Just priced my first rewire, why is it so cheap?

[Tidy Max]

Hello everyone!

Just priced my first domestic rewire and i appear to be pretty darn cheap. I spent all of yesterday doing the quote, couldn't believe what it came out at. So i slept on it and have been back through it all again this morning and i can't seem to find where i have gone wrong.

I really wanted to avoid starting the old 'how much for a rewire' thread as other than the fact its been done to the death nobody can price a rewire without going seeing the job!

Anyway,
2 x men x 4 days
250m 2.5 t+e
150 1.5 t+e
100 3core 1.5t+e
10way wylex CU
all the breakers + 1xrcbo for appliance circuit
tails
bonding conductors
+ a contingent for the house being lived in

The client asked me to price the job WITHOUT fittings and the price came to £2200. I then priced up with the second fix being completed also just with basic white fittings and even then with the additional labour it only came to £2600.

The house is a medium sized council house, 2 up 2 down but large kitchen/garage. I am not making good after as she is getting plasterer/painter and decorator.

Of the jobs i've been pricing the passed couple of months a rewire should be very straight forward to quote but i can't help but feel i'm missing something!

Any help/advice would be much appreciated. Maybe i am just not putting enough profit on, not only do i not want to do myself out of money but i don't want to be massively under cutting other sparks too.

I charge 360 a day per 2 man team (inc myself!) and the other lad gets 150 a day.

Any advice as always is much appreciated!

 

[PEG]

Could'nt agree more,what a carry-on booking a Hetas registered chimney sweep to spend all morning and faffing and certifying when a simple goose or my 5 year old could do the same job in 10 minutes.....

 

[i=p/u]

Aye but who has two sockets in a room and who has trunking all over the walls .. Your off your rocker e54... You might know your stuff but you are a goat that loves to criticise British sparks constantly cause your not here... Your allowed your opinion or to dribble should i say ... Lol

 

[D Skelton]

In a way he's right, one of the first 'big' jobs I ever took on was rewiring 102 occupied two bed flats, all identical. We got it down to 2 days per including hidden wiring and making good! It works if you are used to working day in day out in essentially what is the same property but with a different number on the door. Still, most rewires aren't like this hence the 7 days. You have to factor in cable routing, taking up far more boards than is probably neccessary, more than one switch per room, more than two sockets per room, more than one light fitting per room, a heating system's accociated wiring, outside lighting and/or power, a light in the loft, a wired alarm system, any A/V requirements, coax cabling etc... Far more than your typical council surface rewire.

 

[Sparks1962]

Well she didn't want me to quote for fixings, so i have said £2650 first fix but with CU, breakers, smokes tails bonding etc OR £2950 with basic white plastic fittings + all chases being made good by my plasterer. I updated the quote to allow for 2 men 6 days then 1 man on a final day.

I will take some pictures if i do end up going back just so you can all see what it is like. Not that you haven't seen a house before but maybe just out of interest after all the help that has been offered up!

Fingers crossed, i think the client wanted to go with me because i came across genuine and told her the best thing to do was to get quotes off other people etc etc so we will see. I will keep the thread updated though. All the help has as always is/has been very much appreciated

Sounds like a good price to me. Down here people would bite your hand off! Hope you get it

 

[Sparks1962]

Hmmm... cue Monty Python's Four Yorkshiremen sketch..

 

[Guitarist]

I think that those who talk about having a system with identical properties are spot-on. I have to admit that with most properties it takes me a day just to work out what the customer wants, where everything is being sited, and where the cables are being routed. Then, when it's all decided and you get a board up, or start a chase, you find that there's something hidden in the way and you have to rethink....
I can guarantee that however long I think a rewire will take, I always have to add 2 days.

 

[cornishboy]

I think your price should be 2.5 to 3 k for occupied rewires as I think materials are the cheapest they have ever been £45/5o for occupied 10 way board sockets for £1.50 , I can remember wen u only got flat 30% off Crabtree and MK twin sockets around £5.00.I agree that Proteus was rubbish in the 80's and 90,s but they have now upped the games the boards are solid and solid linking would fit with no concerns as for MK I would no longer fit as I can remember a time when MK stood for quality not any more the boards are flimsy and contain Chinese parts at one time it was Merlin Gerin and previously Siemens components in the boards I think people just wont try other stuff and stick to MK as for me I like Crabtree or fitting Hager boards as the components are French and quality at least the French are patriotic and support their manufacturing industry, end of my Sunday rant!

 

[davethsparky]

French, does it come with a free white flag in every box?
We don't want none of that surrender monkey nonsense over here thankyou very much!

 

[SPARTYKUS]

Just waiting for the "I rewired a house with everything in it in 4 hours" reply.....

Didnt have to wait too long!

rewires are subject to the 80/20 rule. 20 % of the work can take 80% of the time.

unless it is a council surface mount job.

i don't care anyway I'm a welder.

 

[Engineer54]

Aye but who has two sockets in a room and who has trunking all over the walls .. Your off your rocker e54... You might know your stuff but you are a goat that loves to criticise British sparks constantly cause your not here... Your allowed your opinion or to dribble should i say ... Lol

Ha ha, you haven't a clue and i'm far from off my rocker, ....the council rewires i'm talking about, used PVC conduit, and then only for drops. They were basically installed to a high standard in those days too, unlike the the crap you expect to see today, and probably what you're talking about!!!

I don't criticise British sparks, i criticise the ''Wannabe'' British Sparks that actually ''Think'' they are Sparks!!

.....Now dribble is something best left to yourself, you seem to be very proficient in the area of dribble!!

 

[Tidy Max]

The customer has been in touch today. Way too expensive. They were shocked at the expense.
Ground Floor Radial
Kitchen Ring
Appliance Radial
Immersion heater
Ground Floor lighting
1st Floor Lighting
a bit of architectural lighting on the stair case (3 alcoves in the wall that i was going to light up with LED tape)
1st floor ring

After everything we discussed i didn't think it was expensive. Anyway, polite email back explaining why and the additional cost just due to the house being lived in. Recommended her to have an EICR to see if the property really needs a full rewire.

Ahh well

I was looking forward to doing that one!

 

[telectrix]

cheapskates then. better without that sort of customer. these are the sort that won't blink an eyelid at a £6000 kitchen ( which will not cook any better than a £500 bargain basement jobby ).

 

[Tidy Max]

Im sure you are right Tel. I can't help but think she is going to get and get quotes off Beebop and Rocksteady down at the pub and come off thinking that i was a cowboy trying to take advantage of a single mum

 

[D Skelton]

As Tel said, much better off without these sorts of customer. Thankfully I have managed to banish them all from my life!

My new response to customers who want to 'discuss' my price is; "yeah, sure, no problem, I charge £200 per hour for price consultation"

 

[trev]

The simple answer to anyone that's trying to haggle. "If I were to lower my price then you'd be convinced that I was trying to rip you off with the original one. As it is I'm cutting my own throat at that so if you can get it any cheaper then go ahead but make sure they're insured and able to do EVERYTHING the job needs. Good day sir/Madam"