Anybody got any aloe?

[Mortimer Schnerd, RN]

Man, did my ass get smoked this morning. I called an electrician to install

220V service in my garage for my new bandsaw. He had to move one breaker to the top of the box to free up two spaces in the bottom of the box. Then he had to string some cable up between some open studs and drill through the top plate in order to run the cable down another open stud in a more convenient spot, then install an outlet. He also replaced the 7' cord that came with my bandsaw with another that would actually reach. The price: $547 !!!

I thought I was going to shit.

Knowing what I know now, I'd have done the job myself the next time. I've done plenty of 110V wiring but never tackled 220V service before. I got an expensive education today. I deserve it, I guess.... I just picked this company out of the phone book.

On the plus side, if the house burns down nobody can point the finger at me and say I screwed it up. I didn't get electrocuted. And now I have an excuse to buy another 220V tool. 8" jointer perhaps?

On a related note, the bandsaw's sweet. Gotta go soak my rear end in a bucket of ice....

[Leon]

Good ole Union labor Huh.

[George]

Sounds more like K-Y is in order. You _did_ get an estimate, no?

[leonard]

sounds about right, I guess it matter were you live. here it costs 150. just for them to say hi.

[A.M. Wood]

Always agree on a price before labor and material purchases begin.

[TeamCasa]

Caveat Emptor

It makes a difference where you live and what/who you know. If the electrician is a neighbor, relative expect a small charge. However, if the guy has to drive 75 miles in the snow bound tundra the price will certainly reflect this time.

I have a friend who is an electrician, the price goes up if the customer insists on helping!

Morale: Always get an estimate before allowing an work to be done.

Dave

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[Eddie Munster]

[Phisherman]

You need to get an estimate. I had an electrician (a friend from someone at work) to hook up my shop subpanel to main and check all circuits I installed. He took about 40 minutes. For his work, I agreed to give him a used Radar range oven which he needed. We both felt like we got a good deal.

[James "Cubby" Culbertson]

Ouch!!!! I just installed my own subpanel and 220V run for around $75 (the biggest expense was the breakers). Live and learn I suppose. Cheers, cc

[Swingman]

Never seems to be any rhyme or reason to it. Get an entire two story house wired for $7500, labor and materials, then call them out to add ten feet of under cabinet circuit the architect forgot, at the end of an already existing run, and they want a tenth of the total price for the ten feet.

And _always_ be on guard when you see an electrician with a drill in his hand. For some reason the breed never seems to look on the other side to see what the hell may be there.

[Patriarch]

"Swingman" wrote in news:RrednWVDJLBJX4 [e-mail]:

Is that like the old adage "Beware the programmer who carries a screwdriver?"

[Robert Bonomi]

The connundrum: "Which is more dangerous, the hardware engineer with the 'root password', or the software engineer with a screwdriver?"

(it is wise to beware of *either* one!! :)

[mac davis]

should have bought him dinner, too.. *g*

mac

Please remove splinters before emailing

[Bob G.]

------------------------- I am not an electrician... BUT I did run a business for years

Just what did you expect to pay ...?

I know I would be paying for the electrician, the truck he drove up in, the tepephone in the office, the guy who answered the phone when I called, the insurance on the truck and on the workers health, the heat for the office etc...and the list goes on....

My guess is that it took the electrician a couple of hours hours...ON SITE... I would have smiled at a $400.00 bill

Bob Griffiths

[Mortimer Schnerd, RN]

I really had no idea what it would cost. None. I guess I thought it would be $250-$300. $550 kind of cleared my sinuses.

[George]

The price: $547 !!!

I only paid $150/hour for a guy to climb the towers and change lightbulbs! A job I would _never_ do myself.

[Dave Hinz]

How high of a tower? 60 feet, I don't mind. More than that, maybe.

Dave

[Pat Barber]

I'm like you ,BUT...how much time was the guy there ???

Service calls usually have a minimum and then a hourly rate on top of that.They call it "windshield time" and next time "ASK questions"....

In your area of NC, contractors are getting TOP dollar for just being there...

Mortimer Schnerd, RN wrote:

[George]

Up to 1000, normal 200-400. Business sold, but there's money in climbing for a fool.

[Dave Hinz]

That's beyond my tolerance. I don't mind heights, and a logical thinker would realize that 1000 feet kills you as dead as 200 feet, but...yeah, here's some money, please go do that for me.