# Forum Home Renovation Lighting  Cost of replacing powerpoint and light switch

## Hulbs

I've just had a bedroom relined and the gyprocker removed a powerpoint, a light switch and a ceiling fan switch.  Could someone please give me a ballpark figure as to how much it would cost to have the switches put back on the wall and wired back in?  $50?  $100?  $300?  I have absolutely no idea, and am just trying to work out some priorities in my renovation plan.  Any help would be greatly appreciated!   :Blush7:

----------


## JB1

Single storey house with easy access from the roof cavity?  
Sent from my iPhone 4S using Tapatalk

----------


## Hulbs

Yes, but the wires have already been threaded through holes in the walls where the switches used to be...     :Smilie:

----------


## Random Username

Between $100-150ish would be my guess.  A lot of it depends on the market for sparkies in your area.  I'd not expect it to exceed $200.

----------


## Hulbs

Are you seeeerious!!???  Bloody hell!  Anyway....thanks for that.  LOL

----------


## Random Username

The majority of that cost is just getting someone there.  After that, it might be only $20 per point.

----------


## Hulbs

'Paying someone to get there'?  What the....?!  You mean I'd be paying someone $140 just to get in their car and drive a few blocks.  Oh Lordy!   :Shock:

----------


## Random Username

That's assuming you can find someone to do a small job in the first place.  Sometimes you can't even find a sparkie who can be bothered!

----------


## Hulbs

Typical bloody men.  I suppose I'll have to send a limo pick him up.

----------


## cyclic

> Are you seeeerious!!???  Bloody hell!  Anyway....thanks for that.  LOL

  When I was an apprentice in the 60's, my Boss had a saying "for doing the job, 5 bob, for knowing how, 5 quid"

----------


## toooldforthis

> Typical bloody men.  I suppose I'll have to send a limo pick him up.

  i doubt a female electrician would be any cheaper  :Smilie:  
it's the travel time to get to a small job ...  so have you got any other electrical jobs around the house to make it worth their while? dimmers? outside light?
neighbours need something doing? 
the more local to you the better cause less travel time.

----------


## Andolate

> i doubt a female electrician would be any cheaper  
> it's the travel time to get to a small job ... so have you got any other electrical jobs around the house to make it worth their while? dimmers? outside light?
> neighbours need something doing? 
> the more local to you the better cause less travel time.

  If the plasterer thought it was legal to remove than switches but illegal to put them back on then he should not have touched it in the beginning.  
I would ask a couple of handy neigbours if you have them. There are alot of us who tamper with little "illegal" things like this.  
I

----------


## simopimo

I'm usually paying out on sparkies, but I have to support them in this case.  There's time involved on either side (getting there, getting to the next job - if there is one). Plus they have to add another 10-20% overhead in case there's unforeseen site issues such as safety concerns, access problems etc. 
Sorry if this sounds rude, but even though it's a job that looks simple to you, the sparky is legally responsible for it.  The other problem is that it's pretty difficult for a sparky to have job after job perfectly lined up one after the other in a single day, so it's not as if s/he would be making thousands of dollars per day doing jobs like that one after the other.  Unfortunately due to Australian laws, us consumers are kind of stuck with this situation so your best bet is to line up a whole bunch of electrical jobs on the same day so the cost per piece of work is lower. 
Good luck with it.

----------


## Handyjack

Your electrician when first engaged, will not have seen the site.
They may encounter problems like no RCD, poor insulation or old wiring. The job may take up to one hour, but if problems are encountered, longer. 
The electrician (or company) whether working or not still has to have registration, insurance, almost certainly a vehicle with all the necessary registration and insurance and that is before they start the day. They also require tools including ladders and pliers some of which require regular replacement. No doubt they also carry a few commonly used parts such as terminals, switches and conduit. 
After the job is completed they still have mandatory paper work to do such as a certificate of compliance which has to be communicated to the authority. This may all be unseen but it all takes time and is part of the job.
This is why the big cost to ring your door bell. 
The difference between a sparky doing the job and an unqualified person could be life or death. Your Choice.

----------


## grantbudd

Call out around $80 and then the same per hour I think from memory not including materials......Get them to quote rather than an hourly rate so you know what you are up for. Everyone is spot on about the getting them to come out....For them its a $$$$ thing. Maybe find one that will do cash jobs on the weekend  :Redface: ) Just remember that they have rules and regulations to follow so they may need to upgrade or change switches in the fuse box if its an old place or old wiring with no earth for example....There comes great peace of mind when you get the job done professionally  :Redface: )

----------


## shauck

If all my work consisted of small $200 jobs, I think I'd be very depressed and stressed.

----------


## Hulbs

Thanks for your input everyone...and I'm not offended by what anyone has said.  LOL.

----------


## Brian7886

as a sparky, i get the kinda things alot. What happens is the client rings up, asks for a quote (without it being looked at) wants a firm price which they usually bitch about. Then when i do eventually go to it because the 100 other sparkies were the same price you find nasty little surprises like the cable hasnt been pulled through a wall, or nothing is labelled and you have to start tracing wires. Almost certainly will not have an RCD. By the time you put licensing fees, rego on ya vehicle (in my case also covering large workshop expenses and office staff), insurance and probably a few bits of gear on the job, plus your time. The money is already adding up, and its not against the law to net a profit for your business either.

----------


## troyww

My next door neighbour had a sparky round last week to fix a light switch . The sparky deemed the light circuit unsafe and tagged the breaker off with wire and told him it would be $3500 to get it removed and thats for a 2 bedroom bungalow . Consider $150 very cheap .

----------


## oldtrack123

> My next door neighbour had a sparky round last week to fix a light switch . The sparky deemed the light circuit unsafe and tagged the breaker off with wire and told him it would be $3500 to get it removed and thats for a 2 bedroom bungalow . Consider $150 very cheap .

  
HI 
That Sparky did what he is bound to do by law, if he finds a faulty installation [or equipment]
The cost no doubt is for a total rewire  
.I hope the neighbour is aware that he now must get it fixed,not just remove the tie & switch it on
It probably has been reported to the Supply Authority 
PeterQ

----------


## troyww

> HI 
> That Sparky did what he is bound to do by law, if he finds a faulty installation [or equipment]
> The cost no doubt is for a total rewire  
> PeterQ

  He had the power circuits rewired about 2 years ago . Thats just for the single lighting circuit . Seems a little on the high side , My mates a lekky and reckons he could do mine for less than $500 excluding labour with new everything from rcd to batons . I realize it is his job and possibly saved a life but being left in the dark without any options is a bit harsh . He's obviously in a rush and just getting another electrician to quote it will take time but this guy can do it straight away funnily enough . It will certainly be interesting to see what his actual hourly rate works out to be .

----------


## toooldforthis

> My next door neighbour had a sparky round last week to fix a light switch . The sparky deemed the light circuit unsafe and tagged the breaker off with wire and told him it would be $3500 to get it removed and thats for a 2 bedroom bungalow . Consider $150 very cheap .

  horses for courses.
i have to either take my ceilings down or roof off to rewire mine - skillion roof.
every job is different.

----------


## oldtrack123

> horses for courses.
> i have to either take my ceilings down or roof off to rewire mine - skillion roof.
> every job is different.

  
HI 
YES, without seeing the job it is hard to even give an estimate
low pitched roofs can be real B#%^rds, even for a dwarf   
Usually, unless it is a slab floor, power outlets are simple,[easy acess.less wiring,etc 
PeterQ

----------


## Smurf

It's the same with every service industry. Buy a beer at the pub - the vast majority of the price is to pay the cost of running the pub in the first place, the actual beer being comparatively cheap when purchased in bulk. 
Same with electricians - the materials are relatively cheap, but all the other business costs add up to a large amount. A lot of sparkies don't like small jobs for this reason - if they charge a price that makes it worthwhile doing the job then they know that the customer will at best be unhappy and at worst they have simply wasted their time quoting on something that will never actually be done anyway.

----------


## Brian7886

> 'Paying someone to get there'?  What the....?!  You mean I'd be paying someone $140 just to get in their car and drive a few blocks.  Oh Lordy!

  This is the problem with the world. Tight asses who think people should come and work for next to nothing.  
Add it up.  
Fuel
Registration of work vehicle
Insurance of work vehicle
Public liability insurance
Electrical licensing costs
Wear and tear on tools
LABOUR 
and it wouldnt hurt for a tradesman to actually make a dollar or 2 for coming to work for you either.  
Most trades have a call out fee. I myelf have a call out of $88 which also includes the first 15 minutes on site. (I am a sparky and fridgey, this is pretty much a normal air con service call out fee) then $88 an hour after that.

----------


## simopimo

This is hardly unique to the trades though. I am forever justifying my daily rates to my clients and I'm not a tradie. Think of it as being the price for working for yourself or a small business in a free market economy. 
Sent from my Xoom using Tapatalk

----------


## gonzojurno

Not to mention, accident and illness insurance, superannuation, down time which includes all servicing/maintenance/repairs/rain, leave for a holiday/looking after the kids when they are sick, endless hours quoting and the list goes on. How simply is life when on wages/salary. Every electrician in Oz should be charging $135 to turn up to your door and & min of $120 per hour there after, because don't forget we also have to pay our own Tax as well.

----------


## Bedford

> How simply is life when on wages/salary.

   

> don't forget we also *have to pay our own* Tax as well.

  Do you really believe the employer donates the employees tax contribution, or does it come out of their pay like yours?

----------


## Brian7886

> Do you really believe the employer donates the employees tax contribution, or does it come out of their pay like yours?

  
Single man operation. You pay your own tax. Lots of it

----------


## GoLights

Shouldn't be no more than $150 based on what you have said. 
However I agree with everybody else here in saying there are a lot of unforeseen situations that will have the price rise significantly. Especially paperwork, and getting from one job to another, sometime an hour away. This cost also needs to be covered. Seems unfair, but that business. Everything involved has a dollar value attached to it. Now, what that dollar value is is based on the sparky quoting it. I know guys who'd do that job for a slab of beer, because its sometimes more of an effort getting to the Bottle-o! haha 
Anyway, I hope this helps

----------


## phild01

> My next door neighbour had a sparky round last week to fix a light switch . The sparky deemed the light circuit unsafe and tagged the breaker off with wire and told him it would be $3500 to get it removed and thats for a 2 bedroom bungalow .

  Smells like a cowboy to me!

----------


## GoLights

Yea I agree. Its a shame how some sparky's take advantage of others... just not right. It pays to get second opinions for sure, especially quotes

----------

