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Should you pay for 2 plumbers when only one is required


discobob
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Hi All

 

I got a quote for some plumbing work (en- suite refit) and was a bit shocked by the price as it to me worked out at @£60 per hour for the work. I phoned and questioned him raising this with him for him to say it's for 2 men (him and his son) - now the job is

 

Fit toilet - connecting to existing pipe work

Fit vanity to existing pipes

Fit radiator to existing pipes

Fit shower valve to existing pipes

Fit Shower cubicle

Replace a TRV on another radiator (different mounting system - not an olive)

 

Now the rom is that small it would be a very hard job to get two people into the room working at the same time although I might concede a second pair of hands may be useful for the cubicle fitting but I could have provided that.

 

So - should I have to pay effectively double rate for one man to be idle for a day - as the job isn't being done any quicker and how can they think they can get away with it?

 

This is a rhetorical question as I won't be appointing him for the work

 

Cheers

 

Bob

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Get someone else and offer to do the labour,better still watch a bit of youtube and tackle it yourself.Last plumber i had in (British Gas) just for a service caused leak on an elbow joint.Then said cant get one till 3days after playing with his laptop.I slammed his laptop shut and told him to get out.Popped to B&Q 35p for an elbow 15minutes later job done.I would never get any tradesman in now unless recomended by a friend.Oh and the 'cash in hand and i will knock off the VAT but no invoice mob'

Edited by Davyo
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My 84 year old mum decided she wanted the carpet cleaned in the hall of her tiny retirement flat. I don't really know why because it was quite new. She phoned somebody from the free paper. I was there when he came because I was going to a funeral that afternoon although I didn't pay much attention.

From ring the doorbell to gone he was there for no more than ten minutes and charged her £75. I was unaware he had finished otherwise I would have queried the bill. I am not exaggerating in any way ten minutes

 

In a similar vein, I know an old lady round the corner who was charged £300 to have her driveway cleaned by a bloke from (surprise surprise) the same free paper. He was only there about an hour.

It was a rubbish job and my son (then 18) went round with my pressure washer and tidied up all the bits he missed for her.

 

Somebody else I found out today is being charged £30 by a window cleaner to clean the windows on a small bog standard 1930s bungalow. I will be onto that in the week. I would have thought a tenner was fair.

 

I could go on and on, there are so many rip off merchants out there at the moment

Edited by Vince Green
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Get someone else and offer to do the labour,better still watch a bit of youtube and tackle it yourself.Last plumber i had in (British Gas) just for a service caused leak on an elbow joint.Then said cant get one till 3days after playing with his laptop.I slammed his laptop shut and told him to get out.Popped to B&Q 35p for an elbow 15minutes later job done.I would never get any tradesman in now unless recomended by a friend.Oh and the 'cash in hand and i will knock off the VAT but no invoice mob'

I have done all the "hidden" plumbing already - just wanted the finish bits done by a pro but it is looking more that way that I will be doing it!!

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The job will be quicker with two doing it. One can be putting all the bits of the toilet together whilst the other is altering pipework. One can be draining all the heating off whilst one is measuring position of new rad installing new tails,getting flooring up etc etc.

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hello, from your list it is just replacements except the cubicle and radiator valve, it should not be that hard to do it yourself, 2 things make sure your stop taps out side and in are working, use a new rubber seal for toilet and if tight a waterproof grease and do not over tighten the screws holding toilet to floor, buy the right tools £20, and tin of plumbers mate not ptfe tape, help guides available in wicks, it took a long time to find a realy good gas engineer to fit my sons new boiler after many stupid quotes to £4,250 including £60 an hour and for 4 days, peter did the job in 2 days, lovely pipe work and clean/tidy, 3 year warranty boiler as we did not use the boiler company recommendation engineer or it would be 10 year as quote above, peter £2,000 plus vat

Edited by oldypigeonpopper
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The job will be quicker with two doing it. One can be putting all the bits of the toilet together whilst the other is altering pipework. One can be draining all the heating off whilst one is measuring position of new rad installing new tails,getting flooring up etc etc.

My thoughts exactly. As for all the just have a go yourself there are lots of water regs that need to be adhered to. Plumbers mate has no place on hot or cold water in place of ptfe tape as its a sanitary putty for wastes.

 

Draining heating the heating and refilling after changing a radiator and re balancing the system can be at times a pain in the rear.

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The job will be quicker with two doing it. One can be putting all the bits of the toilet together whilst the other is altering pipework. One can be draining all the heating off whilst one is measuring position of new rad installing new tails,getting flooring up etc etc.

if you can get the young man of his mobile phone.

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My thoughts exactly. As for all the just have a go yourself there are lots of water regs that need to be adhered to. Plumbers mate has no place on hot or cold water in place of ptfe tape as its a sanitary putty for wastes.

 

Draining heating the heating and refilling after changing a radiator and re balancing the system can be at times a pain in the rear.

Not in his quote it isn't quicker - no rebalancing either. He just wanted me to sub his son for a day and a half - "pass us the screwdriver son" as due to limitations in space as said earlier

 

I do concur that 2 men SHOULD be a reduction in time and reduction in cost

 

As I said earlier I posed as rhetorical question :)

if you can get the young man of his mobile phone.

:) :) :thumbs up:
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The son is maybe serving his apprenticeship? How is he going to learn the trade without experience in the real world.

If the guy was charging £60 per hour then just dropped his lad off to do the work then fair enough that's not right. And I have seen it done.

 

How do you know how much the lad is getting though, the dad might be on £55 an hour and only gives the lad a fiver?.

Doesn't sound so bad then does it.

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the joys of the salaried people being on 50 grand a year moaning about the self employed making a living and working 14+ hours a day .

you have had a quote except it or go else where , that's the idea of having the quote surely ???

 

Talk about the moaning of life lol

Did you give the quote :lol:

 

OP. Take the quote or leave it, it's your choice. Out of curiosity have you had others and how did they compare?

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