is an inspection of the work site or a detailed description of what they expect you to do. You should try to get in contact with some local places to see what the going rate in your area is. Hope it helps

Will you be doing aquarium maintenance (water changes, glass cleaning etc?) or more of an "advisory biologist" type position? Aquarium Shops and tank maintenance services typically charge by the gallon. $3 per gallon of tank size is typically the going monthly rate in this area. (for example, service on a 100 gallon tank = $300 per month) Not too sure how that will translate into hourly wage or how big their tanks are...

Nate, your liability insurance will be less than $500 per year.

Usually when I do outside work the minimum is $65.00 an hour. Variables in this are the travel time, the nature of the work, the type of system, and so forth. This generally does not include any insurance as it is work for private individuals. Your insurance need is larger because of the corporation that you are dealing with could be sued for a much larger amount if something happens to you or they stand to lose much more if you do something to them. In this type of case you should submit it as a bid for a certain length of time to ensure you will be doing it long term. They may try to get you to do a week to week deal. This allows them to keep shopping around for someone that will give them a better rate. Part of the bid process is an inspection of the work site or a detailed description of what they expect you to do. You should try to get in contact with some local places to see what the going rate in your area is. Hope it helps

I will be contacting other places like Cabela's and other Bass Pro Shops to see what their going rate is. It will be somewhat of a long-term deal (at least two years) - my employment that is.

Will you be doing aquarium maintenance (water changes, glass cleaning etc?) or more of an "advisory biologist" type position? Aquarium Shops and tank maintenance services typically charge by the gallon. $3 per gallon of tank size is typically the going monthly rate in this area. (for example, service on a 100 gallon tank = $300 per month) Not too sure how that will translate into hourly wage or how big their tanks are...

The whole deal is what I'll be doing/responsible for. The one tank is 18,500 gallons. The stream exhibit is 8-9,000 gallons. I'm worried that sending too high of a bid will greatly reduce my chances of getting the position.

Nate, your liability insurance will be less than $500 per year.

That's the impression I got from a friend of mine when I asked him. That is very calming knowing that I don't have to charge an astronomical amount just to cover my insurance.

Nate, your liability insurance will be less than $500 per year.

That's very interesting, and good news for Nate. At my previous engineering employer, I've had small surveyor outfits refuse subcontract work, saying that they can't afford the insurance that my employer and/or clients demanded that they carry. It was on the order of what Nate is being asked to carry. I was under the impression that it was much more expensive. Maybe that's so for surveyors, but not aquarists? I hope so for Nate's sake.

Nate, obviously you understand the nature of competition. Contacting other such shops to get a feel for what would be a competitive rate is a good idea, if they are willing to share the information with you. Ask yourself some questions. How much do you want to make? Are you willing to trade some wages for a longer term contract (job security)? What kind of expenses will you charge? Make sure you get in writing whether they pay for supplies or you do. If you pay for supplies, make sure you include those as separately paid expenses. Will you charge a markup on expenses? In my line of work, a 10% markup is typical. What is typical in yours? Ask that question when you talk to the other shops. Will the use of your vehicle be an expense that you can pass along? And if so, do you charge miles, maintenance, and fuel, or just a mileage charge that covers all? Or will you merely be "commuting" to your job site in your vehicle? If you use your vehicle as a work vehicle (other than commuting) you will need to tell your auto insurance company, and pay higher premiums. Make sure this cost is covered in your rates. You may have to get a license to operate a business (it's called a mercantile license around here). If you operate out of your home, you may need a zoning variance to run a business in a residential district.

You have already been given some other good advice, which I won't repeat. And I'm sure that we have overlooked some things. Others chime in please if you can think of them.

You will need to think of all of these things, and add up all of your wages and costs to get your bid. Some costs cannot be itemized and billed, such as social security taxes, insurance, medical benefits, etc., and will have to be included in your hourly bid price. Other items you can itemize separately as expenses. Be sure to itemize everything properly, so that expenses improperly buried in your bid price don't inadvertently drive up your hourly bid price.

It's mind boggling, I know. Be sure to cover all bases. While you don't want to overbid and lose the job, if you underbid you will lose money. Good luck. Let us know how it works out. We are all rooting for you!

Cabela's doesn't use outside contractors, it uses hourly employees. They make about 12 bucks per hour.

I'm surprised that Bass Pro has switched to contractors, but I don't see them paying very much more than that. The reason they probably switched to contractors is that they couldn't keep anyone on the job as regular hourly employees at the rate they wanted to pay.
65 an hour? They'd probably laugh in your face.
25 an hour? They'd probably be much more polite, but still toss out your application.
15 an hour? They'd probably be happy to pay that.

I'd aim for around 18 an hour if I thought I could get it. I don't know what kind of economy you have in your area, though. Maybe that's low for Ohio. It's astronomical for Alabama.

I'd aim for around 18 an hour if I thought I could get it. I don't know what kind of economy you have in your area, though. Maybe that's low for Ohio. It's astronomical for Alabama.

18 an hour? By the time he pays his taxes and overhead, he'll probably be making minimum wage at that rate. It's up to him, but I'd say "no thanks". I think he should be looking to make that as a wage. To cover overhead, he should probably charge twice that.

18 an hour? By the time he pays his taxes and overhead, he'll probably be making minimum wage at that rate. It's up to him, but I'd say "no thanks". I think he should be looking to make that as a wage. To cover overhead, he should probably charge twice that.

Nate said "I will be doing 25 hours a week" so I figured it out.

18dollars * 25hours = 450dollars
450dollars * 52weeks = 23,400 per year

Can you live on that and pay all your bills?

If not ask for more.

Just my 2¢

Tom

Nate, obviously you understand the nature of competition. Contacting other such shops to get a feel for what would be a competitive rate is a good idea, if they are willing to share the information with you. Ask yourself some questions. How much do you want to make? Are you willing to trade some wages for a longer term contract (job security)? What kind of expenses will you charge? Make sure you get in writing whether they pay for supplies or you do. If you pay for supplies, make sure you include those as separately paid expenses. Will you charge a markup on expenses? In my line of work, a 10% markup is typical. What is typical in yours? Ask that question when you talk to the other shops. Will the use of your vehicle be an expense that you can pass along? And if so, do you charge miles, maintenance, and fuel, or just a mileage charge that covers all? Or will you merely be "commuting" to your job site in your vehicle? If you use your vehicle as a work vehicle (other than commuting) you will need to tell your auto insurance company, and pay higher premiums. Make sure this cost is covered in your rates. You may have to get a license to operate a business (it's called a mercantile license around here). If you operate out of your home, you may need a zoning variance to run a business in a residential district.


You will need to think of all of these things, and add up all of your wages and costs to get your bid. Some costs cannot be itemized and billed, such as social security taxes, insurance, medical benefits, etc., and will have to be included in your hourly bid price. Other items you can itemize separately as expenses. Be sure to itemize everything properly, so that expenses improperly buried in your bid price don't inadvertently drive up your hourly bid price.

It's mind boggling, I know. Be sure to cover all bases. While you don't want to overbid and lose the job, if you underbid you will lose money. Good luck. Let us know how it works out. We are all rooting for you!

Jeesh, I didn't think that it would involve all those things in addition. As far as I understood it, everything is provided by the company except I need my own liability insurance and my own wet-suit for scuba diving. They don't put gas in my car...but I don't think they should. It's my personal vehicle, and I'll be using it for transportation to and from work as I would for any normal employment. I don't think I'll bother with that. You mentioned a license to operate a business?...There wasn't any word of that. I also don't believe it is of that nature, but I'm not sure. As far as I saw it, I had to submit a bid based on my insurance and hourly wage. Only thing I needed to buy was a wet-suit (which I'll get for my scuba diving class anyways).

She said that I can contact her with questions, but I don't want to seem to be clueless and need her to answer all these little questions for me either. That probably won't go over well. But, I might just have to bite the bullet and ask her what all the "overheads" would include.

-Nate

Jeesh, I didn't think that it would involve all those things in addition. As far as I understood it, everything is provided by the company except I need my own liability insurance and my own wet-suit for scuba diving. They don't put gas in my car...but I don't think they should. It's my personal vehicle, and I'll be using it for transportation to and from work as I would for any normal employment. I don't think I'll bother with that. You mentioned a license to operate a business?...There wasn't any word of that. I also don't believe it is of that nature, but I'm not sure. As far as I saw it, I had to submit a bid based on my insurance and hourly wage. Only thing I needed to buy was a wet-suit (which I'll get for my scuba diving class anyways).

She said that I can contact her with questions, but I don't want to seem to be clueless and need her to answer all these little questions for me either. That probably won't go over well. But, I might just have to bite the bullet and ask her what all the "overheads" would include.

-Nate

I think we've managed to scare the buggers out of you for some reason. It's not all that complicated. After you get a quote from your insurance provider simply factor in that you'll pay roughly $3000.00 for income taxes and see if you come out happy. I don't think you need to start up a business to contract your labor so don't sweat that.

Nate said "I will be doing 25 hours a week" so I figured it out.

18dollars * 25hours = 450dollars
450dollars * 52weeks = 23,400 per year

Can you live on that and pay all your bills?

If not ask for more.

Just my 2¢

Tom

I thought my idea was simple enough.

Tom

It's not all that complicated. After you get a quote from your insurance provider simply factor in that you'll pay roughly $3000.00 for income taxes and see if you come out happy. I don't think you need to start up a business to contract your labor so don't sweat that.

Sounds simple enough.

I thought my idea was simple enough.

Yeah, just seem to be getting conflicting information. But I think I've got more or less a plan of action in mind.

I would not dream of doing it for less than $25.
25
- 3.75 social security
- 5 fed and state tax

You are down to $16.25 right off the bat. This does not include other expenses.
Most contractors that I know charge $40-$80 per hour in Ohio. Heck painters even charge $40 here.

Other considerations. Does BPS provide all materials? Medications for a tank that size will be mind blowing. If they do not provide materials, you will have to take time to order, or pick them up. Both of which will cost you time and money.
Lastly, and this will be the kicker. Are you scuba certified?

Edit: I see you are planning on scuba classes.

I would not dream of doing it for less than $25.
25
- 3.75 social security
- 5 fed and state tax

You are down to $16.25 right off the bat. This does not include other expenses.
Most contractors that I know charge $40-$80 per hour in Ohio. Heck painters even charge $40 here.

Other considerations. Does BPS provide all materials? Medications for a tank that size will be mind blowing. If they do not provide materials, you will have to take time to order, or pick them up. Both of which will cost you time and money.
Lastly, and this will be the kicker. Are you scuba certified?

Edit: I see you are planning on scuba classes.

I was told that Bass Pro takes care of all the supplies. I will not need to purchase anything with my own mooneye. I couldn't resist... I'm going to contact the representative again to make sure that this is the case.

Hello once again,
Sorry to revive an old thread, but I felt it appropriate to update this. Since posting about this, I have been in contact with other professional aquarists, insurance representatives, scuba diving instructors, and the representatives at Live Exhibits (the ones who contract out the work for Bass Pro). Great news has arrived. I start training tomorrow. They have accepted my proposal of $28 an hour. I won't be as poor of an undergrad as I thought I was going to be. I'm really excited and I wanted to say thanks for all the advice offered here. I even received a contact from Drewish that really shifted the momentum of this in my direction. Thanks again. If anyone is in the area, I'm sure I can give them a behind the scenes look at what goes on with these exhibits. I'm sure I'll be getting all kinds of pictures of the fish that I'll be using in the exhibit while I have them in quarantine and whatnot. This will be a great learning experience and I might even consider making a career out of it, who knows!

-Nate

Sorry to revive an old thread, but I felt it appropriate to update this. Since posting about this, I have been in contact with other professional aquarists, insurance representatives, scuba diving instructors, and the representatives at Live Exhibits (the ones who contract out the work for Bass Pro). Great news has arrived. I start training tomorrow. They have accepted my proposal of $28 an hour.

Did you notice the entire NANFA membership suddenly turn green with envy? Well, we just did. Don't believe me? See my avatar.

In case others don't read the entire post above, here's the juicy part:

It will be somewhat of a long-term deal (at least two years) - my employment that is. The whole deal is what I'll be doing/responsible for. The one tank is 18,500 gallons. The stream exhibit is 8-9,000 gallons.

Congrats, Nate!

Edited by jase, 01 April 2008 - 11:26 AM.

Congrats also.


I wouldn't mind getting a gig like this to get me through school