Rough cost to have a new bathroom done.
Discussion
Driver101 said:
Then I thought maybe Rated People was worth a try. It was only two Poles that approached me. One came to the house and came across as a really genuine guy. The issue was he wanted us to buy all the stuff and he'd do the work. That isn't what I asked for in the job description. His hourly rate was only £30 per hour, but he said it was a two man job for two weeks and labour would be £5000.
Personally I've had no luck with rated people, sites like that can be fiddled. I had a one guy offering me a discount @ the end of a job in exchange for a good review. Edited by Driver101 on Monday 13th March 21:32
Word of mouth & recommendation is the best way, albeit difficult, particularly if you don't know the area.
I would always prefer to source my own fittings, and pay someone to fit. You can research what you're getting and shop around on price. I know the guy who has installed a few kitchens and bathrooms for us prefers this too. I'm guessing it keeps him below the VAT threshold.
I've used his account/trade discount at suppliers, then settle on a card so the stuff doesn't' go near his books.
Edited by PositronicRay on Tuesday 14th March 07:28
Without doubt the best way to find a tradesman is through the personal recommendations of people you know and trust.
Another option may be to see if your local community has facebook page, then ask on there for local recommendations. I live in a smallish town and this happens frequently on our towns facebook page.
Another option may be to see if your local community has facebook page, then ask on there for local recommendations. I live in a smallish town and this happens frequently on our towns facebook page.
Our bathroom was finished yesterday. Chose the company via CheckATrade. Fitting cost was £2850, took one fitter 8 full day's start to finish. Very pleased with the result and will be contacting them today to book them to do more work for us. That cost included:
Full bathroom strip including floor, walls and ceiling
Plaster board and plaster ceiling
Paint ceiling
Plaster board and tile walls
Fit underfloor heating
Install all lighting (ceiling, bath, vanity unit, above mirror)
Tile floor
All plumbing
All electrics
Fit bath, toilet, sink, shower
Remove all waste
It was quite an in depth job, we went tick all options, do the job once and do it right.
Bear in mind that another quote I had for labour alone came in at £5.5k!
Full bathroom strip including floor, walls and ceiling
Plaster board and plaster ceiling
Paint ceiling
Plaster board and tile walls
Fit underfloor heating
Install all lighting (ceiling, bath, vanity unit, above mirror)
Tile floor
All plumbing
All electrics
Fit bath, toilet, sink, shower
Remove all waste
It was quite an in depth job, we went tick all options, do the job once and do it right.
Bear in mind that another quote I had for labour alone came in at £5.5k!
Edited by foxsasha on Tuesday 14th March 08:43
We went along to the Bathstore just to see what they had. We choose splash panels rather than tiles to reduce labour costs. We picked out laminate flooring and panels for the roof on top of bathroom stuff. The quote for the goods was £3300.
The estimate for labour came the following day. They subcontract the work out to local tradesmen and guarantee their work. Two of the guys they use are Polish and the other she said was a young lad. None of them have a business I could look up to see their work. Their quote for labour was £4500 with an 8 week wait.
I don't think the £4500 even covers the painting of the other walls and doors.
Bathstore's own online guide says the average bathroom costs between £3000-4500 fitted, yet my labour alone is at the top figure of their total average.
The estimate for labour came the following day. They subcontract the work out to local tradesmen and guarantee their work. Two of the guys they use are Polish and the other she said was a young lad. None of them have a business I could look up to see their work. Their quote for labour was £4500 with an 8 week wait.
I don't think the £4500 even covers the painting of the other walls and doors.
Bathstore's own online guide says the average bathroom costs between £3000-4500 fitted, yet my labour alone is at the top figure of their total average.
After a few months of getting messed around we finally went ahead with the bathroom. I genuinely wished I hadn't as I'm very pissed off about it all.
We started off with a plumber known to her family. He said he'd take on the job and had a few tradesmen he knew.
First day we had the bathroom stripped out by lunchtime and I was doing the majority of the work. On subsequent days I was at home and shocked by the lack of activity and the extended breaks and chats with anybody that came near my house.
Nothing ever went to plan and required additional work. Some of the work I agreed was needed like new parts of the wall and parts of the floor were required.
Some days I came home from work and struggled to see where 8 hours had been wasted. The plumber lost an entire day as the previous waste pipe from the old toilet was too short. I was angry and he knew it as it was an easy decision and fix.
The work has been fragmented as the tradesmen are all too busy. Days here and there and everything put on hold to fit in other business.
The electrician struggled with basic work. He took ages to fit a heated mirror as nobody was here to help him lift it. It was already wired.He couldn't work out how to wire the LED light strip on the basin drawers. It took a second visit. We have still been charged £540+VAT plus material.
With the lack of tradesmen to do things like painting we took that job on. We have still have the flooring to go.
The labour bill is already £4500. We've paid some but I'm going to dispute other bills.
Their poor workmanship isn't top grade and they've been far too slow.
We started off with a plumber known to her family. He said he'd take on the job and had a few tradesmen he knew.
First day we had the bathroom stripped out by lunchtime and I was doing the majority of the work. On subsequent days I was at home and shocked by the lack of activity and the extended breaks and chats with anybody that came near my house.
Nothing ever went to plan and required additional work. Some of the work I agreed was needed like new parts of the wall and parts of the floor were required.
Some days I came home from work and struggled to see where 8 hours had been wasted. The plumber lost an entire day as the previous waste pipe from the old toilet was too short. I was angry and he knew it as it was an easy decision and fix.
The work has been fragmented as the tradesmen are all too busy. Days here and there and everything put on hold to fit in other business.
The electrician struggled with basic work. He took ages to fit a heated mirror as nobody was here to help him lift it. It was already wired.He couldn't work out how to wire the LED light strip on the basin drawers. It took a second visit. We have still been charged £540+VAT plus material.
With the lack of tradesmen to do things like painting we took that job on. We have still have the flooring to go.
The labour bill is already £4500. We've paid some but I'm going to dispute other bills.
Their poor workmanship isn't top grade and they've been far too slow.
Edited by Driver101 on Friday 15th September 23:10
Edited by Driver101 on Friday 15th September 23:11
Edited by Driver101 on Friday 15th September 23:21
I do live in Scotland so prices will be less. I find that ridiculously expensive. I paid a plumber £500 to fit the 2 sinks, bath, radiator and toilet. The guy who done the full room of tiles took 800. Including mirror sunk in etc and replwcing some plaster. Total labour 1300 and a few cups of t.
I removed the old tiles etc.
Also got the stuff from places everyone here said avoid. Nothing but good experiences tbh.
I removed the old tiles etc.
Also got the stuff from places everyone here said avoid. Nothing but good experiences tbh.
I should also add the plumber didn't want to take all the waste to the dump as he would have to pay. We hired a van and loaded all the stuff ourselves.
Once finished I don't think we will have much change out of £10k.
The company that is due to fit the flooring are very slow to respond. It was 10 days ago they came out to the house and took 4 days to give a quote. I accepted the quote within 10 minutes and the guy hasn't got back to me yet.
I was warned they were booked up for a few weeks. A response and a firm date would be a start.
It's just very clear that tradesmen have more than enough work. They can cherry pick the work they want, provide a terrible service and charge whatever they want.
Once finished I don't think we will have much change out of £10k.
The company that is due to fit the flooring are very slow to respond. It was 10 days ago they came out to the house and took 4 days to give a quote. I accepted the quote within 10 minutes and the guy hasn't got back to me yet.
I was warned they were booked up for a few weeks. A response and a firm date would be a start.
It's just very clear that tradesmen have more than enough work. They can cherry pick the work they want, provide a terrible service and charge whatever they want.
The plumber sent her the bill through email and it doesn't look right. He ordered some the bath stuff through his trade account to get a discount. He asked us to settle that bill when the goods arrived at the house. The bill at that time was £3000 which was paid.
His final bill includes the extra materials used, the radiator, his labour, the £3000 already paid and then adds VAT. He then deducts the £3000 already paid.
He's basically charged us VAT on a bill we had already settled. The stuff we ordered from the shop was about £3000 so either he's made a daft mistake, or he's at it.
His final bill includes the extra materials used, the radiator, his labour, the £3000 already paid and then adds VAT. He then deducts the £3000 already paid.
He's basically charged us VAT on a bill we had already settled. The stuff we ordered from the shop was about £3000 so either he's made a daft mistake, or he's at it.
Pheo said:
Sorry to hear that. I wasn't overly happy with my experience on last bathroom refurb so opted to do it myself this time.
One thing I will say is it's a hell of a lot of work. We are three weeks in and not fully functional. I underestimated how long full wall tiling would take!!
We didn't go for tiles. We opted for splash panels. The joiner bemoaned how hard they were to line up and this added to his workload.One thing I will say is it's a hell of a lot of work. We are three weeks in and not fully functional. I underestimated how long full wall tiling would take!!
They do look good finished though. Both him and the plumber took leftover bits at samples as they were impressed with the finished product.
I have never hd a good experience with people turning up just to do a bathroom, or just to do a kitchen. Too many chancers who frankly are not capable.
On the other hand, when doing a whole house renovation with a full service builder, I have been OK. The job is big enough to be worth it, the cost per room is smaller as it is part of other work they are doing, and they tend to move more quickly.
That is why on our renovation, we are finding the money to get everything done, rather than have to continually hunt down tradesmen to do smaller jobs over the years...
On the other hand, when doing a whole house renovation with a full service builder, I have been OK. The job is big enough to be worth it, the cost per room is smaller as it is part of other work they are doing, and they tend to move more quickly.
That is why on our renovation, we are finding the money to get everything done, rather than have to continually hunt down tradesmen to do smaller jobs over the years...
The electrician has responded. He is claiming 18 hours labour. That's for fitting 5 downlights, hanging a mirror with a simple bracket and plugging it in, changing 3 switches and wiring the LED light on the drawer.
There was already wiring in place for the downlights and mirror from the previously fitted items.
The young lad was here for 12 hours in total and admitted he took far too long as he didn't understand how to wire the LED strip on the drawers. He also said he struggled with the mirror on his own. They did remove the other lights earlier and put a temporary light in. I wasn't here and unaware how long he was here that day.
Nearly half a week's work for that? I'm not expecting too much am I?
There was already wiring in place for the downlights and mirror from the previously fitted items.
The young lad was here for 12 hours in total and admitted he took far too long as he didn't understand how to wire the LED strip on the drawers. He also said he struggled with the mirror on his own. They did remove the other lights earlier and put a temporary light in. I wasn't here and unaware how long he was here that day.
Nearly half a week's work for that? I'm not expecting too much am I?
Edited by Driver101 on Saturday 16th September 18:06
Im very sorry to read what you have been experiencing.
bathrooms and kitchens are minefields for people hiring someone to fit the stuff. too many trades take the michael.
i recently ambushed a pair of likely lads trying to talk an 80 year old lady in the house next to the one I've been restoring to pay 3k to fit some code 3 lead around her gable window which was showing water penetration. they soon left when i showed up.
bathrooms and kitchens are minefields for people hiring someone to fit the stuff. too many trades take the michael.
i recently ambushed a pair of likely lads trying to talk an 80 year old lady in the house next to the one I've been restoring to pay 3k to fit some code 3 lead around her gable window which was showing water penetration. they soon left when i showed up.
Driver101 said:
The electrician has responded. He is claiming 18 hours labour. That's for fitting 5 downlights, hanging a mirror with a simple bracket and plugging it in, changing 3 switches and wiring the LED light on the drawer.
There was already wiring in place for the downlights and mirror from the previously fitted items.
The young lad was here for 12 hours in total and admitted he took far too long as he didn't understand how to wire the LED strip on the drawers. He also said he struggled with the mirror on his own. They did remove the other lights earlier and put a temporary light in. I wasn't here and unaware how long he was here that day.
Nearly half a week's work for that? I'm not expecting too much am I?
Sorry, sparks needs a right hander. I'm tempted to take up,bathroom fitting, because it's a complete piece of piss !There was already wiring in place for the downlights and mirror from the previously fitted items.
The young lad was here for 12 hours in total and admitted he took far too long as he didn't understand how to wire the LED strip on the drawers. He also said he struggled with the mirror on his own. They did remove the other lights earlier and put a temporary light in. I wasn't here and unaware how long he was here that day.
Nearly half a week's work for that? I'm not expecting too much am I?
Edited by Driver101 on Saturday 16th September 18:06
We have a quote for our bathroom, includes new ceiling, new floor, shower, WC, basin, bath, tiling (but not the tiles) and floor covering. Quote is £8500 from someone I have known for years, so trust them. They have to strip the room, remove the wooden wall covering we currently have etc, so we plan to go away during the works.
Chrisgr31 said:
We have a quote for our bathroom, includes new ceiling, new floor, shower, WC, basin, bath, tiling (but not the tiles) and floor covering. Quote is £8500 from someone I have known for years, so trust them. They have to strip the room, remove the wooden wall covering we currently have etc, so we plan to go away during the works.
8.5k??? what are you having installed? a swimming pool???I'm sorry to read this. I run a bathroom installation company in the south east and the selling point is that we dedicate 2 men to your bathroom from day one. I have a sparky and a plasterer who come in when we need them. Most rooms take about 10-12 days to complete and cost on average £3800-£4500. That is for labour and materials to fit the sanitary ware and tiles supplied by you. So most people spend about £6500-£7500 in total.
I only ever give estimates and not quotes as you never know what you're going to find until it's ripped out. On the whole, unless there's surrounding evidence that something bad has been happening like a serious leak, the estimate is as good as a quote.
I'm in no way defending your installer, but there are some days in bathroom fitting when the client comes home and can't see much change. A lot of time can be spent in lofts and under floors where there's not much to see. Some tiles can also soak up a lot of time depending on how they cut. We've done plenty of jobs where there might be let's say 40 tiles on one wall and 30 of them are cuts that need doing on the large wet cutter in the garden. There could be a couple of flights of stairs etc. so time vanishes with not much to show but burnt calories!
I don't suppose my last two points are valid in your case, but thought I'd explain.
I hope you get a sensible resolution.
I only ever give estimates and not quotes as you never know what you're going to find until it's ripped out. On the whole, unless there's surrounding evidence that something bad has been happening like a serious leak, the estimate is as good as a quote.
I'm in no way defending your installer, but there are some days in bathroom fitting when the client comes home and can't see much change. A lot of time can be spent in lofts and under floors where there's not much to see. Some tiles can also soak up a lot of time depending on how they cut. We've done plenty of jobs where there might be let's say 40 tiles on one wall and 30 of them are cuts that need doing on the large wet cutter in the garden. There could be a couple of flights of stairs etc. so time vanishes with not much to show but burnt calories!
I don't suppose my last two points are valid in your case, but thought I'd explain.
I hope you get a sensible resolution.
Good last post, and all true.
From a client's point of view, this is all fine as long as it is explained, preferably with phone pics of progress. Too many tradesmen don't really understand that whilst this is a routine job for them, to each client it represents a big spend that they need to get comfortable with! Client skills and communication can make a big difference.
From a client's point of view, this is all fine as long as it is explained, preferably with phone pics of progress. Too many tradesmen don't really understand that whilst this is a routine job for them, to each client it represents a big spend that they need to get comfortable with! Client skills and communication can make a big difference.
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