Fair price for this job?

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Fair price for this job?

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Foodface

Just finished a job for family this week (never working for family again!) and wondered what people thought would be a fair price for the following.

They had a load of building work done including an extension and interior design swollocks, the builder had a plumber they normally used but family took a dislike to him so they dumped it on me to:

Fit 5 designer radiators
Re-do and alter existing pipe runs
Treat the system with x400 then obviously x100 afterwards
With a boiler service thrown in.

The install and pipework took me two days to do, it was a full on nightmare with loads of elaborate pipework in confined spaces. Nothing went well for me on this one, previous plumber said he'd do the lot for £250.00 and it would take him not much more than half a day to do.

Now I've lost out a bit on jobs recently so not sure how to charge this one, would be great if I could get some honest opinions on labour only for the above amount of work.

Nice one.

Foodface.
 
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The guy I was goin out with on weekends charged £70 for first hour, 40PH after that and 250 a day. That's in Kent but then we would do Surrey and London too. We done a job on his in laws house replacing boiler boiler and cylinder. He told me that he was only charging for materials and they were still complainin about the price. I don't believe that as he wasn't the type to work for free but it meant by saying that meant he could say he couldn't afford to give me a few quid lol.

When I'm in a position to I will probably do work for some family (mum, dad, brothers and sisters but that's it) wouldn't bother with girlfriends families and friends. Would just be happy to know that my family were getting a good job done without being ripped off.

That sounds like a lot of work you have to do for not a lot of pay compared to guys I know.
 
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Been thinking about this thread since I posted it. Seems people charge different tariffs fot gas and plumbing related work. Does everyone charge different rates for boiler breakdowns, cos at minute I charge 35 per hour for plumbing n gas, then 50 for boiler breakdown.

Also just seen a plumber turn up to my neighbours house for a job i didn t want to do as i'm off for crimbo now and on the back of his van he's charging 1000 quid inc vat and labour for boiler swaps. Thats cheap that, wonder what he's putting in at that price.
 
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I think the issue is people dont seem to care what gets fitted, only the cost at the time, as a few years down the line when issues develop with poor instalation / poor quality materials they will have moved on and someone else is stuck with it.
 
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There's a guy in Glasgow advertising: "Bathrooms supplied and fitted for £399"

That's what we're up against. But buy cheap and you buy twice. Got a bathroom booked in during January that is only a few years old, it's a bloody mess and has to be completely ripped out and redone.
 
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I would charge them £150 per day plus parts.
Then don't work for family again!! Should see you about £400-£500 all in.
Do a breakdown of labour per radiator, and parts cost (to THEM) per radiator.
 
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system3 said:
There's a guy in Glasgow advertising: "Bathrooms supplied and fitted for £399"

That's what we're up against. But buy cheap and you buy twice. Got a bathroom booked in during January that is only a few years old, it's a bloody mess and has to be completely ripped out and redone.
Click to expand...

Surely that would be a straight swap, like-for-like using a cheap contract suite?
 
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Foodface said:
Just finished a job for family this week (never working for family again!) and wondered what people thought would be a fair price for the following.

They had a load of building work done including an extension and interior design swollocks, the builder had a plumber they normally used but family took a dislike to him so they dumped it on me to:

Fit 5 designer radiators
Re-do and alter existing pipe runs
Treat the system with x400 then obviously x100 afterwards
With a boiler service thrown in.

The install and pipework took me two days to do, it was a full on nightmare with loads of elaborate pipework in confined spaces. Nothing went well for me on this one, previous plumber said he'd do the lot for £250.00 and it would take him not much more than half a day to do.

Now I've lost out a bit on jobs recently so not sure how to charge this one, would be great if I could get some honest opinions on labour only for the above amount of work.

Nice one.

Foodface.
Click to expand...

I've managed to strike a more than fair deal with all my family, (well, at least what I consider to be more than fair).

And that is, that all plumbing works are FREE!!!

Yes! you are reading that right. They have to pay for any materials that I deem necessary (one of the most important parts of this agreement), and then they have to wait for a time I'm not so busy, or be prepared to have me come on a weekend of my choosing (again an important part of this agreement). If they want me sooner, say a last minute Xmas job that has to be done NOW! (you know the ones I mean) then I charge my normal rates. but to be honest this has never happened. (I think they like the idea of having something for nothing).

Of course this depends on how close you are to your family? It's never as black and white as, charge them or don't. What will be the consequences if you do? They might tell the rest of your family (and friends of the family) that you charged them, and never hear the end of it. For you what would be the lesser of two evils?

If I were to charge them, because they wanted to do it now. then I would charge my normal rate which is £200 per day so X2, that's £400 plus materials.

If I were you, I'd ask you family for the other guys number. Now 2 things will happen:

1) You'll find out that it was all rubbish, and that your family made it up to put your price down (through my own experience this was, for me, most likely to be the case).

2)You'll find out that it was real. Realise, you've hit gold dust because he can do 2 days worth of work in 1/2 a day. You can then retire and pass him all your jobs and still earn 65K for next to nothing (though, again, in my experience this is least likely to be the case).
 
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Davinder said:
Before I continue, I just though I'd mention that I'm Indian, and we tend to be a bit more 'family orientated'. Now I've managed to strike a more than fair deal with all my family, (well, at least what I consider to be more than fair).

And that is, that all plumbing works are FREE!!!

Yes! you are reading that right. They have to pay for any materials that I deem necessary (one of the most important parts of this agreement), and then they have to wait for a time I'm not so busy, or be prepared to have me come on a weekend of my choosing (again an important part of this agreement). If they want me sooner, say a last minute Xmas job that has to be done NOW! (you know the ones I mean) then I charge my normal rates. but to be honest this has never happened. (I think they like the idea of having something for nothing).

Of course this depends on how close you are to your family? It's never as black and white as, charge them or don't. What will be the consequences if you do? They might tell the rest of your family (and friends of the family) that you charged them, and never hear the end of it. For you what would be the lesser of two evils?

If I were to charge them, because they wanted to do it now. then I would charge my normal rate which is £200 per day so X2, that's £400 plus materials.

If I were you, I'd ask you family for the other guys number. Now 2 things will happen:

1) You'll find out that it was all rubbish, and that your family made it up to put your price down (through my own experience this was, for me, most likely to be the case).

2)You'll find out that it was real. Realise, you've hit gold dust because he can do 2 days worth of work in 1/2 a day. You can then retire and pass him all your jobs and still earn 65K for next to nothing (though, again, in my experience this is least likely to be the case).
Click to expand...

Can I join your family and get free labour? You've struck up a deal?, no my friend, they have struck a deal and you have beef done. Cannot believe this post!
 
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There is a massive difference between doing a boiler service for free and an installation that resukts in you working all day thus loosing out on other jobs in the rin up to xmas cis you can't be in two places at once. I'm a charitable gut to a fault but working for free is nit something you'd get the other way round if you wanted your shopping for nowt if you were at your mums aisle in Morrisons.

I'm going to put on the invoice what all the cost would be and what they are with a family discount. Then as far as labour goes i'll ask them to pay what they think i'm worth. Wrong answer means no further works undertaken at family rates, right answer means i'm hitting the sales.
 
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Foodface said:
There is a massive difference between doing a boiler service for free and an installation that resukts in you working all day thus loosing out on other jobs in the rin up to xmas cis you can't be in two places at once. I'm a charitable gut to a fault but working for free is nit something you'd get the other way round if you wanted your shopping for nowt if you were at your mums aisle in Morrisons.
Click to expand...

I wasn't saying you should do it for free. That's just what I do, and maybe something for you to consider? if not then ok.

Foodface said:
I'm going to put on the invoice what all the cost would be and what they are with a family discount. Then as far as labour goes i'll ask them to pay what they think i'm worth. Wrong answer means no further works undertaken at family rates, right answer means i'm hitting the sales.
Click to expand...

Fair play. let us know how much they offer.
 
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Will do, viewing it as a social experiment. Wish i'd not mentioned the 400 figure now, prob not as it seems that one.

Happy crimbo anyway.
 
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going rate to subby/contract (CIS) by me is still going down and i know gsr engineers working for less than £100 a day. Private work is your choice of course.

as for family its a hard one really, ive been doing my mother bathroom recently a day here and there and its almost complete but ive put a few weeks work in and its done at a loss because its my mother and she deserves it. Other members of the family that i dont see unless they have a plumbing problem i dont return the phone call to if possible.

this year ive given for christmas a plumbing coupon to a select few members of the family that i would normally do work for next to nothing anyway, but this way im giving them 1 days labour for christmas. Its a present but also give the underline message that im happy to give a day to them but after that i want paying :)

plumbing coupon.jpg
 
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AWheating said:
going rate to subby/contract (CIS) by me is still going down and i know gsr engineers working for less than £100 a day. Private work is your choice of course.

as for family its a hard one really, ive been doing my mother bathroom recently a day here and there and its almost complete but ive put a few weeks work in and its done at a loss because its my mother and she deserves it. Other members of the family that i dont see unless they have a plumbing problem i dont return the phone call to if possible.

this year ive given for christmas a plumbing coupon to a select few members of the family that i would normally do work for next to nothing anyway, but this way im giving them 1 days labour for christmas. Its a present but also give the underline message that im happy to give a day to them but after that i want paying :)

View attachment 9789
Click to expand...

Good way of thinking, my mum helped me a lot in the beginning. Saying that my mum always tries to pay me, after all, business is business. Nice idea with the coupon, I like that
 
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AWheating said:
i must state that without my signature its not valid before anybody prints one off for themselves LOL
Click to expand...


Quite a cool idea, but does 1st and 2nd fixing a new bathroom count as 'one' plumbing job !!
I can imagine some people thinking they have just won the plumbing lottery with one of these!
 
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There's a lot of stiff competition round here and £25 to £28 seems to be the going rate. Charge any more than that and I'd have no work to do.

Anyone says it's too expensive I don't haggle, just suggest they use a handyman to do the work and tell them it won't be a neat job.
 
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