Good plumber in Dublin 15

irenastia

We have a problem with our water tank/pipes in the attick, something seems to be leaking...

The plumber we called out on Saturday wanted a 1000 to change the tank (without even inspecting it properly). We called around and were told this sort of job shouldn't cost more than 500, were also told that it is highly unlikely that tank is leaking, more likely pipes. My partner's dad recommended a plumber in greystones who initially agreed to come up to blanchardstown to have a look but since sorta disappeared. He never showed up and is not answering any calls.
Meanwhile we had to turn off the water supply in the house (bar kitchen tap). Can't take proper showers and having to refill cistern to be able to flush the toilet!

Does anyone know any good plumber around Dublin 15 that won't try to rip us off and will actually do the job properly?

It is not the first time we are having trouble with different sorts of tradesmen here in Ireland. Their attitude to work is appaling. I have never experienced anything like that in other countries I've lived in. Am I just being unlucky with them or what's the story here?

Billy Bunting

Your just unlucky, or lucky, depending on how you look on it! there are crooks everywhere not just in Ireland, and yes, you were being ripped off, a new water tank could be supplied and fitted for €200, size and location permitting.
And if your existing tank is plastic, very unlikely to be the tank leaking.

:eek:

irenastia

yep the tank is plastic, my partner has drained it now and it looks fine, no cracks or anything as far as he can see, so it must be something else...
either way, found a plumber in D15, he's coming out tomoro, hopefully we'll be lucky with him now

Billy Bunting, you are right, there are crooks everywhere, but it's more the lack of professionalism and slackish attitude to work that bothers me... and judging by what some other people say, it's not just me that thinks so...
that is not to say that there are some decent workers out there, I probably just haven't met any yet... )))

looking forward to having a normal "flushable" toilet soon!

Davy

Wonder how he gave up with the €1000 figure, thats just madness. Was he going to hide in the attic for a few days pretending to work, banging the spanner every so often

irenastia

No idea, when he came in, he immediately proceeded to tell us that it will be 100 to inspect the tank on the day, and further 900 to change the tank. While he was up in the attick, we called around to ask about the prices and were told that 900 is way too much. My boyfriend then told him that we are gonna go with someone else to change the tank unless he can do it for less. The plumber refused and asked for 200 for looking at the tank! At this stage my boyfriend just told him to f*** off. )))

Another plumber was supposed to come in today (third now) but he didn't show up again. Just why am I not surprised anymore?

Davy

Well €200-€250 roughly is fair price. If you still are looking for a number send me a pm and i will pass one or two on.

irenastia

we re-arranged with the last guy to come in tomoro now. If he doesn't show up again, I'll pm you about the numbers if that's ok Davy.

yoshytoshy

Davy wrote: »

Well €200-€250 roughly is fair price. If you still are looking for a number send me a pm and i will pass one or two on.

Who is doing tanks for this price ? ,the tank ,fittings and support would cost nearly two hundred alone.
A good plumber can do a tank in around two hours ,thats with all going well. Takes about an hour to pick up the the gear in a suppliers and about an hour travelling time.
Thats four hours right there.
The taxman has to be paid aswell.

sullzz

i dont think that 200 euro is a realistic price to get the tank supplied and fitted but 1000 euro is way off the mark . if the plumber says that the tank is leaking and its a plastic tank i would ask him to show you where its leaking from because its not that common for a plastic tank to leak although its not impossible , just be sure that hes not taking you for a ride , make sure your shown the leak before hand.

Micky Dolenz

irenastia wrote: »

No idea, when he came in, he immediately proceeded to tell us that it will be 100 to inspect the tank on the day, and further 900 to change the tank. While he was up in the attick, we called around to ask about the prices and were told that 900 is way too much. My boyfriend then told him that we are gonna go with someone else to change the tank unless he can do it for less. The plumber refused and asked for 200 for looking at the tank! At this stage my boyfriend just told him to f*** off. )))

Another plumber was supposed to come in today (third now) but he didn't show up again. Just why am I not surprised anymore?

That's funny, cheeky beggar.

unlikely you'll get it done for less than €300.

For example only, rates will vary.

4-5 hours @ €25 per hour = €100 - €125

Tank, fittings, ballcock and other bits €160 - €180

Plus V.A.T @ 13.5%

yoshytoshy

Micky Dolenz wrote: »

4-5 hours @ €25 per hour = €100 - €125

Tank, fittings, ballcock and other bits €160 - €180

Plus V.A.T @ 13.5%

Micky ,€25 euro an hour is not what a self employed or company would charge per/hour.
It costs more than that to employ a plumber in wages.

Micky Dolenz

yoshytoshy wrote: »

Micky ,€25 euro an hour is not what a self employed or company would charge per/hour.
It costs more than that to employ a plumber in wages.

How much are plumbers on a hour?

sullzz

yoshytoshy wrote: »

Micky ,€25 euro an hour is not what a self employed or company would charge per/hour.
It costs more than that to employ a plumber in wages.

i agree the company i work for charges 110 euro call out which covers first hour then 55 euro an hour after that

Micky Dolenz

sullzz wrote: »

i agree the company i work for charges 110 euro call out which covers first hour then 55 euro an hour after that

That surely is just emergency work though?

yoshytoshy

Your listing a rate for plumbers ,
how does the plumber get around with all the tools to do the job ? Van,tax,insurance,diesel.

How do you communicate with a plumber and how do you get their number ? Online site ,Golden pages ,phone bills.

I'm not being pedantic or loosing the run of myself ,but in order to be available for work and look after people ,all the above stuff needs to be looked after:(

Like myself ,there is other costs aswell with insurance,income tax ,rgii fees etc.
It's expensive being a professional at this job:(

EDIT : Forgot to mention ,900 euro is at least twice what a tank should cost to change. I'm not trying to justify op's crazy quote.

Micky Dolenz

yoshytoshy wrote: »

Your listing a rate for plumbers ,
how does the plumber get around with all the tools to do the job ? Van,tax,insurance,diesel.

How do you communicate with a plumber and how do you get their number ? Online site ,Golden pages ,phone bills.

I'm not being pedantic or loosing the run of myself ,but in order to be available for work and look after people ,all the above stuff needs to be looked after:(

Like myself ,there is other costs aswell with insurance,income tax ,rgii fees etc.
It's expensive being a professional at this job:(

So how much do you charge per hour or per day?

sullzz

Micky Dolenz wrote: »

That surely is just emergency work though?

no micky thats to the average joe soap , an emergecy callout after hours is 155 euro.
we do a lot of work for management companies and the standard callout charge for these is 90 euro and 45 an hour after that

yoshytoshy

Micky Dolenz wrote: »

So how much do you charge per hour or per day?

It depends on whats involved . If a boiler has broken down and can be fixed within an hour ,it's €65.

Things like a tank would be priced on the work involved. Some tanks have to be hoovered out before they can be taken down off stilts, otherwise it gets very messy.
I genuinely can't remember what the last tank I changed cost ,I think it was €420. That included sheets of osb timber and all fittings etc ,draining of expansion tank etc.

irenastia

apparently it is a tank that was leaking, unusual as it is. There's a tiny fracture in it,very hard to notice at first. The plumber is charging 400 to change it, should be done today. It is the cheapest I could find, apparently 200 is way too low...

wadk

yoshytoshy wrote: »

It depends on whats involved . If a boiler has broken down and can be fixed within an hour ,it's €65.

Things like a tank would be priced on the work involved. Some tanks have to be hoovered out before they can be taken down off stilts, otherwise it gets very messy.
I genuinely can't remember what the last tank I changed cost ,I think it was €420. That included sheets of osb timber and all fittings etc ,draining of expansion tank etc.

yoshy mate,your selling yourself short with that boiler breakdown
cost,we charge 74 euro+ vat for the first 45 mins then 17+ for every 20 mins after and thats a cheap enough rate compared to bord gais or should i say sierra.Not every boiler breakdown is a fill and vent.

irenastia

Well it's done now. The tank was changed and it took just over an hour. We now have running water and so far nothing has been leaking. I'm a bit cautious though and will give 24 hours before I can say that it was a success.

oh and it cost me 400.

JohnnieK

irenastia wrote: »

Well it's done now. The tank was changed and it took just over an hour. We now have running water and so far nothing has been leaking. I'm a bit cautious though and will give 24 hours before I can say that it was a success.

oh and it cost me 400.

Glad you got sorted. Coming from a self employed plumber that is a fair price you paid. And it also makes me angry regarding the first quote you got, It's people like him that gets the rest of us tarnished with the same brush.

JohnnieK

yoshytoshy wrote: »

It depends on whats involved . If a boiler has broken down and can be fixed within an hour ,it's €65.

Things like a tank would be priced on the work involved. Some tanks have to be hoovered out before they can be taken down off stilts, otherwise it gets very messy.
I genuinely can't remember what the last tank I changed cost ,I think it was €420. That included sheets of osb timber and all fittings etc ,draining of expansion tank etc.

I would be around that price for a boiler breakdown too yoshy, I think that is a reasonable price. I'm on the way on Monday to replace a pcb in a suprima that went last Wednesday. First he wants a second opinion to make sure it is the pcb. He had Board Gais (sierra) out and they told him that the pcb is gone and it wouldn't be worth his while to get it replaced and that he could get a new boiler for €2400. The pcb is only €286

yoshytoshy

JohnnieK wrote: »

I would be around that price for a boiler breakdown too yoshy, I think that is a reasonable price. I'm on the way on Monday to replace a pcb in a suprima that went last Wednesday. First he wants a second opinion to make sure it is the pcb. He had Board Gais (sierra) out and they told him that the pcb is gone and it wouldn't be worth his while to get it replaced and that he could get a new boiler for €2400. The pcb is only €286

€65 is the callout charge by us ,but the option to service is always given to people for €85. Check the gas line ,radiators ,exapansion/feed tank. People usually get the service done while we're there.

Someone mentioned to me that board gais will be doing installations soon aswell. They'll have their own contractors doing the work.

I think the suprima is a good boiler once the pcb is changed ,a bit of wiring to do on it though:(

wadk

JohnnieK wrote: »

I would be around that price for a boiler breakdown too yoshy, I think that is a reasonable price. I'm on the way on Monday to replace a pcb in a suprima that went last Wednesday. First he wants a second opinion to make sure it is the pcb. He had Board Gais (sierra) out and they told him that the pcb is gone and it wouldn't be worth his while to get it replaced and that he could get a new boiler for €2400. The pcb is only €286

Is that suprima pcb not 325+ for the the rewire replacement,plus if you are looking at the suprima 100 model with circular motor then that needs replacing to so a lot more than 286 if thats the case.

JohnnieK

wadk wrote: »

Is that suprima pcb not 325+ for the the rewire replacement,plus if you are looking at the suprima 100 model with circular motor then that needs replacing to so a lot more than 286 if thats the case.

Got quoted by heatmerchants 286 + vat. I'm aware of the rewire problem with some older models that's why i'm going to take a look first.

Billy Bunting

irenastia wrote: »

Well it's done now. The tank was changed and it took just over an hour. We now have running water and so far nothing has been leaking. I'm a bit cautious though and will give 24 hours before I can say that it was a success.

oh and it cost me 400.

And if it was Donegal 15 it would have been half the price, Celtic tiger lived in Dublin15 :rolleyes:

http://pulsardirect.ie/plumbing-supplies/ProductDetail.asp?ProductCatId=1000068&ProductSubId=260&ProductCode=273-2010 and still making a profit.

yoshytoshy

Billy Bunting wrote: »

And if it was Donegal 15 it would have been half the price, Celtic tiger lived in Dublin15 :rolleyes:

http://pulsardirect.ie/plumbing-supplies/ProductDetail.asp?ProductCatId=1000068&ProductSubId=260&ProductCode=273-2010 and still making a profit.

Thats not a standard tank for domestic water:rolleyes:

Good luck to anyone installing one of them in an attic!
Posting links like this doesn't make you right.

Billy Bunting

Want a posh one!

http://pulsardirect.ie/plumbing-supplies/ProductDetail.asp?ProductSubId=260&ProductCatId=1000066&ProductCode=273-2002

My point is that €200 would be more than enough for me for 2 hours work.

yoshytoshy

Your completely missing the point ,thats still not a standard tank installed by irish plumbers.
At best these tanks at pulsar are industrial/commercial tanks.
The minimum tank size for an irish house is a 40/60 tank ,which pulsar doesn't stock.

You also can't use old fittings on tanks ,unless of course your a complete cowboy ,in which case the tanks at pulsar will do fine anyway.

Billy Bunting

You also can't use old fittings on tanks

2 or 3 350's, and a ballvalve, €20 for posh ones, €420!!! osb timber got a shocking price of late. :rolleyes: