kev.k

~
Jan 18, 2015
30
12
83
Manchester
Hi all!

I have posted on here before for advice on pricing and received some really great advice so wanted to see if I am still in the ball park of fair pricing. I still work for a company but on shifts so have been doing more and more work on my days off. Still unsure whether to just work out a day rate for myself or whether it depends on the job itself how to price. I'm based in the North West.

I have been asked to quote for a new kitchen, the house recently had an EICR and the kitchen ring was fine so they don't want a new circuit just the existing altering.

6 new points for appliances
2 cooker circuits approx 10 metres from CU (hob and double oven) as no cooker circuits currently in
10 spotlights on 2 seperate switches running from existing feeds but new switch wires in new location
Pendant light on seperate switch
Light in conservatory on adjoining wall (no light currently in)
All chrome accessories (10 sockets in total, 2 switches, 10 spots)

If i've missed anything let me know.

Thanks
 
First things first. Price up all the materials that you will be supplying and add 10% to this figure.
Then try to work out roughly how long in hours that it will take you including testing, paperwork etc.
Are you making good around new boxes and chases? if yes add this to your hourly price.
Add materials to the labour and then stick an extra half day on top for mistakes and alterations to the plan.
Now you have a price to put forward to the homeowner.

I would be somewhere in the £2000-2500 ball park in Surrey South East.
 
First things first. Price up all the materials that you will be supplying and add 10% to this figure.
Then try to work out roughly how long in hours that it will take you including testing, paperwork etc.
Are you making good around new boxes and chases? if yes add this to your hourly price.
Add materials to the labour and then stick an extra half day on top for mistakes and alterations to the plan.
Now you have a price to put forward to the homeowner.

I would be somewhere in the £2000-2500 ball park in Surrey South East.
Thanks for your reply!

I estimate 1 day first fix, 1 day second fix with testing. Plasterer will be coming in after first fix so no making good needed.

I have priced up all materials cable, accessories, lights etc at around £400 so was thinking 1400 but maybe I am too low, although with you being in Surrey it's obviously higher rates down there.

Thanks again!
 
If thats a grand in your hand and you are confident in your 2 days getting the job done without any issues then its about right.
Don't go any lower. 1400 is a very fair price for that amount of work.
I personally wouldn't do it for 1400 but if you are happy then thats all the matters
 
If thats a grand in your hand and you are confident in your 2 days getting the job done without any issues then its about right.
Don't go any lower. 1400 is a very fair price for that amount of work.
I personally wouldn't do it for 1400 but if you are happy then thats all the matters
THis... any job you walk away happy is a good job !
 
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Any current RCD protection - RCD's/RCBO's req'd?
Existing board - suitability/capacity
Earthing & Bonding?
Part P Notification - New Circuits
 
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If in as a builder, I always do materials + 10% + amount of days + 1 extra day in case of unforeseen problems/unforeseen costs.

So for me

((day rate * days) + 1 day) + (materials + 10%) = price

250 * 2 + 250 + 400 + 40 = £1190 in the North East

If in as a spark you can do say £50 per point and do 46 * 50 = £2300 - materials = £1900.

I've never priced up electrical work so i'm just going by what some people say they want per point, including every outlet/light point plus every switch. Seems dear to me lol, i wouldn't pay it anyway, but you look at guys like Artisan Electrics charging insane sums of money and he's always in work. If everyone charged more...well, a rising tide lifts all boats. And personally i'd rather work half the year for double the money if i could get it rather than work the whole year for half the pay.

My neighbour paid £180 on Thursday to have his gutters cleared and have two gable tiles repointed. It took them 45 minutes and they looked like an absolute bunch of scruffs, jumped out of a battered 25 year old van, looking like they both needed a shower, swearing at each other and generally being loud, disruptive and scrotey. They knocked on and tried to tell my wife ours needed doing even though they've recently been done. Didn't realise i was in LOL. Nice to try scamming an 8 month pregnant woman home alone though.

Puts it into perspective.
 
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I have said this on here before (several times) and i will say it again

4 - 5 years to train as an electrician, maybe more these day
cps scam fee + insurance fee + very expensive test year + expensive insulated tools + work van + work clothes + admin

Vetted , qualified , scam registered electricians SHOULD be charging a bare minimum of £80 per hour

You got wet pants in my area charging £140-150 for changing blooming sink taps which takes zero qualifications and about 30 quids worth of basic tools and takes about 45 mins max

Our trade is charging no where near what it should be , we should be the most expensive trade by a mile yet I know plasterers and painters clearing £800 per day on price work
 
I have said this on here before (several times) and i will say it again

4 - 5 years to train as an electrician, maybe more these day
cps scam fee + insurance fee + very expensive test year + expensive insulated tools + work van + work clothes + admin

Vetted , qualified , scam registered electricians SHOULD be charging a bare minimum of £80 per hour

You got wet pants in my area charging £140-150 for changing blooming sink taps which takes zero qualifications and about 30 quids worth of basic tools and takes about 45 mins max

Our trade is charging no where near what it should be , we should be the most expensive trade by a mile yet I know plasterers and painters clearing £800 per day on price work
Here here. I thought i had a lot of tools as a builder already but the amount of extras i'm having to buy because i'm getting into sparking is ridiculous.

Just a decent proving unit for your voltage tester is £100+!

The problem with electrics is stuff can look like it's functioning alright. It's only once they notice a burning smell or RCD's keep tripping that they'll get someone in. Can't do the same if your bathroom tap won't turn off fully or you're leaking water everywhere.

The tools + the training + all the fees for scams plus continual professional development + the danger factor of working with electric should mean sparks should be on a minimum of £300 a day nationwide imo.

In other countries where trades are regulated there are minimum wage amounts. Average take home salary in Sweden is almost £4k a month cards-in.
 
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I brought some 'new' probe test leads from Ebay recently and they were dreadful, fakes I reckon as the plugs ends made a really poor contact and gave me some very high read outs

I messaged the seller and they must have know they were fakes as they told me to throw them in the bin and they refunded me straight away

buyer beware i guess, if the price is too good to be true then it probably is
 
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I have said this on here before (several times) and i will say it again

4 - 5 years to train as an electrician, maybe more these day
cps scam fee + insurance fee + very expensive test year + expensive insulated tools + work van + work clothes + admin

Vetted , qualified , scam registered electricians SHOULD be charging a bare minimum of £80 per hour

You got wet pants in my area charging £140-150 for changing blooming sink taps which takes zero qualifications and about 30 quids worth of basic tools and takes about 45 mins max

Our trade is charging no where near what it should be , we should be the most expensive trade by a mile yet I know plasterers and painters clearing £800 per day on price work
Very true..I know others that are now in CCTV, Wet pants or Kitchen work etc . Very simple in reality and better money . The race to the bottom was people wanting to compete with eastern Euro people who could live 8 in a room etc and save what they could to build a house at home. Investing NOTHING in this country .
 
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Vetted , qualified , scam registered electricians SHOULD be charging a bare minimum of £80 per hour
That bis about right. In the contracts I used to be involved in that was the rate they changed for technical support work (so qualified engineer, but not PhD level) to account for the overheads of running a business.

The rule-of-thumb I was told is you need to charge about double what you hope to earn to allow for your overheads such has tools/van, insurance, calibration fees, "professional body" fees (no, not her body...), accountancy, as well as the risk of not being paid due to no work/unable to work from injury/not paid by some scroat.
 
Hi all!

I have posted on here before for advice on pricing and received some really great advice so wanted to see if I am still in the ball park of fair pricing. I still work for a company but on shifts so have been doing more and more work on my days off. Still unsure whether to just work out a day rate for myself or whether it depends on the job itself how to price. I'm based in the North West.

I have been asked to quote for a new kitchen, the house recently had an EICR and the kitchen ring was fine so they don't want a new circuit just the existing altering.

6 new points for appliances
2 cooker circuits approx 10 metres from CU (hob and double oven) as no cooker circuits currently in
10 spotlights on 2 seperate switches running from existing feeds but new switch wires in new location
Pendant light on seperate switch
Light in conservatory on adjoining wall (no light currently in)
All chrome accessories (10 sockets in total, 2 switches, 10 spots)

If i've missed anything let me know.

Thanks
I would be approx £1780 - £1900 (very approx, as it's impossible to be accurate without seeing it first). I'm in Gloucestershire.

There's no way I could do that in 2 days. I would be 3-4 days.

You are likely to be able to get away with 1 new cooker circuit as long as the combined kW is below 15kW (remember diversity) and there is no socket on the cooker switch, plus the oven and hob would have to be near to each other. Then use a dual cooker outlet plate.
 
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I agree , I no longer rush and certainly no longer pull 11-12 hour days

So on a standard kitchen rewire I would allow a minimum of 2.5 days , 3 days if it was a big kitchen , 4 days if a new consumer unit is required
 
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