Dental crowns: cost?

[Tdbo]

Never thought that I would get on an oil form and ask people what they know about the cost of crowns. However, since there have been stranger requests on here, here goes.
Turned 54 the other day, and since that point, everything has started breaking. This time my bottom left tooth. First time that I have ever had a tooth break.
Went to our dentist the other day. Mrs. Tdbo selected this doctor, of course in an affluent area of the county. He said that I need a crown. Not going to argue with the diagnosis because obviously the chomper is broken.
He quoted me $1300.00.I'm thinking that might be more than a tad bit high. Cost still would be over $900. with dental insurance. He would knock 10% off with cash but that still is more than going through insurance.
Tried to price the estimated cost (or even a price range) of a crown with several local dentists, and felt like I was talking to Kermit the Frog. The only thing that they will say is that I can come in, pay for an office visit, they will assess, and come up with a "care plan."
I don't need a !@#$ "care plan." I need a crown.
I fully understand that there is variability and unknown factors that can influence the price. What I need to know is if the estimate that I was given is out of line.
I'm about ready to go to OSU and have a student dentist do it. Mrs. Tdbo is not in favor of that, but I'm not going all in for almost a grand if I can avoid it. Any informational feedback is appreciated.

 

[UncleDave]

What about the root canal? -usually you need a root canal before the crown.

What kind of crown and how many visits?

If its a cerac type computer measured so it fits right away, and CNC cut right there onsite- you get up and walk away in one sitting thats a good price.

If its hand cut and you need a temp, then to make 3 trips to get it right - thats no deal.

 

[Donald]

If its not bad some dentists will do a filling and see how it goes.

Some dentists have a machine that can make a crown on the spot, others send it out and you come back 3 weeks latter.

See what kind of car your dentist is driving.

Avoid the chains like Aspen.

 

[Pop_Rivit]

Originally Posted By: Tdbo

I don't need a !@#$ "care plan." I need a crown.


A dentist who has never seen you before can't make the determination that the only thing you need is a crown and it's unreasonable to expect them to do so. If there are issues with the tooth below the gum line it may need to be completely extracted. Therefore calling and getting a phone estimate from a dentist who has never before seen you simply doesn't work. Any dentist that would give an estimate over the phone for a procedure that complicated is probably a hack.

There are also several different types of crowns-when I lost a front tooth the to charging handle of an M203 I had no choice but to take what the military had available. A few years later I replaced it with a very high quality crown that is indistinguishable from a real tooth. No dentist could have made an estimate on the cost until they saw what needed to be done, and the replacement crown was several times more expensive than the patch job that the military did.

 

[Tdbo]

Originally Posted By: UncleDave
What about the root canal? -usually you need a root canal before the crown.

What kind of crown and how many visits?

If its a cerac type computer measured so it fits right away, and CNC cut right there onsite- you get up and walk away in one sitting thats a good price.

If its hand cut and you need a temp, then to make 3 trips to get it right - thats no deal.



According to dentist, everything is fine and no root canal is needed.
Tooth had a crack (according to last x-ray) 2 weeks before, and he did not think that breaking was imminent. Obviously, he was wrong.
He has a temp filling in now and from what he has said, it would be at least two trips, so I'm assuming that it is hand cut.

 

[Al]

Originally Posted By: UncleDave
What about the root canal? -usually you need a root canal before the crown.

Nope. A good dentist can drill through the crown,. extract the root and fill through the crown. No big deal


Quote:
If its a cerac type computer measured so it fits right away, and CNC cut right there on site- you get up and walk away in one sitting thats a good price.

Cerac being an "internal" plug can't always be used. They frequently don't last as long as a crown. The good thing is that there is usually better outcome with the gums (than the crown)

$1300 is about 400 high in my area. The skill jof the dentist in doing a crown makes all the difference. If you get a poor job...good luck Do due diligence..

 

[Y_K]

A fair price. Google for 'root canal core buld-up crown' - a lot of edu material is out there. There are a lot of variables. Technology is only as good as the hands and brains that use it. Expensive technology doesn't guarantee anything, yet it helps, if the technique is there. Not uncommon to spend over 3k to savea tooth in some cases. Again, a lot of variables. Most old-fashioned, "expensive" dentists will save you a lot of money in the long run.
Love seeing folks with expensive houses and trucks with no teeth, so human.

Good luck!

 

[Tdbo]

Originally Posted By: Pop_Rivit
Originally Posted By: Tdbo

I don't need a !@#$ "care plan." I need a crown.


A dentist who has never seen you before can't make the determination that the only thing you need is a crown and it's unreasonable to expect them to do so. If there are issues with the tooth below the gum line it may need to be completely extracted. Therefore calling and getting a phone estimate from a dentist who has never before seen you simply doesn't work. Any dentist that would give an estimate over the phone for a procedure that complicated is probably a hack.

There are also several different types of crowns-when I lost a front tooth the to charging handle of an M203 I had no choice but to take what the military had available. A few years later I replaced it with a very high quality crown that is indistinguishable from a real tooth. No dentist could have made an estimate on the cost until they saw what needed to be done, and the replacement crown was several times more expensive than the patch job that the military did.


Like I said, I understand that there are other factors involved in the procedure but there has to be some sort of base price involved.
The receptionist in the office had an estimate worked up and presented to me while the doctor was still working on me.
My objective was (and is) to determine if the price quoted is fair or excessive.

 

[Sayjac]

With the dentist I've been going to for over 20 years, it's $750-900 for a crown. But I think many other dentists around here are at the upper end of that or higher up to $1100.

Last year I had to have a root canal on a front tooth which was a referral to another dentist/endodontist, that was $1150 up front, on the spot, no ifs ands or buts. Ouch. And that was just for the root canal. The follow up permanent filling had to be done by my dentist. Luckily he didn't charge me for that. And I don't carry dental insurance either.

 

[Dave Hess]

A quality crown job is worth a few extra hundred dollars, just like a paint job on a car.

 

[Eddie]

My dentist, who I've had for many years charges about $1,000 for a simple crown. He takes digital computer pictures and has a crown made. The crown fits beautifully and needs only a very minor touch up to get a perfect bit. Ed

 

[Eddie]

Google the cost of crown charges in your area because they can vary widely depending on where you live.

 

[slug_bug]

My last crown was $1200, 600 out of pocket with dental insurance.

 

[racer12306]

I don't think you are too far off, maybe a little high, but as others have said, you want quality work. It's also one of those services that varies heavily depending on the area.

My last crown was approximately $375 after insurance and I think insurance covered half. My dentist will do it in two trips. Trip 1 is a grind down, molding, temp crown. Trip 2 is 4ish weeks later and is removal of the temp, fit of the final and done.

 

[UncleDave]

Originally Posted By: Al
Originally Posted By: UncleDave
What about the root canal? -usually you need a root canal before the crown.

Nope. A good dentist can drill through the crown,. extract the root and fill through the crown. No big deal


Quote:
If its a cerac type computer measured so it fits right away, and CNC cut right there on site- you get up and walk away in one sitting thats a good price.

Cerac being an "internal" plug can't always be used. They frequently don't last as long as a crown. The good thing is that there is usually better outcome with the gums (than the crown)

$1300 is about 400 high in my area. The skill jof the dentist in doing a crown makes all the difference. If you get a poor job...good luck Do due diligence..


Sorry its CEREC and no, not as in a plug.

As a cap that sits on top of a weakened tooth strengthening it so it wont crack further.

Here is a scan of one of my teeth and it was cut colored polished and fit perfectly within 2.5 hours of me sitting down.

Its at least 100K or more for these tool in house and f course the near diamond hard ceramic blank and the tools wear out because cutting the ceramic is hard.

Getting an impression and sending stuff out then hand sanding is beyond old school and the result is simply not as good as a modern crown system.

Of course the dentist makes a big diff- but a good dentist with modern tools is better than a good dentist with yesterdays tools.

 

[skyactiv]

Some crowns are made in Mexico or China making the dentist even more money.

 

[Al]

Originally Posted By: UncleDave

Sorry its CEREC and no, not as in a plug.

Thanks for the spelling lesson

. A Cerac will hold a tooth together. I have had mine for 15 years. Is it as good? No.

 

[UncleDave]

Originally Posted By: Al
Originally Posted By: UncleDave

Sorry its CEREC and no, not as in a plug.

Thanks for the spelling lesson. A Cerac will hold a tooth together. I have had mine for 15 years. Is it as good? No.


I was correcting my own "spellin" error.

Supposed to be as good or better than anything available.

Its usually the tooth underneath that ultimately goes vs one of these breaking.

What material is your made of - do you know?

 

[Dave Hess]

Originally Posted By: skyactiv
Some crowns are made in Mexico or China making the dentist even more money.


They should be from the USA, a local company in the area.

 

[racin4ds]

Just got slammed by a crown by my dentist a few months ago.. first off I had no idea this particular dentist wasn't "In network" and they didn't bother to tell me either. I get a temp filling in the tooth and told the crown would be in within 2 weeks of my full payment...

I go to the front desk where I find that I owe $685!! I almost choked. My insurance only covered 50% since they weren't in the network. What a [censored] joke! Hate dentists and always will. Still haven't paid the bill and still no crown...