Having work done in kitchen...think price is too cheap!!

S

samanthajane

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Not that i'm moaning about the price being cheap..i just thought with the work that needed to be done it would be alot more expensive than what i was quoted. I triple checked with the builder what all the costs included, i didn't mis-hear.

I am getting 2 walls knocked down, a toilet and sink removed from the down stairs bathroom, all fittings to be rerouted into where the bathroom is i'm turning it into a utility room, there's a wall between where the washing machine is now and where i want it to be. Plug sockets to be put into utility room, A radiator is being re-moved. then every thing will be re-plastered on the ceiling and where ever else needed. All rubbish will be removed, and hey presto my kitchen is now bigger with a new utility room.

All for the price for 600 euro! ( not including the electrican, but the builder has said it will be around 100 ) He said something about taking up a couple of the floor boards upstairs for the electrican to do what ever he needs to do, but the builder said he would have all that ready for him, it will be cheaper as i will be paying for his time and this will make it quicker for him.

Is this what builders would normally charge? I'm a bit dim when it comes to these sort of things, i would of thought at least 1500-2000 euro for this job to be done.
 
I think its a bit too cheap IMO.

Even a skip to take the waste is going to cost at least €100.

How is the going to protect house and belongings from dust and damage whilst carrying out work. Does he have insurance, is he legit (tax compliant) etc. Could go on and on. But if the price is this low I would look for a breakdown on costs and ask him to describe in simple terms about the whole job from start to finish.
 
As you will always hear

If it sounds too good to be true...it usually is
 
Hi Samanthajane,

I am interested in what you say there. I think the quote is too cheap and I am wondering if it was a written quote you got and maybe a zero was missing!
I have been quoted recently for some work in my kitchen which involves removal of part of a supporting wall as follows:
Remove existing archway from kitchen/dining area. Prop ceiling both sides. Remove wall and insert RSJ to new widened opening (steel to be underside of ceiling) replaster wall area affected by works; remove existing radiator and supply and fit new radiator to agreed position. I was quoted 2,870 euro for that. I think it is a little bit expensive maybe, but I'm not sure. Would anyone have any comments on the price?
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Ok 1 got 1 thing wrong, the price doesn't include the skip I have to order and pay for that myself.

But I checked again, and for everything above minus the removable of the rubbish it's 600 euro plus the electrican at approx 100 euro.

I do kind of know this guy, well I know his wife but only in a professional way, I wouldn't say she is a friend or anything.
 
I recently surveyed a house where work similar to above was being considered.

The client could tell me exactly what needed to be done as a 'professional builder' had been there before me and outlined the course of work that had to be done. I say this because Roy Rogers reckoned it was ok to break through and remove a concrete block wall bearing the second storey and not be required to install a beam of any kind because the joists were running the right way.

I advised the customer that I would not be quoting as if this was the standard of builder they were speaking with I would not be competitive. I did let them know that houses are build using engineers that design methods of distributing the structural forces through the structure from the roof down into the foundations.
If you interfere with this design structure in any manner you need to have the forces re-evaluated and a design system of redirecting / distributing the loads.

Samanthajane, I can't see how it is possible for this work to be done for the price you have been quoted, Noilheart is closer to the price and possibly some more for this work to be done correctly and to grant you peace of mind should you ever have a structural issue down the line.

For example if you had a pyrite issue like so many others your claim would be null and voided if you have made these structural changes without having a structural redesign in place to cater for the loads.

No matter how many of these break throughs that I do, I always get a design second opinion as each and every situation is subtly different.

Be sure that your contractor is suitably insured for the work and has the professional indemnity to cover the design of such a break through. It is not enough to know how it is done, you need to know that you are covered if something goes wrong.
 
I recently had some work done in my house for which I got a good few quotes. The work was as follows:

Knocking 2 walls and supporting them and putting up rsj's
moving 2 radiators from the walls that were knocked to another area of the kitchen
Removal of ceiling rose, placing 4 spots on the ceiling and plastering the area
Plastering and skimming the area where the walls were knocked
2 new sockets on the wall and a tv point and socket placed high on the wall so that a tv could be mounted and the wires hidden
All surfaces protected and all waste removed.

The total price was 3k and the work was excellent and took 3 days to complete. We had other quotes but nothing near this. I felt that the price was very competitive. 600 does seem very cheap.
 
samanthajane said:
Not that i'm moaning about the price being cheap..i just thought with the work that needed to be done it would be alot more expensive than what i was quoted. I triple checked with the builder what all the costs included, i didn't mis-hear.

I am getting 2 walls knocked down, a toilet and sink removed from the down stairs bathroom, all fittings to be rerouted into where the bathroom is i'm turning it into a utility room, there's a wall between where the washing machine is now and where i want it to be. Plug sockets to be put into utility room, A radiator is being re-moved. then every thing will be re-plastered on the ceiling and where ever else needed. All rubbish will be removed, and hey presto my kitchen is now bigger with a new utility room.

All for the price for 600 euro! ( not including the electrican, but the builder has said it will be around 100 ) He said something about taking up a couple of the floor boards upstairs for the electrican to do what ever he needs to do, but the builder said he would have all that ready for him, it will be cheaper as i will be paying for his time and this will make it quicker for him.

Is this what builders would normally charge? I'm a bit dim when it comes to these sort of things, i would of thought at least 1500-2000 euro for this job to be done.
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His estimate for the electrican is too low . The utility room will be heavy load & should be run back to the fuseboard
 
SJ you are not going to get a good job for that price, it's way too low. It will end up costing you more in the long run. Have you checked out other work he has done?

Eng I don't know any skip for 100, more like 300 to 400
 
Bronte said:
SJ you are not going to get a good job for that price, it's way too low. It will end up costing you more in the long run. Have you checked out other work he has done?

Eng I don't know any skip for 100, more like 300 to 400
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you'd get a small size skip for €250 or less down the country

First thing that springs to mind with all of this is is it a cash job or has VAT etc been added? There is also no mention of reflooring/tiling/skirting boards or anything else nor of possibly having to move the washing machine inflow and outflow pipes.

If you are knocking walls, get an engineer to look at it first,

Are you sure this isn't the builder from Fawlty Towers?
 
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