This and crazy. My old boss did this all the time and still got the work.
I will say adding an outlet flush with the siding would be a pain. A surface mounted “bell box” would be much easier, but ugly to some.
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Quote to add an outside electrical outlet
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I will say adding an outlet flush with the siding would be a pain. A surface mounted “bell box” would be much easier, but ugly to some.
It's a common practice, and on occasion it works. I have a few buddies that quote off the wall prices hoping not to get certain jobs. Occasionally they get them and either knock it out of the park if they do the work, or they don't call the customer back. Eventually people do get tired of begging a person to do work and move on to someone else. I found it easier to tell the truth.
And if the homeowner is a DIY type or their buddy is, etc, they do it without a permit.
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When you charge way over the market rate hoping the customer doesn't know what it should cost - you lack morals. Its known as taking advantage of an unwitting customer. Truly - the customer shouldn't need to know. A reputable company would educate their customer and charge market rate of the service - thats why you call service people.
Unless there was something like redoing a bunch of stuff to get to code, which they didn't indicate or specify, it would seem the OP's quote is way above market rate - based on all the other comments here as well.
Had all those costs growing up. Have them where we work now. Most places have time + materials and maybe a minimum hours charged. How ever many trucks is irrelevant. The point of more trucks is economy of scale and to do more jobs. Market rate is market rate.
Well said!
I was quoted $2,000 to replace an entire 100 amp panel at my old house. I could see ~$500, but Jesus Christ that’s ridiculous.
...as long as the homeowners insurer will cover the loss if there is a fire in that area cause of an off code install..not that an off code install will start a fire...but if it could be argued....
I say this all the time - you take the good, you take the bad, you take it all, and there you have the facts of life.
Some people sit in my chair 30 mins and it generates $70. Some people sit in my chair for 30 mins and it generates $1000. I have 25 employees to pay, a $12000 rent, I have to fund the 401k match, etc, etc, etc. I don’t just magically charge the person who was only going to generate $70, $1000 because I have overhead, hoping they’re dumb enough to pay it, and justifying it because I have lots of expenses.
My production is an average of all the activities in my office and while that number has to be greater than a certain $ amount to survive, I don’t expect any one patient or group of patients to shoulder that burden, it’s averaged over all the patients.
These guys have a couple of employees, a couple of trucks, and work out of their house. One of their wives answers the phone and schedules. Not a large overhead operation.
Sounds about right for a service change. Could very well be a whole day or at least most of the day. New grounds, gas and water lines need bonded etc. Wire for that isn’t cheap.
A 200 amp panel costs around $250. Breakers are at least $20.
That's a common internet scare tactic. If you don't pull a permit and don't have it done by a licensed electrician, it will catch fire and it will burn your house down and the insurance "arson investigator" will determine all of this and deny your claim.
Post a question looking for help on wiring something or replacing an electrical device in your house and you'll get plenty of advice though !
Then why don't you do it yourself if you know so much about what it involves and the costs?
I interpreted the post of saying the panel quote was reasonable while they thought $500 would be a fair quote for the OP's outlet install.
GON
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Well, you're not the OP. But how does one calculate a fair price without photos and specifications AND a written quote on what work is being done?
The OP brought up a subject but that is all. We are all speculating on what COULD be done but we have nothing except the OP words.
I already posted it could be done yourself for $50 if one was to use the outlet on the interior wall (as I interpret the OP post) then throw in the labor rate for an electrician of what, $250 an hour?
So one would think a price of around $350 to $400 might be fair for that type of install.
The thing is, we dont know except as the OP describes it and in this case adding another branch circuit come to think of it might run more because we again are using the words of the OP and not the electrician. How long will he be on the job? We dont know, there are no photos and descriptions. I personally for the life of me understand how it could be $2000 and I wonder if the OP made. mistake or misunderstanding such as replacing the entire breaker panel.
If this truly is as simple as the OP types it, then that is a reason to learn how to do things by yourself. Not directed at the OP in ANY WAY but we live in a society now that we rely on others for basic services, again, not directed at the OP but this can mean the electrician is in such demand if the OP doesnt pay it, someone else on another job will. I dont blame an electrician or anyone for making the most amount of money possible, that is what freedom is about, demand for my services. Im certainly not going to work cheap if I can work at super high profit margins.
Dont want my services, fine, find someone else or do it yourself (think about that) Im going to sit at home, eat potato chips, what TV while someone works on my house for what I think I should pay them?
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I wasn’t very clear, dogememe got it though. I did pay $1500 for a 40 gallon water heater install though so there’s that, but that was under the mentality of “I don’t care get it done I just want to sell this friggin house!!!”
I'm wonder if, to add an outlet in the garage, the electrician needed to add a sub panel to bring it up to code. That might explain the costs , perhaps the op can tell us if there is a sub panel there.
Is this an attached garage?
The electrician might not want to just extend a line to another outlet, If no sub panel is there.
Is this an attached garage?
The electrician might not want to just extend a line to another outlet, If no sub panel is there.
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Last Job I had done was to install 6 lights in a circuit that already existed. It was $800 including pulling the permit and took 2 guys a couple hours because they had to snake wire and the job was up in the air a ways. But I am in a different state.
I would presume $2K should get an electrician all day in plus the permit in most places. If its 1 outlet in a garage with no sheeting one would guess its a hour job, maybe . Unless there is something we don't know.
Again, if the electrician was charging $2K for one outlet presumably there is more to it so it should have been described in their quote. I am about to get 3 sets of shutters painted. Again, there up in the air or I would do them. The quote says they will clean, sand, spot prime and paint with 2 coats of the specified paint, and will cost $350 bucks. I know what has to get done - not just "its 350"? 350 for exactly what.
I would presume $2K should get an electrician all day in plus the permit in most places. If its 1 outlet in a garage with no sheeting one would guess its a hour job, maybe . Unless there is something we don't know.
Again, if the electrician was charging $2K for one outlet presumably there is more to it so it should have been described in their quote. I am about to get 3 sets of shutters painted. Again, there up in the air or I would do them. The quote says they will clean, sand, spot prime and paint with 2 coats of the specified paint, and will cost $350 bucks. I know what has to get done - not just "its 350"? 350 for exactly what.
Yup, I will do without. My wife made a comment that I’d be nice to have another outlet there and I said let’s get a quote. Now that we have the quote we can do without the outlet.
I just wish there was some way for contractors to communicate what they do and don't like to do. Their website really does say no job too small. Maybe I watch too much TikTok - there's a Boston electrician on there and while he does big jobs he also does lots of simple single recessed light or outlet installations too. Sometimes he's just installing lighting fixtures that are already wired.
If you are in the metro area, that's your problem.
Where I'm at, I know a handyman (who used to be an electrician by trade) that I could call, and get it done for a hundo without any problem.
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