Damp Course Proofing - Credit Crunch Discount??

CannyCat_2

Hi,

We need the entire ground floor of our small Victorian terraced house damp-coursed -- we have needed it done for 2 1/2 years now, since we bought it, but being 1st time buyers mortgaged up to the hilt, we have not been able to afford it until now (thank crunchie for tracker mortgages!!).

We have received a range of quotes between 4k - 10k suggesting varying levels of service (i.e. some include small quantities of tanking, some include the hallway but not others etc etc).

We got these quotes about 8 months ago in the spring, before the credit crunch had hit, but as I said we couldn't afford it then. We were thinking that now, what with the "credit crunch" and plummeting house market, Damp Course Proofers will inevitabley be suffering from reduced levels of custom, and we thought if they're desperate enough for our custom we may be able to haggle it down??

Are we right? I'd really appreciate any suggestions on how to go about this, and also how much of a reduction we could realistically expect to aim for?

Thanks,

Catherine

mikey72

I had a two bedroom terrace done, cream injection, no hall but a kitchen extension. Insurance backed guarantee as well. It was the injection only, I did the preparation , and tanking and re-plastering, it was £400. I think the dearest realistic quote I had was about £2500, for the entire job. (I did have a quote of £2000 for just the damp proof injection, from a large company, so shop around)

cargo

4k to 10k are you living in a swamp?

slummymummyof3

Make sure it is backed by an insurance backed guarantee - you are right damp proofing companies etc will be affected by the downturn and as such many will go bust. Therefore you will be protected provided the work is insurance backed for a period of 20-25 years depending on the company.

baldelectrician

I may suggest getting other quotes where you do the labour intensive dirty part of the job.

Cutting the wall up to 1m from floor level, hacking off the old plaster and clearing things up.

owls

Im a self employed dampproofer/ plasterer and i can honestly say we are still very busy and booked up, ive found that people arnt moving and are tending to be spending money on there existing home,so i wouldnt knock any money off as my costs of labour raw materials etc are only going one way, upwards.You may get a different offer from a multinational company tho, with vastly higher overheads.

as regards your estimate 4- 10k it sounds far too high. a suggested offer to knock all the old plasterwork off would be good as this will save them time and yourself money.

CannyCat_2

Thanks for all the helpful replies -- I'm relieved to know that 4k sounds on the high side, however that's after 5 quotes...!

Porky996T

For a reputable contractor I would look here in the first instance.

http://www.bwpda.co.uk/

It is the trade body for Damp-proofers.


Good Luck,


Porky.