Hi just like sticking an oar in. Do you think you've got the right price for materials cos 500 pounds per day per man does seem abit steep. My local small garage having 4 mechanics, no car sales or petrol charges 40 pounds per hour. A main agent might charge up to 100 pounds an hour but also sells cars petrol etc but does need more staff. Then 500 pound per man per day does seem high. I wouldn't say there is a great skill difference between bulders and mechanics Boith require specialised knowledge. I thought most trades were happy with 250 to 300 a day. Must be out of touch.
If it's a job I can do, or want to do I just do it.
If not, and I'm happy with the price quoted I'll pay it. I've given up trying to work out things like hourly rates - treat the bill as a lump and if you are happy then stop worrying.
Had a new fence recently. 1500 quid. Parts were about 650 quid. Took just under 2 days so almost 500 quid a day.
It was cold, and wet, and getting the old posts out took the 2 guys a lot of effort. I was warm, dry and just made tea. They made a much neater job than I could have done, much faster. I had a half a day off work instead of a week, and I didn't get cold :-)
I also still have a fence two months later, unlike most of the neighbours :)
Well worth the cost, even if it was nearly 500 quid a day.
An important thng is to know exactly what you are getting and they are all quoting for the same thing. Otherwise you can end up with "extras" which cost an arm and a leg part way through the job as the have you by the bollix.
On 22 Feb 2014, snipped-for-privacy@auk.kent.ac.uk (D.M.Chapman) grunted:
I had an interesting experience the other week. A tenant called me during the storms to say that her roof (a 2-up 2-down terrace) was leaking; I went round and from beneath could see felt hanging down and daylight through the ridge tiles; clearly the ridge tiles needed rebedding. Probably a job I could DIY with a roofing ladder for the cost of a bag of cement; however TBH I'm getting on a bit, and SWMBO said 'like hell you are' so sought a roofer. Unfortunatly I don't have any in my 'black book' so had to find a new one; never good. I could only get one form to return calls/provide a quote, which came in at nearly 700 inc VAT.
Having picked myself up off the floor, I really had no choice but to agree, as I couldn't get any other interest in the job and the roof was leaking on my tenant.
Anyway, they did the job, all fine - and came back with a bill of 300 as the job 'was easier than expected'. Wonders will never cease! The firm has made it into my 'black book'.
But you had two blokes, so that's 212/day, in man-day terms, surely?
So you should also factor in the cost of your own time saved, even if it's paid holiday - ie 4.5 days of labour at your own usual pay rate. The 1500 was probably a bargain by that calculation!
Could be - although then becomes more than a jobbing builder? I suppose you could equate it to a mobile car mechanic who works out of a van.
However, you're not forced to accept the quote from any one builder. But finding one who does charge a reasonable sum for a smallish job can be tricky.
Couple of colleagues at work have leaky roof problems following the storms. Can't find a roofer to even come and look around canterbury for a couple of months as they are all busy with storm damage work :-(
Well, boss was only there for two half days but yeah, in man-day terms it was under 3 total.
May as well give a credit actually, no connection other than a happy customer (twice now :-))
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Yeah, massively so. Hence my comment about I might do stuff myself if it's something I *want* to do :-) I built a deck myself instead of paying - I wanted to do that. Out in the heavy rain, trying to dig out old fence posts? Sod that :-)
SDS to chisel away the concrete on one side.. crowbar to get the rotten wood out of the post hole.. drop spur in hole.. two hex headed screws into post.. concrete around and fill old post hole..
done.. £15, took an hour.
Easy if you support the old post and fence before you start and you can't tell its been done from outside.
*3* guys turned up today (still hammering). They've ripped all the old battens off, and nearly laid all the felt and new battens. The dry valleys have also been put in place.
If it helps size the job, we have 500m of battens, and 1,400 tiles delivered ;)
I suspect they'll leave the roof felted for today and come back tomorrow to start laying tiles.
All in all, given we found them o t'internet (but they are CheckATrade members, which apparently counts for something) so far I'm pretty chuffed.
The main thing is, what's the job like? In my many years as an aerial rigger I saw some shocking roof work. Ridge tiles left loose, mortar made with a teaspoonful of cement to a ton of sand, areas of flashing missing, areas of tile totally botched (broken bits used behind the chimney where it can't be seen for instance), chimneys pointed where it shows and not where it doesn't, pots just resting on the top with no haunching, you name it they'll do it. Not so long ago I saw one where they'd removed four tiles from where they couldn't be seen and used them where they could be seen. They filled the hole with a bin bag.
And don't get me started on guttering.
My advice to anyone having a roof done is to get themselves or a knowledgeable friend up there by hook or by crook as the job progresses and also after it's finished. If you can lift a ridge tile with your bare hands it's not been done right. You have to get up there and look closely at what's been done. Some of these buggars can talk the talk and they are very convincing.
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