Painting job - ideas on costing

An elderly friend has just had a guy in to paint a couple of garage doors (GRP) and re- Sadolin a couple of full height gates. It included doing some repairs (with filler) to the bottom of the up & over door frames. Apparently he removed all door fittings and gave all 2 coats. He re masticed around the frames.

He is charging £300 for labour and materials.

Do you think this is fair?

Reply to
John
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yes, and I would have charged more

Reply to
Phil L

IF it took more than a day, yes. For self employed work, you may reckn on no more than 200 working days a year..the rest are full of dealing with customers, sorting out equipment and buying materials and taking a wet day off. 200x£150 a day is only £30,000, and that has to cover costs of tools and vehicles and an accountant.

it sounds like a two day job to me..so I reckon its cheap.

Reply to
The Natural Philosopher

Seems cheap to me, especially including materials.

Reply to
The Medway Handyman

Few people realise this when booking us self employed types. I work 6 day most weeks, do most of my estimates on the way home late afternoon/early evening, sort out & restock the van on Sundays.

I reckon I can bill a bit more than 200 days a year, but only by working 60+ hours a week.

Reply to
The Medway Handyman

Why are you so bothered?

Reply to
Ian

Dave,

Now that's what I call idiocy - me, I was "at work" around 37 hours a week, had 36 days holidays a year (including bank holidays), meal breaks and 'tea' breaks, could claim my full wages when sick, had the use of a company vehicle, was literally my own boss as to what I could do, and where I went - and between the company and myself, enough was paid into a pension fund that enabled me to take early retirement at the age of 52.

There was only one drawback during the 22 years that I did that job - 24 hour on-call cover - but that trebled my "hourly" wage when called out, and some winters, picked up rather large monthly take home pay packets that gave my family a rather good standard of living.

BTW, all of the above is 100% fact, so for all your hype Dave, who's the idiot then?

Tanner-'op

Reply to
Tanner-'op

You must have worked for British Gas or you were a locksmith! Both charge far too much. Most of us retire earlier than you and don't need to do a 24hour cover and have no life. Imagine what you could have done if you had any qualifications! In this case it's you that sounds like the idiot.

Reply to
Ian

That depends entirely on whether all the money you made, was fair recompense for all the hassle.

I totted up all the hours I spent running companies, and realised that after 10 years of super hard graft, I could have made the same working as a sysdamin in London on a 70k salary. On balance graft as it was, I think I got the slightly better deal.

Its the ability to walk away from a given customer that makes it worthwhile. You cant walk away from your boss..

Reply to
The Natural Philosopher

I rather think you are. I've achieved something, you were a 'foreman'. Its well known that you never promote anyone who is actually useful to foreman - that would neant getting less work done. Early retirment at 52? I think we all know what that means - lets get rid of the useless git.

I think you are a rather bitter old fart who doesn't like the thought of someone being successful when you never were.

Reply to
The Medway Handyman

In article , John scribeth thus

If he's made a good job of it .. sounds quite cheap;!...

Reply to
tony sayer

Are you going to tell what you did in the previous life then?...

Reply to
tony sayer

Many thanks - he was concerned he might have been overcharged as he is a bit out of tough with things - having been retired for over 20 years. He is concerned he could be seen as an easy target.

Reply to
John

You sound like quite a lot of my slightly older mates in the CEGB. Over the years since privatisation in 1990, the "voluntary severance" bar kept getting higher so I never had a chance to slip under.

I'm not complaining. My job isn't so different from TMH (I still have to keep the customers happy), I make a good living from 37h, get paid for extra, and *can* tell the management to stuff the admin!

Reply to
newshound

And it's a benefit that rarely needs to be exercised - it's knowing you can that makes all the difference.

Reply to
PeterMcC

No - if it was one day's work, not fair on the customer. If it was two day's work, not fair on the decorator...(I suspect it was two day's work and he got a good deal)

Reply to
Bob Mannix

In all probability it was two or three part days.

One chunk to strip sand and fill, one to undercoat and one to top coat.

Reply to
The Natural Philosopher

As someone who pays people to do jobs occasionally, I by and large don't give a stuff about hourly/daily rates. I look at the value of a job *to ME*, and make a call on that.

I recentlt had new flooring fitted, and removed skirting. The old stuff was MDF and pretty much destroyed by removal, so new needed fitting and properly fitting, not just tacking back. I reckoned I *could* do it myself, and that I would speed up as I went along, but with the amount it would have taken me 3-4 days to do. The guys quoted £120 for the two of them to do it. They were in and out in 3 1/2 hours. No problem at all. £120 for my weekend back and the evenings for a week is a VERY good price. My "prepared to pay" price was over what they asked, so I'm happy.

I am currently paying a decorator to redecorate. I *could* do it, but it is hall stairs and landing included, and around 11 doors. He will do it a lot quicker than me. No problem.

Back to the original comment, £300 for all that work, two coats, INCLUDING materials - I'd be happy with that. People (you can read me as people there if you want) sometimes understimate the cost of materials. It was two coats of paint, so quite possibly two visits, even if not two days work.

P.

Reply to
Paul Matthews

You both happy? Then neither.

Reply to
Paul Matthews

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