Gutter Clearing

[Al Growler]

I have been quoted £80 to clear two 18ft gutters. Just wondering if that is a reasonable price.

Thanks.

 

[HERTS P&D]

Why don't you do it yourself?

Andy

 

[Al Growler]

Why don't you do it yourself?

Andy

I haven't got the equipment to do it from ground level, and ladders and me are best kept apart. I've done the garage and utility room gutters but have a blockage at the drainpipe end of one of the upstairs ones. Was expecting it to be around £50, as didn't think it would take that long, but I have now have two quotes at £80, so maybe that is what the going rate is.

 

[HERTS P&D]

£80 it is then.

Andy

 

[Nige F]

If the workers have any sense there will be 2 of them - one footing the ladder

 

[Al Growler]

If the workers have any sense there will be 2 of them - one footing the ladder

Latest quote £50, so that sounds much more reasonable to me.

 

[vinn]

OP,
Get out of here.
You want someone to provide the ladder, and go climbing while eating up half a working day for £50 quid.
Plus they will have to get to yours, and then get somewhere else - using a vehicle and all the expenses it entails - all for £50.
Half a day's work as a one off is worth a min of £150 - or perhaps you want to take advantage of someones vulnerability, desperation or ignorance.

Try and step up, and be a man and do the right thing - we always all have a choice.

 

[Bosswhite]

OP,
Get out of here.
You want someone to provide the ladder, and go climbing while eating up half a working day for £50 quid.
Plus they will have to get to yours, and then get somewhere else - using a vehicle and all the expenses it entails - all for £50.
Half a day's work as a one off is worth a min of £150 - or perhaps you want to take advantage of someones vulnerability, desperation or ignorance.

Try and step up, and be a man and do the right thing - we always all have a choice.

Understand your sentiments, it depends on how much one thinks the job is worth and how urgent it is . an hours work for the average handyman, £50 quid aint bad considering minimum wage is under £ 10 per hour

 

[Diver Fred]

Haven't we recently had a similar discussion?

If it's 2 men doing the work then £80 is cheap! One man then his price is not to bad. £80 is about 1/4-1/3 day rate* for someone self employed paying all taxes, NI, funding back office staff (not directly employed by him but he does have to pay accountant, fund his transport and tools, insurance and advertising).

*if the mans 'day rate' is £pounds then working shorter than a full day on more than one 'site' has to include a premium for travelling and setting up (in this case taking ladders of the van, setting the safety kit in place, doing the job, putting the kit away and cleaning up; don't forget he may has to pay disposal of the waste).
Doing several 'small' jobs in a day - about a hour on site - a good expectation is only about 4 jobs a day so the charge has to be day rate divided by 4.

 

[datarebal]

Like it or not it should be two men. I hope the £50.00 guy turns up with a mate.. I wouldn't want him to have an accident.. you being the employer and all..

 

[Al Growler]

OP,
Get out of here.
You want someone to provide the ladder, and go climbing while eating up half a working day for £50 quid.
Plus they will have to get to yours, and then get somewhere else - using a vehicle and all the expenses it entails - all for £50.
Half a day's work as a one off is worth a min of £150 - or perhaps you want to take advantage of someones vulnerability, desperation or ignorance.

Try and step up, and be a man and do the right thing - we always all have a choice.

There really are some tits on this forum. This isn't the first time I've met with a load of sanctimonious ****e, when I've come on asking reasonably for some advice. The bottom line is I won't be ripped off by workmen, and charging £80 for less than one hours work is just that. Half a day for climbing up a ladder with a bucket and unblocking a foot of guttering, let me just check my sides.

£50 fits the bill for me, and it's good to see that there are still some people out there who will charge a reasonable amount for doing a straightforward job.

 

[HERTS P&D]

Al, have you meet anyone who has fallen off a ladder from 1st floor level? I have and they are in a wheelchair.

Andy

 

[Al Growler]

Al, have you meet anyone who has fallen off a ladder from 1st floor level? I have and they are in a wheelchair.

Andy

Can't say that I have, but people who climb ladders for a living, usually know how to take their own necessary precautions. However, accidents will happen in many manual jobs. Are you saying I should be paying for their insurance?

It sounds like some people think that there are more taking advantage of workmen than there are workmen ripping customers off. I had some geezer tell me I needed £1500 of work done on my roof when standing on the ground. I ended up paying £100. These lowlife give the trades a bad name, so that's why I hunt around until I find someone who is reasonable, or get a recommendation from a relative or friend.

Are you saying I shouldn't be doing that?

 

[datarebal]

you pay for what they know. not what they do. You as their employer have responsibilities , you probably didn't realise.. paid £100 for a job ..they left all their sh*t in the gutter?

 

[Al Growler]

you pay for what they know. not what they do. You as their employer have responsibilities , you probably didn't realise.. paid £100 for a job ..they left all their sh*t in the gutter?

Unless you are using people who have done satisfactory work for you before, it's all a gamble, but if the job they do is crap, then they will come back and do it properly.

As for being their employer that is nonsense, I am a customer, they are their own employer unless they are working for a company. When it is someone clearing my guttering out what responsibilities do you think I should have re health and safety.

I have used this forum several times and received some top class help and guidance, but I think this thread proves that there people who use it to goad, wind up and take the ****.

I have a satisfactory conclusion, so I don't really see any point of anyone else coming on it, to tell me what my responsibilities are, or to tell me how I'm taking advantage of the poor sods out there trying to scrape together a living wage.