by simon@hwch »
Sun Jan 11, 2009 5:30 pm
I do all the boiler quotes for my firm.
If this industry could quote via email or phone, the nation's boiler swaps would all be much cheaper. Because two tradesmen would not waste hours of their time quoting for a job that they each have only a 33% chance of earning a living from (assumes most householders get three quotes).
But unfortunately every house is different, and a job that could take two days in house A could take 4 in house B. I don't know which you have.
So it is impossible to say whether your quote is reasonable for the task in hand.
One cannot also guarantee that the Powerflush will be done properly (there is a World of difference between a 1 hour and 6 hour Powerflush).
Then you have thermostatic rad valves. We always fit Honeywell VT200s which are amongst the best you can buy, but they cost £18.00 each; I wonder how many customers even notice when their quote doesn't mention the brand and they get cheapy £5.00 imported ones.
So all I can advise is to make sure you are comparing apples with apples. We give 5yr warranties on Vaillants, surprising how many do not notice that they are getting 2yrs.
Read the quote carefully and compare the spec of everything not just the boiler; if someone cares about what they do and how they do it, the spec will give you all the model names and manufacturers - if it doesn't you will be getting cheapo stuff, like nasty imported electrical controls.
The devil is in the detail.......
