Barn conversion pricing. I'm baffled

[Andystraughan]

Hi gents I registered on this forum to hear your thoughts on the following please

its a barn conversion / cottage alteration and full rewire. I've priced for the cottage part as she wants it done in stages since there's a lot to do on the barn section before it's ready for electrics. Anyway apparently I've been beat on my price and I'm baffled

as followed; the cottage has 3 large bedrooms with 2 ensuites and a main bathroom , hallway stairs etc.

11 x double sockets through out
15 x chrome down lights
10 x tilt chrome down lights
7 x ip rated chrome down lights
5 x centre lights ( pendants)
each room has a 2/3 gang switch to switch lights separately
2 x mains smoke detectors

3 x timer fan installation 4 inch with isolation switches. Core holes excluded
3 x 9.5 kW shower supplies with pull cords - one for each ensuite

price includes making safe of old electrics for walls to knocked down.
the walls are solid stone so all sockets need chasing in etc..

new consumer unit with earth of gas tank And incoming water including full test

all in £2993,65

was I far off? I priced it like that so I would get the second part of the job which is the barn part

thoughts please would be greatly appreciated

Andy

 

[tlangdon12]

Who was to supply the materials; you or the customer?

 

[londonlec]

Way too low for me. Probably £1500-2000 worth of materials there

 

[Andystraughan]

I'm providing the materials excluding the showers which comes in at £993.65. It's an estimate only

 

[Chris sparky]

That sounds very cheap to me. Did she say by how much you've been beaten? do you know for sure that she's had other quotes? Some customers will try it on etc to get you down on your price if they think it's too much. I would go as far as saying your price sounds too cheap. Understandable if you've gone in cheaper than normal to get more work

 

[Welchyboy1]

There will always be someone cheaper than you, dont get down about it, if thats the best price your willing to do the job for and shes just shopping for the cheapest quote theres nothing you can really do about it

Whats the main fuse supply like for those 3 showers


sometimes people just say they have cheaper quotes to make you drop your cost or will go back and forth and eventually pick the lowest, dont go along with it, stick to your price

 

[Dan23584]

Wow, that sounds cheap already. If someone is cheaper then move on to the next one, no point working for nothing.

 

[jimmymac]

When I get told that I'm over priced and they've had a cheaper quote I always have the same response...."on you go mate" sometimes you never hear from them again, other times they call you back and say "on second thoughts I'll let you do the job because you seem a bit more professional", as if they're doing you a big favour. I think they're just trying it on!

 

[Octopus]

I'm providing the materials excluding the showers which comes in at £993.65. It's an estimate only

Including all those down lights, how do you plan to comply with Part L?

 

[Andystraughan]

Whats the main fuse supply like for those 3 showers

there having there main incoming moved to a different location an upgrading the main fuse too 100 amp. I've tried talking her out of the showers.

the start date was Thursday gone

the second part which is the barn conversion is a decent sized job worth £6000+ That's what I'm more gutted about.

**** happens just wanted your opinion to see if my price was ok. When I went to see her to look around she was saying stuff like "cheap Andy im wanting it cheap" figures lol

thanks gents. Sure more will come

 

[Andystraughan]

She's wants them changed to 4.5 kW LEDs once the entire job is finished. That was not in my price lol

 

[jimmymac]

I say leave her to it mate, I can imagine she'd be a right pain of a customer anyway. Those who try to beat you down on price always are. She probably find someone who'll do it for £500 less that you but it'll be a sh*t shower of a job and neither party will be happy with the outcome

 

[Octopus]

She's wants them changed to 4.5 kW LEDs once the entire job is finished. That was not in my price lol

Now that's just plain daft, pay for a fitting and the time to fit one type of lamp and then pay for LED's and their fitting??

and how much is a 4.5kw led? sounds mighty bright!

 

[GLENNSPARK]

let her crack on then with Yarric/Darric/Roman...

you watch what happens...when she finds RCDs wont hold etc...then she may just ring you....

in fact she may just ring you after them lot have been in...see if you will issue a ticket for it....so you know what you says then as well...dont you...

 

[Jdsparky]

let her crack on then with Yarric/Darric/Roman...

you watch what happens...when she finds RCDs wont hold etc...then she may just ring you....

in fact she may just ring you after them lot have been in...see if you will issue a ticket for it....so you know what you says then as well...dont you...

I had this t'other week, guy rang me up saying do I do certificates?, he tells me he did the install and I recognised his voice asked him was he in a certain area, and he said yes, cheeky bugga I quoted for couple of months before.He said he rewires his own house before and was having problems with his Rcd tripping and he had been doing stuff with electrics for years, but I know he's a driver so talking out his arse. I told him politely I don't sign others work off and left it at that, considering this particular job was worth 650 to start with, I highly doubt he would want to be paying 100 plus for a test and cert anyway so total time waster.

 

[Andystraughan]

Well she finally called me back up. Asked if my price included led lamps to which I replied no because you wanted a cheap job. Then she says she's had a price off another electrician for £45 CHEAPER than mine and that included led lamps. "Can you match that?" No thanks!!!! Good luck to her with that job

 

[Welchyboy1]

Well she finally called me back up. Asked if my price included led lamps to which I replied no because you wanted a cheap job. Then she says she's had a price off another electrician for £45 CHEAPER than mine and that included led lamps. "Can you match that?" No thanks!!!! Good luck to her with that job

if thats even true theyll be ebay/chinese jobbies for £1.50 each and wont last the end of the job

 

[Guest569]

Ive been particularly ****ed off today as anther spark has undercut me by 2k on a 6k rewire!

Im finding it hard recently to sell "quality" to customers, vast majority of folk not caring if its a crabtree consumer unit or a screwfix special for example. Im pricing 3 rewires tomorrow , 2 of which I know will be "cheap as possible please".....

 

[Andystraughan]

I priced 9 rewires last year and got 2 of them lol

 

[scammell man]

Pricing always amazes and often annoys me. My brother runs a letting agency and I have never had any work via him because 'I can get it done cheaper elsewhere' and his clients will only pay the absolute minimum amount they can get away with. Apparently the going rate for fully qualified spark is about £60 a day!!! Just not going there

 

[Engineer54]

Pricing always amazes and often annoys me. My brother runs a letting agency and I have never had any work via him because 'I can get it done cheaper elsewhere' and his clients will only pay the absolute minimum amount they can get away with. Apparently the going rate for fully qualified spark is about £60 a day!!! Just not going there

They must be those disillusioned 50K a year 17 day DI whizz kids, trying to recoup their training fee's!! After all they did spend all that money for their training/qualifications, and they are registered with NICEIC or whoever, so they Must be ''fully qualified'' sparks!! lol!!

 

[scammell man]

That's about the size of it. Strangely when they cock it up I no longer provide advice over the phone on how it should be done

 

[Guest569]

I priced 9 rewires last year and got 2 of them lol

Priced 2 already today , first one has had a quote for 1.1k..........Can I match it ? No thanks.

 

[MDJ]

Priced 2 already today , first one has had a quote for 1.1k..........Can I match it ? No thanks.

Fair play, stick to your guns, what was it anyhow, a 1 bed room in a hostel somewhere lol

 

[Octopus]

Priced 2 already today , first one has had a quote for 1.1k..........Can I match it ? No thanks.

Is that for the garage/utility room? lol.

Madness

 

[sparky6078]

I had one a few years ago that went with the other quote, two weeks later see was on the phone can you come and finish off as he has walked out! so told her the price had gone up as cable was now more expensive and i would have to rip out what he had already done as i wasn't signing his work off! I ended up doing the job but only after i made her pay half up front..........

 

[amptramp]

Hi your quote seems ok if a little on the low side ,stick to your guns and don't reduce the price ,anybody can work for nothing and nobody wants to be a busy fool . I tend to look upon these kind of people as ( D.I.Y ) ie DO NO INVOVE YOURSELF .
.

 

[Guest569]

Fair play, stick to your guns, what was it anyhow, a 1 bed room in a hostel somewhere lol

Its is probably thee easiest rewire Ive priced,1 bed, all pull through no alterations to positions etc. Ive just agreed to do it at £1400. Very cheap but Ill do it in a day...hate going down that low but I will do it from time to time if I know its a quick, easy earner ! Plus If I don't do it someone else will! Won a few more well priced ones so it all balances out.

 

[sarusystems]

Your quote looks reasonable to me. some times when I price a job low to get the work (in quieter times) I am surprised when some one offers it cheaper , you only need a flat Tyre and lose a pair of side cutters and your working for free.

 

[gutterball]

It's the ones that agree a price then add lots of extras and then complain about you charging extra.

 

[Slowhand]

Pricing always amazes and often annoys me. My brother runs a letting agency and I have never had any work via him because 'I can get it done cheaper elsewhere' and his clients will only pay the absolute minimum amount they can get away with. Apparently the going rate for fully qualified spark is about £60 a day!!! Just not going there

I'm looking for work and was offered job with a well established local firm. No probs with my quals and experience. I'd be given a van and sent out on jobs to work on my own initiative. Got my own tools etc etc.. Going rate £80 per day. It might seem ungrateful of me but l declined the offer.

 

[SparkyJoe]

She's wants them changed to 4.5 kW LEDs once the entire job is finished. That was not in my price lol

They must give off some light.

 

[Octopus]

They must give off some light.

And the start up currents will be monumental!

 

[R G]

I priced up a very large barn conversion and it took time to do , and they also wanted this that and the other , the job just mounted up and eventually came in at over £15K , never heard back from them , some mates of mine (Chipys) where working there and they got another sparks to do the job apparently for £10K , he was still working there 7 months later and still in first fix stage , when I spoke to my mates , he made a complete mess of it , I was Defo pleased I didn't get the job , because my mates also told me they were changing their mind every other day about spec etc , and they have had enough, so think again about pricing such a job,,