How to Add Items & Materials

After saving a new area for your job, you can add items or “tasks” and materials to your estimate. There are a few different ways to do this in PEP.

Add Items Manually

Just start typing

1. Click in the TYPE HERE box
2. Enter the item you want to add (eg. ceiling)
   PEP defaults with 2 coats of paint
3. Enter the amount you want to charge (eg. $0.30 /SQFT)
   You can change the unit from the drop-down menu (square foot, hour, etc.)
4. Enter the number of square feet
   If you don’t want to do this calculation yourself:
   Enter a zero (0) in the box then click + LxW and enter the measurements of the room (eg. 12 x 16)
5. Click + MATERIAL to select a paint and finish for the item

Choose a Favorite Item

Select from a list of favorites

PEP provides a handful of favorite items from the production rate library. Estimating with production rates is the most accurate way to go because the production rate accounts for how long the task should take and your hourly rate. Default production rates are based on industry standards.

1. Choose a FAVORITE ITEM from the drop-down menu (eg. Int. Walls Roll 2-Coat)
   You can add items to your favorites list in order to access them quickly in the future.
   The number of coats, price per square foot, and the quantity automatically fill in.
2. Click + MATERIAL to select a paint and finish for the item
   

Use the Production Rate Library

Search the library of production rates

If you want to use a production rate but don’t see it on your Favorites list (eg. 6/6 window), you can search the Production Rate Library. PEP comes pre-loaded with hundreds of production rates.

1. Click USE LIBRARY for a list of production rate items
2. Select how the item is CHARGED (eg. the item per hour)
   You’ll need to know how the item is charged ahead of time (eg. windows are by the hour)
3. Choose the CATEGORY (eg. Wood and Metal Windows (Fixed))
4. Choose the specific RATE (eg. Window – 6/6)  
5. Choose the METHOD of how you want to paint it (eg. Brush)
6. Click APPLY
   The number of coats and price automatically fill in.
7. Enter the QUANTITY (eg. 3 windows)
8. Click + MATERIAL to select a paint and finish for the item

Use a Form

The fastest and easiest way to add items

A form is a pre-saved list of items. You can use one of the pre-made forms or make your own, customizing it with materials and additional items. With forms, building a detailed estimate takes seconds.

1. Choose a FORM from the drop-down menu at the top of the window (eg. RES-INT Roll Basic)
   Ceiling, walls, trim, windows, doors and prep automatically fill in.
   PEP auto calculates the square footage of the ceiling and walls, and the linear footage of the trim.
2. Enter the QUANTITY of windows
3. Enter the QUANTITY of doors
4. Enter the HOUR / MIN for prep time
5. Click + MATERIAL to select a paint and finish for the item

Want to use more than one material on an item?

You can add multiple materials to the same item (eg. paint and primer)

1. Click + MATERIAL again
2. Select the number of coats
3. Select the paint and finish
   By adding multiple coats and material, PEP automatically updates the overall number of coats and price for the item.

Now what?

When you’re finished adding items click SAVE at the bottom of the window.
You’ll see on your estimate, a line for labor, a line for materials, and subtotal for this particular area of the job.

You can add items to your estimate as many times as needed by clicking ADD ITEM at the bottom of the items list.

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