Want a laugh - bathroom quote!

sindygirl58

I f the customer chooses to purchase his own high quality goods, I dont see that the fitter has the right to charge more for the installation compared to any old DIY stuff. the standard of work should be the same surely?
My OH does full installations, a team of two, he would charge, £2400 - £3000, dpending on extras ie additonal lightingetc. He has done installions of this size for as little as £1800.

hc25036

I didn't expect to cause so much comment! To be fair, we have gone over budget on fittings, but most of the excess is on high-quality vanity units (under sink and around toilet), wall tiles (which are large ones and presumably easier?) and a good-quality sink and bath.

At the end of the day (and I hate saying that...) the job is in a room smaller than 2 metres square to knock out a bath, sink and toilet, remove tiles, make good walls, overboard ceiling, plaster, re-tile, replace bath and toilet in same position, replace sink about 1 metre from current position, fit vanity units and cabinet, fit towel rail in same place as current radiator and an over-bath shower in same position as current one. Oh - and fit about 8 floor tiles.

I am shocked at a quote of £5k (did I say that was ex VAT?) for that, and so was the bathroom designer who recommended the fitter. Whilst I'm happy to accept the general rule about cost of fittings vs cost of labour, I could go to a bathroom warehouse and easily source some lower-quality bits for £1500 - would that halve the fitting cost?

I'm trying to get some more quotes, but the guys I've been recommended so far only really want the whole job, not just the fitting. I'll let you know how it ends up.

Thanks for all the comments so far.

Plasterer

hc25036 wrote: »

I didn't expect to cause so much comment! To be fair, we have gone over budget on fittings, but most of the excess is on high-quality vanity units (under sink and around toilet), wall tiles (which are large ones and presumably easier?) and a good-quality sink and bath.

At the end of the day (and I hate saying that...) the job is in a room smaller than 2 metres square to knock out a bath, sink and toilet, remove tiles, make good walls, overboard ceiling, plaster, re-tile, replace bath and toilet in same position, replace sink about 1 metre from current position, fit vanity units and cabinet, fit towel rail in same place as current radiator and an over-bath shower in same position as current one. Oh - and fit about 8 floor tiles.

I am shocked at a quote of £5k (did I say that was ex VAT?) for that, and so was the bathroom designer who recommended the fitter. Whilst I'm happy to accept the general rule about cost of fittings vs cost of labour, I could go to a bathroom warehouse and easily source some lower-quality bits for £1500 - would that halve the fitting cost?

I'm trying to get some more quotes, but the guys I've been recommended so far only really want the whole job, not just the fitting. I'll let you know how it ends up.

Thanks for all the comments so far.

Get a breakdown of the work and costs according - then we can really go to work.......I'll start the ball rolling Bonding and Plastering £300 all in
Come on plumbers/fitters/tilers dig deep....:rotfl:

suisidevw

Hi OP.

Have a similar size bathroom, was mank, see below pics of before and after and what our plumber did who is on htis board in fact......... all this inc underfloor heating etc and replastering/boarding inc ceiling was £1700 iirc.

Sounds v similar to you. HTH.

hc25036

Thanks Suisdevw. I suspect our room will be very similar to yours when it is knocked out, so it's good to have your cost as a comparison.

I'm finding it hard to get someone who is recommended to quote for fitting only without having dire warnings about extra costs if the supplier gets it wrong - which is fair enough. It's a shame as the designer has done a great job, but a bathroom on a piece of paper is no good to us!

ormus

mine cost:
free bath and basin. with taps. (all brand new).
wc from travis perkins about 70 quid.
shower mixer 50 quid, ebay.

floor tiles 50 quid BQ.
wall tiles. ebay. free cause i bought a pallet full and sold the rest for a profit.
adhesive say 25 quid.
wood for the floor prior to tiles. wickes. about 10 quid.
paint? wickes. about 5/10 quid for the ceiling and door.
new light. wickes 10 quid.
new mirror (i broke the old one). BQ 20 quid.
new toilet roll thingy. free.

misc: pipes/traps/fittings etc... wickes. about 20 quid.

sindygirl58

Sius.. you picc is lovely,

Again, I say we would do the job for £2600 ish!!
I need a holiday, where do you live? lol
Apart from plumbers look for qiotes and refs from general handy men or DIY types! or propertmaintenance ?

hc25036

I've told the original designer that I'm getting new quotes for the whole job in the hope that they will come up with another fitter. Otherwise I reckon you can pack your bags and head to the southeast Sindy!

Canucklehead

hc25036 wrote: »

I've told the original designer that I'm getting new quotes for the whole job in the hope that they will come up with another fitter. Otherwise I reckon you can pack your bags and head to the southeast Sindy!

Good evening: you need to get a couple of quotes and compare like for like. Labour costs are much higher in Surrey so what folks say they have paid elsewhere isn't relevant to your situation. Source the gear yourself (try plumbers merchants for decent prices on quality gear) and get a plumber recommended to you by a source you trust.The CIPHE has a number of qualified members working in your neck of the woods.

HTH

Canucklehead

P.S. How did you boiler installation go?

hc25036

Good memory Mr C! The boiler job was a masterpiece, including the fitter working out a way of saving us a lot of hassle by changing the plan for the gas supply. Final cost was about £2600.

Of course, you are right about getting more quotes and I have several coming next week, including an alternative suggested by the original designer. My concern in all of this has been supported in that the designer also feels the quote is much too high. Perhaps I should have started the thread with " what would you do in my 2mx2m bathroom for £6000?" http://images2.moneysavingexpert.com/images/forum_smilies/smile.gif Even at Surrey prices that is 2 people for 8-10 days.....