WTF - guess what I have been quoted (ballpark figures) for new en suite?

[Aridane]

So I have a small en suite I haven’t used for years- largely because a) I prefer baths, b) the shower has only a feeble spray, and c) it’s an avocado suite!

Went to John Lewis for their fitted bathroom service. Happy to pay a bit more for a one stop shop with ongoing guarantees on workmanship and products, design of en suite and overall convenience.

So would be looking at completely new shower room (not a wet room)as follows:

• new shower + electric pump to get water pressure up (both shower head and hose part)

• washbasin

• toilet

• cabinet with inbuilt socket

• floor and wall tiling throughout.

Work would probably take around 2 weeks.

We've just had 3 bathrooms done - one tiny ensuite (shower and toilet) one regular (shower over bath plus toilet) and a regular family bathroom (same) and I think overall it will have cost about 22k?

That's using a local plumber who ordered all the fittings himself and sorting our own tiles, which he fitted.

Removing existing tiling is a lot of work, so it depends how much you have already.

And the walls may need to be replastered. That could easily be £800 and can take several days to dry.

Depends how much they have allowed as cost of new tiles - they may have priced it on £50/m tiles , so that will be a fair bit to do the whole room.

Tiling a floor can be a lot in labour costs, depends on your sub floor.

Are you moving the position of any of the fittings ? That’s more work for the plumber, especially if you move the WC.

Are you getting extra lighting, wall lights, electric or dual fuel radiator, heated mirror or shaving point that needs power? All work for an electrian.

For labour you could easily be

800 for plasterer
1000 for tiler
600 for plumber
200 for joiner
100 for electrian
400 for labourers to rip it all out

John Lewis will have allowed a lot of ££ for fittings.

Does the quote also include wall cabinets, a mirror, supply and fit of heated towel rail?

Don’t forget skip hire and you are paying for someone to coordinate and supervise all this work.

My guess on your quote is at least £7k.

Ha ha, should have refreshed the thread and seen I’m MILES out.

Ours were about 15,000 for two bathrooms about 5 years ago. But we are in London. And they did a crap job and we had to have lots redone afterwards!

Some joker quoted us £350 to remove an oven and put a new one in! Only slight complication was going from double to single oven so would have needed a conversion kit (£11 and we'd have had to supply it).

Found someone else and he quoted £50. Took him about an hour all in.

The thing about the changes for the shower. I take it you are having it plumbed in to the mains. Why not just have a decent electric shower., That would be cheaper, and just works off the main cold water supply. No need for extra pumps.

You mention a cabinet with a socket? what sort of socket? I don't think you can have a normal electric socket in a bathroom, just shaver sockets.

Anytime you have work done, you generally need to get more than one quote.

Someone above said labour for 10 days at NMW. I doubt you are going to get quality workmanship at NMW.

It rather depends on the quality of product they’re fitting, I suppose, but that does sound excessive for a small en suite.
I’m getting a new main family bathroom next month, and have been quoted £8K - but the company have recently done one for £65K!!!
Mind you, that included a glass floor with a running stream, concealed lights and ferns under it as a “water feature”, and a wood burning stove and marble and gold fittings...! How the other half live!

I think I will cost the products/ fittings chosen to then see how much they are charging for labour. Though of course the tiling etc will depend on the area to be covered and I’m not going to try to calculate.

I will still have the JL planner come round to measure up, do a precise itemised quote, and give me a 3D image.

Then armed with that, I can get a quote from a couple of bathroom fitters from Which Trusted Traders.

The reality is that I’ll most likely need a plumber, electrician, plasterer and tiler.

We had our small family bathroom done and downstairs WC in the summer, everything including the new suite, new shower, (we didn't have one before), tiling, tiles, both rooms re-plastered etc and it cost about £5,500?! Took about 3 weeks, but we didn't have a big budget to start with and we explained that to the guy. We're in the SE btw, so not a cheap part of the country!

gth - it would be a shaving socket

gth - I think I currently have an electric shower but was told ages ago I would need a pump. Don’t really understand this aspect

At least after JL planner comes round, I’ll have a good idea of product costs, their labour costs as charged, and any potential complications (eg I suspect replastering will be needed)

Fucking HELL. Except for wiring, my ensuite cost 4k. If you're in essex/Herts, I know a fab plumber/tiler!

Outrageously high! Had our crappy old upstairs bathroom done this year by local firm - loo with back unit/ vanity basin/large double size shower replacing bath (as I'm disabled and could not use it) with new good quality Mira electic shower unit, with glass panel, new flooring and subfloor underneath, changed position of loo and basin. Cost around £3400, had quotes up to £5k.

@CmdrIvanova could you PM me their details please!

And OP, so much for "Never Knowingly Undersold" eh?

OP - do you have gas central heating with a combi boiler? If so, why don’t you run the shower off the mains?

Do you have a problem with water flow or water pressure ?

I know, I know- shocking.

Only saving gratis that all subsequent quotes are likely to seem bargainous!

(saving grace)

Gas central heating but no combi boiler. It was British Gas, when installing the boiler, who said not to bother with a more expensive combo boiler for water pressure for shower and instead go for an electric pump

I think the problem is with water pressure- water flow is suboptimal but I suspect that may be due to it being a small shower head on

Our water pressure is ok but we got a pump installed, it is amazing! And you can switch it off if you don't want the express exfoliation version of your shower :)

WTAF!!

I've just had a brand new shower room all done (And not a cheap rubbish one at all), panels instead of tiling (Which is more expensive), stud wall moving, 4 oak doors, 4 new doors for upstairs, hallways completely 're done, some other bits and pieces. Inc labour it's going to come in around 7k. JL are having a laugh.

I paid quite a bit more than that for my bathroom refit but everything moved around so pipework etc had to be moved, there was a TON of tiling (the tiles cover every wall up to about a foot from the ceiling except where there's walnut panelling and there was a lot of custom made carpentry (sink unit, steps with drawers up to the Japanese soaking tub, shelves and cabinets). Your quote seems a bit steep for a new bathroom in the same position as the old units.

Ask them to break it down
Can you price up the products you’ve chosen?
I was shocked by my quote, but then realised I’d chosen the most expensive of everything!
I find it a nightmare to deal with the different tradesmen for a bathroom. I’d pay a fair amount of money for someone to co-ordinate it all.

And does it cover what happens if extra work is needed when they uncover the floor e.g.