They're 'avin' a laff...

[Tim Downie]

Has anyone else thought the same when visiting a bathroon showroom? £849 for a domestic urinal? £700 for a wall hung lav?

Surely daylight robbery is alive and well (and legit) these days.

[Andy Hall]

The prices are based on what customers are willing to pay in sufficient numbers, plus a volume/margin trade off.

[The Medway Handyman]

Inded I have. Ever watch that 'Property Ladder' show on TV?

They start with a small budget for bathroom & kitchen, then go completely OTT & trash their profit margin..

IMO a bathroom or kitchen from Wickes finished to a very high standard looks just as good as a 'designer' jobby, especially if you had input from someone with an 'eye' for these things.

My youngest daughter for example, transforms all her mates flats/houses by suggesting paint colours, pictures, accessories,focal points, etc. Sort of a mini 'changing rooms'. She just has that 'eye'. I reckon she could make a Wickes £1K kitchen look like a designer £7k kitchen.

[John Rumm]

Taking the Pee by the sounds of it ;-)

[mogga]

as much as that

[The Medway Handyman]

I'd only shop there if I was feeling a bit flush....

[Andy Hall]

In case they siphon you off?

[Calvin]

We found that too but were aware that in continental Europe stuff like this is so run-of-the-mill that it's sold in the sheds. We saved thousands (literally) by buying our bathroom stuff mail order from an online retailer in Germany. They were happy to ship at a very reasonable cost and the products we bought were *exactly* the same as those available in the UK, same part codes even. I've posted the details before so I won't repeat them now but if you need more info just ask. I guess one disadvantage of buying from abroad is that it's harder to sort out problems if the supplier gets uncooperative. That said our supplier replaced a broken part after a few emails. It helps if you have someone around who can read the target language of course!

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Very cheap bathroom suites are invariably flimsy in some way. You do get what you pay for. That's not saying a very expensive one is good value, though.

[George]

Does it matter? you won't be buying one obviously.

[Derek Geldard]

I'd just like to add that I believe Deutschepost, the worlds largest logistics company charges 3x the price to ship the same parcel from UK to Germany as from Germany to UK. Who to blame? Dunno.

DG

[Ed Sirett]

Agreed that the very cheapest are flimsy. The slightly more expensive but basic products, installed well, can look good enough, if not better than expensive stuff badly installed.

[F]

I'm pleased to be able to confirm that B&Q's Madrid toilets are quite sturdy as ours was occupied by Management during the recent earthquake and, despite both being shaken (but not stirred), neither came to any harm.

[Clint Sharp]

In message , F writes

It's to be hoped that stirring isn't ever required.

I'm glad to hear it.

Back on topic, my el cheap Shed bathroom suite has survived quite nicely with the exception of the flush which succumbed to the rigours of time this past weekend, a quick replacement split pin and judicious use of the long nose pliers swiftly rectified the problem.