starting out! the real cost

[alarm man]

following on from the tools thread,those who are looking to get into the game be it di,commercial or industrial on top of all the course costs,you then need the van,tools,drills spares etc,insurance,scheme membership,what is the real start up cost of all this,and is it really worth while,ive never done it and cant see me doing it,but its got me thinking of the real cost of becoming a self employed spark new to the game...

 

[fuzzydunlop]

Going along this route myself at the moment to do it to a decent level of equipment i'd say 10k

 

[telectrix]

10K, you must be buying a range rover . ::

 

[robsparky1975]

10k easy,fastrack courses charge £8k for a "platinum package",may as well add £5k for a van,tools,scheme provider,pl ins,tester,advertsing,website etc,and of course a few quid in the bank for hard times,there is no get rich quick in this industry"a sparky is not just for xmas they are for a lifetime"

 

[fuzzydunlop]

10K, you must be buying a range rover . ::

Tools, Van, Insurance, Scheme membership, Petrol, soon adds up. You could probably do it for 5k but spend half your time waiting for the AA to pick you up of the motorway and the other half repairing/replacing all the cheap tools you've bought

 

[alarm man]

10K, you must be buying a range rover . ::

with the self funded training and the rest id say about 10k or more

 

[fuzzydunlop]

with the self funded training and the rest id say about 10k or more

To give you an idea (for me) I paid £5,800 for my course (2330 lvl 2+3, NVQ3, 17th + Solar PV)

Spent about £2.5 k on tools (a lot more than i probably need at the moment but, i like tools)

Set aside £3k for a van, insurance and a pot for repairs etc.. £1k. Stock £500?, Niceic membership £800, Advertising £500(ish)

So by the time i'm done for the first year it will have probably cost me nearer £15k

 

[telectrix]

i bought my van ( 1998 nissan ) august 2010. for £800. 12 months later, after spending nowt but diesel and no trouble whatsoever, MOT only required 3 brake pipes.

 

[Richard Burns]

Training costs, but if you get the basics thereafter and move on up from there.
I cant afford a van at the moment (I had a van for 20 years got a different job and sold it for a car!)
Get the testing gear <£1K, toolkit <£200, stock starting about £1k, insurance, scheme <£600, build up slowly.