- This topic has 7 replies, 8 voices, and was last updated 20 years, 11 months ago by
.
-
Posts
-
-
I recently had a kitchen drain snaked. The rooter/plumber guy was there barely a half hour. I received a bill for $150 which seems high. Anyone out there feel this is a reasonable cost? All he did was loosen and move the J trap out of the way and use an electric snake. Any feedback is apreciated. Thanks.
-
Sounds like a normal charge. You have costs incurred and time travelling to and from the job, the high hazard in working with waste matter, and the wear and tear on the equipment every time you use it.
Also, the time it takes to clean that cable back at the shop to prepare it for the next use.
Drain cleaning can be considered one of the many workings of the trade that can affect one’s health. You are dealing with the nasty stuff that goes down the drain.
Most drain cleaning I perform is flat rate, not on an hourly basis. I’m sure that if the plumber/drain cleaner was there for an hour, the charge would of been the same. If it was beyond an hour, then I would say the charge would of been higher.
If you used drain cleaning liquids down the drain before the plumber arrived, these chemicals weaken the drain cables by entering the microscopic cracks in the metal wire that was created when the steel was rolled. This eventually destroys the cable. Drain cables are very expensive to replace.
-
“All he did was loosen and move the J trap out of the way and use an electric snake.”
That may have been all you saw him do. Many people think “hey, he didnt do much and then charged me an arm and a leg” yet in reality its something the homeowner cannot or isnt willing to do him/herself. Running an electric drain cleaning machine takes skill, patience and often muscle applied in just the right doses at just the right moment. It isnt the funnest thing in the plumbing world to do. I have had my hands in a homeowner’s “filth” on more than once occasion as has anyone else who has been in this trade for any length of time. Kind of hard to put a price on that…..in fact, I havent even seen that stunt done of Fear Factor.
The price you were charged is reasonable and customary. My own fee for cleaning a kitchen drain is slightly more than you were charged and includes travel time plus one hour under the sink.
» This message has been edited by CincinnatiPlumbing on 13 October 2005
» This message has been edited by CincinnatiPlumbing on 13 October 2005
-
-
I talked to anumber or other contractors and most of them are charging a flat $35.00 trip charge for a service call only a couple of miles from the shop because of the higher proce of gas. Add that in to what the other plumber’s have said; and they have to charge that just to keep going, I surley don’t like the higher prices eather.
-
-
I want to comment on something that Dunbar mentioned in passing, namely that there is a “high hazard in working with waste matter.” This is quite true, and I speak as one who wears two hats. I started out as a plumber and at the age of 30 I went to medical school. There are plenty of very nasty bacteria and viruses in waste systems. Hepatitis A, B, and C are major risks. I still do plumbing, but most of my income comes from my work as a physician. As most physicians, I am quite aware of and careful about exposure to infectious agents. I have been equally careful about such exposures as a plumber, but that is mainly because of my medical knowledge. I think that a lot of plumbers are less concerned about this risk, but they would be more concerned if they knew the facts.
NtP
-
150$ is just a tad steep per hour for drain cleaning, but not totally unreasonable. Here in Alaska the going rate common around town is right around 100 to 125/hour, with a few charging more. You could probably get a better price if you called around and asked what different companies hourly rates are, but I doubt you’ll get it alot lower or under 100.
I started out in plumbing in that industry, so I know first-hand how dirty, dangerous and serious that job can be. Snaking main lines or difficult drains can be extremely difficult and messy at times, and so most sewer and drain companies don’t mess around with charges….you get charged a flat rate usually by the hour and with a MINIMUM of an hour no matter what the work actually entails….what could seem like a relatively very simple job such as yours can quickly turn into nightmares, and these companies are faced with daily risks such as stuck or broken cables, etc. It’s also very hard to find GOOD drain cleaners….in many ways, it is a whole skill set on it’s own and even many journeyman plumbers are no good at it due to lack of experience and training.
For these and other reasons, when you simply just can’t open a drain yourself and must call a company, you can expect it to be a somewhat expensive proposition, and for many good reasons on the part of the company charging. And if you were a sewer and drain tech, you would fully understand why.
-
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.
