Plumbing

[Si]

Just wondering if anyone could give us a rought ballpark figure for some plumbing work....as we seem to be getting a range of quotes.....don't want to get ripped off, but on the other hand don't want to pay peanuts for cowboy work.

We need our water tank (the 30 gallom job that sits above the immersion boiler thingy) replacing.  Any idea how much it should cost: parts + labour, when done by a good plumber that doesn't rip you off?

thanks

[Woofage]

IANAP but I reckon that's half a day's work plus parts.

What's the existing tank made from? If it's asbestos you'll have a disposal issue...

[Si]

galvanized steel...I've already cleared a space on my allotment for it!

any idea how much these tanks cost?  I've done a google search but they range between £50 and £800.....not sure what the differences are between them?

[Woofage]

Nearer £50. It's only a header tank there to top up your hot water cylinder. Not a particularly demanding task. Just make sure it, and the connecting pipes, are well insulated.

[Si]

thanks...that lets me breath a little easier!

[Little Jim]

galvanized steel...I've already cleared a space on my allotment for it!

Are you sure that it is small enough to get out of the loft through the loft hatch?

[Jaded]

That's a good point. Sometimes they were made up inside the loft. Nowadays they are polyprop (or something like that) and you can tie them up with a rope to get them through the access hatch.

[Si]

It's not in the loft  - the loft is above someone else's place!  We are all ground floor.  As for getting it out....ggggrrrrrrrr....idiots that installed it built the airing cupboard door frame infront of it so I have to cut the top of the door frame out and re-route the alarm...then it'll come out

[Ian H]

I've just finished honing neglected plumbing skills by installing a new hot water cylinder. Very satisfying to finish it. The swear-box is overflowing.

[TimO]

Modern plastic header tanks can be "amusing".  When my brother fitted one in his first house (I think the original was in an airing cupboard and produced a tiny head for the shower), it was a case of pulling it through the loft door until it "went".  A recipe for falling backwards, and through the ceiling, if you're not careful!

[FatBloke]

I have just this moment finished replacing a radiator.

Take off old rad. Remove brackets. Paint wall behind brackets. Measure and fit new brackets, mount radiator, connect radiator.

About 5 hours work!!   

[nuttycyclist]

But it's a good thing you can do it yourself.    I've heard of plumbers charging a lot for that sort of job - based on the fact it takes ages for the water to drain out of the system/rad (depending on how much needs draining).

You're paying somebody to drink your tea and watch water dripping into a bukkit.

[rogerzilla]

Has anyone noticed prices coming down because of the recession?  We'll try getting some quotes for a wood burner again this year - hopefully the installers will be sufficiently desperate not to want £2,000/day for labour, which the greedy feckers did last year.

[rae]

Has anyone noticed prices coming down because of the recession?   

Not yet for "regulated" trades: HETAS and NiEIC or whatever the bloody sparkies are called these days.  If you need a decent stainless external flue, the price of that is likely to go up....