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Very interesting, chicken, about the costs and the grout.
Don’t forget the floors. Maybe a day to sand and put down the first coat, then two more days to put down more coats and dry? He was late and in a rush so he put down only one coat as far as I know, then covered the whole thing with paper before it was dry so we could move in the next day.
I’ve been quoted $2,000 just to do polyurethane, I’ve never heard of anyone installing a whole kitchen for less than $2,000 (but now that I think of it, maybe that included all the materials), and I’ve certainly met a lot of painters who would like to think they should get $2,000 to paint an 800-sf apt.
mopar, that sounds about right by London standards if you’re not paying a middleman although depends how much prep work involved for the painting.
remove old kitchen – 1/2 day
install new kitchen – 1 day (add 1/2 day if carcasses need building up)
tiling and prep – 1 day
painting prep, undercoat and topcoat – 4 days
Total = 1 week
The grouting problem is because he used cheap grout and not enough of it – which is stupid because even the good stuff is fairly cheap and no more difficult to use the right amount.
He’s chosen the wrong PU sealer or applied it incorrectly – again would not have cost much more to do it right.
Sounds like he was a general labourer that needed a bit of direction. Day rate of $250 x 7 = $1,750. Add in another day of contingency and you are there. Not good if you are paying taxes on it but not bad for cash in hand.
And she’ll probably keep our $2,000 security deposit when we move — on account of the missing polyurethane, which is entirely her fault — and make back all the money.
Here’s a cowboy story for you: My landlady paid $2,000 (labor) for her contractor to install a new kitchen, refinish the floors, and paint my apartment.
The apartment is probably 800 square feet, and the kitchen is a galley side kitchen but the work involved installing about nine linear feet of cabinets, granite tile counter and backsplash with contrast tile, and a tile floor. Painting included contrast trim.
Talk about a deal. Half the grout fell out a week later, and six months later the floors have no more polyurethane on them.
Kitchen still looks pretty good though.
Isn’t that a crazy price? Poor contractor, he must be more than half way to the poor house by now.
OK I know everybody’s gone to sleep but did you see *this*? Cops stopping people in East New York just because it’s a high crime area — and only 10 percent actually get arrested. Now….I’m in favor of stopping crime, but that sounds madly unfair to me.
“Lower than 50K?????? Who’s building this? Chickens?
Posted by: bayridgegirl at April 30, 2009 6:00 PM”
Well I’m hoping for it to come in sub-$30k (using an exchange rate of 1.5) as we were talking about $40-45k including a second bathroom.
And that is for some proper guys doing it – it would be closer to $22k if I used a cowboy contractor that I know of.
I think it’s very interesting to compare the contracting rates between London and NY for what are otherwise fairly comparable-cost cities. I may have to fly these boys over to do the work when I eventually get a house in Brooklyn…
Thanks Chicken. I can’t go this weekend anyway. Still thinking it will be more like the end of the year before I get a place (for lots of reasons).
I owe you guys dinner (or at least pizza) when you are back.
Very interesting, chicken, about the costs and the grout.
Don’t forget the floors. Maybe a day to sand and put down the first coat, then two more days to put down more coats and dry? He was late and in a rush so he put down only one coat as far as I know, then covered the whole thing with paper before it was dry so we could move in the next day.
I’ve been quoted $2,000 just to do polyurethane, I’ve never heard of anyone installing a whole kitchen for less than $2,000 (but now that I think of it, maybe that included all the materials), and I’ve certainly met a lot of painters who would like to think they should get $2,000 to paint an 800-sf apt.
mopar, that sounds about right by London standards if you’re not paying a middleman although depends how much prep work involved for the painting.
remove old kitchen – 1/2 day
install new kitchen – 1 day (add 1/2 day if carcasses need building up)
tiling and prep – 1 day
painting prep, undercoat and topcoat – 4 days
Total = 1 week
The grouting problem is because he used cheap grout and not enough of it – which is stupid because even the good stuff is fairly cheap and no more difficult to use the right amount.
He’s chosen the wrong PU sealer or applied it incorrectly – again would not have cost much more to do it right.
Sounds like he was a general labourer that needed a bit of direction. Day rate of $250 x 7 = $1,750. Add in another day of contingency and you are there. Not good if you are paying taxes on it but not bad for cash in hand.
And she’ll probably keep our $2,000 security deposit when we move — on account of the missing polyurethane, which is entirely her fault — and make back all the money.
Here’s a cowboy story for you: My landlady paid $2,000 (labor) for her contractor to install a new kitchen, refinish the floors, and paint my apartment.
The apartment is probably 800 square feet, and the kitchen is a galley side kitchen but the work involved installing about nine linear feet of cabinets, granite tile counter and backsplash with contrast tile, and a tile floor. Painting included contrast trim.
Talk about a deal. Half the grout fell out a week later, and six months later the floors have no more polyurethane on them.
Kitchen still looks pretty good though.
Isn’t that a crazy price? Poor contractor, he must be more than half way to the poor house by now.
OK I know everybody’s gone to sleep but did you see *this*? Cops stopping people in East New York just because it’s a high crime area — and only 10 percent actually get arrested. Now….I’m in favor of stopping crime, but that sounds madly unfair to me.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/01/nyregion/01frisk.html?ref=nyregion
“Lower than 50K?????? Who’s building this? Chickens?
Posted by: bayridgegirl at April 30, 2009 6:00 PM”
Well I’m hoping for it to come in sub-$30k (using an exchange rate of 1.5) as we were talking about $40-45k including a second bathroom.
And that is for some proper guys doing it – it would be closer to $22k if I used a cowboy contractor that I know of.
I think it’s very interesting to compare the contracting rates between London and NY for what are otherwise fairly comparable-cost cities. I may have to fly these boys over to do the work when I eventually get a house in Brooklyn…
Chicken what’s the magic #?
I gotta run soon and I’m curious to know.
Thanks Chicken. I can’t go this weekend anyway. Still thinking it will be more like the end of the year before I get a place (for lots of reasons).
I owe you guys dinner (or at least pizza) when you are back.
Posted by: etson at April 30, 2009 5:57 PM
You and me both, my friend. Patience is the key…
Lower than 50K?????? Who’s building this? Chickens?