Gas fitters in la la land.

Ectophile

£3K for a central heating system sounds like a bargain to me.  Fitting a gas boiler isn't like plugging in an electric heater.  There's a lot of work to be done.  Just swapping a boiler takes a couple of days.  Installing a whole new heating system will take longer.

Plus there's all the overheads of running the business.  They have to pay for a van (with insurance, servicing, diesel and so on).  They have to be Gas Safe registered, which costs money, and there's the compulsory training that they have to pay for.  There's also the product liability insurance to pay.

jefaz07

the_gardener_2 said:

maisie_cat said:

You are not paying them for their actual time, you are paying for qualifications, regulation compliance, CPD, experience, overheads etc etc.

Yes I get it and they are self employed.    Although the real big money seems to be putting in ground pumps etc   .      
As an aside.
I know a solicitor who works as a salaried employee for a local authority and specialises in planning and property matters.   Her gross salary is around 40 k.   
 

Get her to fit your boiler then. 

niktheguru

How does changing a boiler take 2 days? In my experience they've been able to do it in a day. Of course there'll be some complex jobs that take a long time and some straight forward swaps that are instant. It also depends how hard they want to work. Are they someone that comes early and works hard, or are they on the phone half the time, come late, have a large lunch break etc etc.
These people earn more out of a job that takes a couple of days than most of us earn in a month. I dont mind if the quality is excellent, but sometimes the final quality of work can leave a lot to be desired, despite the high cost! I'm definitely in the wrong career, instead I earn a fraction whilst being fully exposed to covid!

AskAsk

niktheguru said:

How does changing a boiler take 2 days? In my experience they've been able to do it in a day. Of course there'll be some complex jobs that take a long time and some straight forward swaps that are instant. It also depends how hard they want to work. Are they someone that comes early and works hard, or are they on the phone half the time, come late, have a large lunch break etc etc.
These people earn more out of a job that takes a couple of days than most of us earn in a month. I dont mind if the quality is excellent, but sometimes the final quality of work can leave a lot to be desired, despite the high cost! I'm definitely in the wrong career, instead I earn a fraction whilst being fully exposed to covid!

a straight combi boiler swap takes about a day and if it isn't a straight awap then it can take a few days as there are pipes to run if you have to remove a hot water tank.

from the charge out rate for tradesmen, you would think that they earn around 70k to 80k a year.  a gas engineer earns more than a professional, so it is a good job to go into if you are not academically inclined.  there is a risk with being self employed and running a business.

fenwick458

if it's such a lucrative business then why don't you start fitting boilers yourself?

the_gardener_2

Is it a surprise some break the law ?   I know a local builder who installs heating systems him self and gets a gas fitter to commission the work and nice little cash bung.   Illegal of course but a surprise , not me !!!
Sadly he would not disclose the name of said GSR person, I am a bit suspicious. 
I can add up the cost of parts and estimate which makes the issue all the more annoying.   I used to install irrigations systems years ago for the horticultural trade.  Cutting and joining pipe is not exactly skilled work.   Screwing rads and pipe to the wall ,
does require years of training I guess (not).     

the_gardener_2

fenwick458 said:

if it's such a lucrative business then why don't you start fitting boilers yourself?

The thought had occurred to me.  Although electrical work looks to have a better future.    

AskAsk

the_gardener_2 said:

fenwick458 said:

if it's such a lucrative business then why don't you start fitting boilers yourself?

The thought had occurred to me.  Although electrical work looks to have a better future.    

a roofer earns more than either of these professions, judging by their charges and they don't have to qualify in anything!  there is of course a time limit as you wouldn't want to climb up so high in bad weather when you are older.

Norman_Castle

AskAsk said:

from the charge out rate for tradesmen, you would think that they earn around 70k to 80k a year.  a gas engineer earns more than a professional, so it is a good job to go into if you are not academically inclined.  there is a risk with being self employed and running a business.

A professional what? Being a gas engineer is a profession.

AskAsk

Norman_Castle said:

AskAsk said:

from the charge out rate for tradesmen, you would think that they earn around 70k to 80k a year.  a gas engineer earns more than a professional, so it is a good job to go into if you are not academically inclined.  there is a risk with being self employed and running a business.

A professional what? Being a gas engineer is a profession.

when someone says a professional, they often mean someone like an accountant, a solicitor, a surveyor, a mortgage advisor, a bank manager, an insurance broker, white collar profession.  or at least, those are the people I mean, where you would need to have a university degree and often also a professional qualification post graduate.