Do you need a hand?

[jase158]

Hi all,

I live in Buckinghamshire but am looking to move to west london in the next year,

I am asking all plumbers in the west/ north london and Buckinghamshire area if they are willing to take on a 25year old Plumbers mate,

I know this forum is full of people asking for apprenticeships but I am not asking for training or apprenticeships.

I am looking for a plumber who is willing to take me on at a cost of £100 per day.

I will do any work, from fetching tools from the van, to fitting pipes or even little maintenance jobs on my own.

I currently have the NVQ2 (From training centre) and Technical Certificate Level 2 (from Aylesbury College). I have got my JIB-PMES card and I am very hard working.

Now the only restriction is that I do not know much about advanced systems, so obviously could not be left alone to do water heaters, unvented cylinders, Boilers, Gas work, Electrical work or any other such items.

But I would be able to do tidy joints, runs, toilets, bathrooms and all basic plumbing. I am looking to further my training but I am willing to do this on my own back and get myself through what is needed.

I have a van full of tools that will be at your disposal and I am always filling up flux, solder, i.e. so no need to buy any of these sort of things. hence why asking for £100 per day.

If you have a few days work or even if you are willing to take me on full time, please feel free to contact me.

 

[desrob]

7 bathroom installs last year wow, not bad for your first year..!!..quids in.. no wonder your talking 3 figures

 

[Guest123]

@system3
Yes, OK, I appreciate the 900 or so labour I paid these 2 blokes to do 7 hours of easy plumbing doesnt go in their pockets. They had some expensive gadgets to do tightness test, and emissions tests. plus the odds and sods they fitted.
I was just staggerd that 1000 pounds of equipment cost "me" nearly the same amount again to get it installed!

I was replying in general about 50k earnings and not about your post. I was making the point that there is a difference between profit/earnings and turnover which are entirely different especially where earnings are concerned. Earnings are not what you take home, the taxman unfortunately takes care of that!

 

[sparra1100]

have fun argueing with yourselves as too bored now, playing with words is a fun game but not really my cup of tea,

How many Plumbers does it take to say No.........

and finally this one says everything we need to no mate

 

[jase158]

Can I just clear up, my theory was that

1. this is based on me working full time so £100 per day does equal £26000
2. the amount you would charge would be £150-£200 per day so £13,000- £26,000.

This was a theoretical amount, not an actual amount, there is nothing saying that you would need to employ me 5 days a week, but if you have this much work then this would be realistic for you.
Now my main point is that this extra money that you would be earning would be extra income to the amount that you were earning already.
Maybe I should of been more clearer but if I mentioned absolutely everything then most people would be bored by the 1000th line.
Yes i would be willing to do a trial period, but this would need to be set and at the end of it there would need to be some sort of agreement as to what they believe my services are worth.
I would like to get £100 per day but this is negotiable depending on my experience.

I do not live in a dream cloud and just to clarify a few things, firstly I checked on 5-6 training centres before settling for the one I went for, I checked how much plumbers were making before I went into Plumbing. I went to the training centre unannounced to ensure they were legitimate, I read forum posts on here about the training centre and I checked the training centre on the companies house website, so no not rushed into it at all.
Plumbers can earn £200 per day provided they are working 5 days a week, they can also earn more if they are lucky. There are expenses that come out of there income and there is tax to pay.

What I was offering was a second hand for people that are busy, I honestly believe that there are people who have been doing it for many years and they have built up there customer base and are busy all the time.
As a result I was offering to do some of the other jobs that they either haven't got time for or that they just don't like doing. meaning that instead of earning £200 per day they can earn £400 per day (theoretical amounts) so doubling there income. this would be minus £100 for wages and minus tax and minus all the other expenses.
The price is very variable as for certain things like if the employer wanted me to provide my own P/L insurance, distance to work every day, amount of experience I am getting and the amount of work i am getting.
if I am working 1 day a month then obviously I wouldnt want £50, minus P/l insurance, diesel, tools, I wouldn't be left with anything.

If I wrote on here that I wanted £50 a day then they would contact me saying that i would need my own p/l insurance, need to travel 100 miles a day i.e. £100 a day covers the worse case scenario so leaves me with some money in my pocket after paying diesel, insurances, tax, i.e.

I never expected this thread to get such a large response, I was simply asking if people had any work and im sorry if i offended anybody or upset people by asking for too much, but as I believed it Gas Engineers get £200 per day, wet plumber £100-£150 per day. I was asking for the bottom amount of this with my own tools, insurance, i.e.

 

[SimonJohns]

Plumbers can earn £200 per day provided they are working 5 days a week, they can also earn more if they are lucky.

Regardless of how much we WANT to work its what we CAN work, i could work 7 days doesnt mean ill charge £1400 to custards, it just aint that easy!!

the reason why people like yourself are paid so little is because its a balance, your boss keeps you in a job at £50 a day all year or he employs you for £100 a day for 1/3 of the year.

im not having a dig or being hard, its just ive had to work incredibly hard, meet people and get my face out there

even to the point that i had the bbc phone me up and ask me to go on thier programme! its all about networking, and if safegas has offered you a place then i would sure take it, and use it to its best. get talking down the suppliers, go out on the lash with plumbing boys etc. 1 pint will go a long way!

advice from someone who is stil very young and new in the game, so many not be 100% right and does take criticism from his elders, and would like to know if what i have said it right

 

[sparra1100]

Can I just clear up, my theory was that

1. this is based on me working full time so £100 per day does equal £26000
2. the amount you would charge would be £150-£200 per day so £13,000- £26,000.

This was a theoretical amount, not an actual amount, there is nothing saying that you would need to employ me 5 days a week, but if you have this much work then this would be realistic for you.
Now my main point is that this extra money that you would be earning would be extra income to the amount that you were earning already.
Maybe I should of been more clearer but if I mentioned absolutely everything then most people would be bored by the 1000th line.
Yes i would be willing to do a trial period, but this would need to be set and at the end of it there would need to be some sort of agreement as to what they believe my services are worth.
I would like to get £100 per day but this is negotiable depending on my experience.

I do not live in a dream cloud and just to clarify a few things, firstly I checked on 5-6 training centres before settling for the one I went for, I checked how much plumbers were making before I went into Plumbing. I went to the training centre unannounced to ensure they were legitimate, I read forum posts on here about the training centre and I checked the training centre on the companies house website, so no not rushed into it at all.
Plumbers can earn £200 per day provided they are working 5 days a week, they can also earn more if they are lucky. There are expenses that come out of there income and there is tax to pay.

What I was offering was a second hand for people that are busy, I honestly believe that there are people who have been doing it for many years and they have built up there customer base and are busy all the time.
As a result I was offering to do some of the other jobs that they either haven't got time for or that they just don't like doing. meaning that instead of earning £200 per day they can earn £400 per day (theoretical amounts) so doubling there income. this would be minus £100 for wages and minus tax and minus all the other expenses.
The price is very variable as for certain things like if the employer wanted me to provide my own P/L insurance, distance to work every day, amount of experience I am getting and the amount of work i am getting.
if I am working 1 day a month then obviously I wouldnt want £50, minus P/l insurance, diesel, tools, I wouldn't be left with anything.

If I wrote on here that I wanted £50 a day then they would contact me saying that i would need my own p/l insurance, need to travel 100 miles a day i.e. £100 a day covers the worse case scenario so leaves me with some money in my pocket after paying diesel, insurances, tax, i.e.

I never expected this thread to get such a large response, I was simply asking if people had any work and im sorry if i offended anybody or upset people by asking for too much, but as I believed it Gas Engineers get £200 per day, wet plumber £100-£150 per day. I was asking for the bottom amount of this with my own tools, insurance, i.e.

get were your coming from ,but doesnt quite work like that

 

[jase158]

Regardless of how much we WANT to work its what we CAN work, i could work 7 days doesnt mean ill charge £1400 to custards, it just aint that easy!!

What I mean is that for instance on 1 day you might get 5 small jobs where they only take 30 minutes each and you get £60 per visit, all done by lunch and you have earned £300, a boiler install might make £600 in one day.
But this is weighed up against when you are having a bad week and phone isn't ringing.
Pimlico Plumbers & BG charge more then £1oo for an hour but people still pay it. There are other companies that we have never heard of that are doing well too.
Just because a large proportion of us are feeling the pinch does not mean that every single plumber is struggling.
I was looking for somebody who has a lot of work and was possibly looking for an extra hand, or even somebody who employs several people and felt they needed another hand. however I think i was pitching to the wrong crowd

 

[SimonJohns]

not pitching to wrong crowd, just wrong pitch

you could of asked some of the long time posters if you could shadow them for a couple weeks
every now and then the odd "ooh let me do that, you have a cuppa/ smoke"
cuple of pints later and you may see yourself in a occasional job, but if not you have another contact, once they have seen you work they may also reccomend you

My biggest thing again NETWORKING

 

[GQuigley67]

you can get someone who would be able to do more than you for £100 a day though, £100 is too much

 

[jase158]

not pitching to wrong crowd, just wrong pitch

you could of asked some of the long time posters if you could shadow them for a couple weeks
every now and then the odd "ooh let me do that, you have a cuppa/ smoke"
cuple of pints later and you may see yourself in a occasional job, but if not you have another contact, once they have seen you work they may also reccomend you

My biggest thing again NETWORKING

Thank you, might try that with local plumbers

 

[SimonJohns]

Thank you, might try that with local plumbers

hope all goes well for you

 

[jase158]

you can get someone who would be able to do more than you for £100 a day though, £100 is too much

I was working with a chap for a few weeks before i got NVQ and I was getting £100 a day for labouring, the other guys had a few years experience behind them but no formal qualifications and they were earning £200 a day.

 

[tamz]

Jase your perception of how things work are a bit off.
Most guys on here are 1 man bands or maybe up to 5 guys.
A 1 man band will hopefully fill his week but most likely not. The bigger ones who employ people will still struggle to fill the week to keep everyone busy unless they have contract work which even that can drop like a stone with little to no notice.
For the 1 man band, if things start getting too busy, he may just work 7 days a week or pass a bit work to someone he trusts. The bigger ones will offer overtime to the lads for a short time or get an agency in (if they are brave) but if it is continual then start someone. Sometimes it is better to knock the extra work back.
At one time i had 9 men with me and made less money than i do now. Things are not always as they seem.

Your best bet would be agency work or looking for a job with a big company.

 

[SimonJohns]

I was working

says it all

 

[tamz]

would like to know if what i have said it right
go out on the lash with plumbing boys etc. 1 pint will go a long way!

Try 10 Simon :smile:

 

[SimonJohns]

Try 10 Simon :smile:

lmao before they look at the work you just done for them:17:

 

[tamz]

I was working with a chap for a few weeks before i got NVQ and I was getting £100 a day for labouring, the other guys had a few years experience behind them but no formal qualifications and they were earning £200 a day.

Maybe in the boom times but those have long gone.

I often wonder where this idea of £200 a day comes from?

 

[tamz]

lmao before they look at the work you just done for them:17:

A good plumber can work in the dark without thinking :smile:

 

[jase158]

Just to clarify I am in Buckinghamshire, things are more expensive here for some reason (maybe because the PM lives here and quite a few famous people) prices are very similar to london prices.
Go 15 miles west and you pay 5p less on your fuel.

 

[jase158]

A good plumber can work in the dark without thinking :smile:

But even good plumbers need to read the instructions every now and again.

 

[SimonJohns]

But even good plumbers need to read the instructions every now and again.

plumbing doesnt have instructions,
excepet for
NO LEAKS

 

[tamz]

But even good plumbers need to read the instructions every now and again.

Most have read them years ago and found quicker better ways to do it.

 

[REDSAW]

congrat, to jase for this weeks hottest thread.lol

just a word here, my nephews working down in london at the moment with a mate of his doing ventilation. he is getting a £100 a day as he has never done it before only the last 2 weeks on this job.
he is a hairdresser!!!!!!!!, but it is his mate?.

 

[tamz]

Good money in the big stuff Red

 

[WaterTight]

The value of someone's work is extremely relative. If some guy trusts you, likes you, appreciates how you deal with customers, gets on with you at a personal level and thinks you work diligently and conscientously he may prefer you over somone far more experienced and skilled and pay accordingly (I've had the honour of such myself.) If he's busy and making good money - or happy to break even while he instead concentrates on building business in a certain area - he may pay over the odds too. But it's a lot of if's.

And so all we can really say is if we think it's a long-shot or not according to our experience of current times. Most people seem to think it's a big ask, some seem to disagree. Nothing wrong with going in high on a business deal. Problems is most business deals don't take place on a public forum surrounded by uninvolved third parties with personal interests and experience in the field. Was kind of asking for a lot noise.

 

[sparra1100]

theres no way on the planet i would pay anyone more that £300 a week regardless of who they are ,as ive had times were ive been lucky to get £700 a month even now am not getting much more than that, safe gas install has said he,ll help you so good luck to you but still think your livin in dreamland jase mate

 

[dontknowitall]

I'm not a full time, work any hours type of plumber but it is my full time job, if that makes sense.

This year started well but the summer was not good.

Just done a calculation and in this financial year I've earned the grand sum of £183.16 per ...

...

...






...






...

week

(That makes it about £36 a day or £4.88 an hour).

How I'd love to be on £75 a day, let alone more than this. I'm not complaining though, it's just the way things are at present.

 

[WaterTight]

Yeah but £36 a day for how many hours work? I guess an average of 1-2. So pro-rata you're onto a cushy number - with plenty of time left to go fishing, write the all american novel or post on a plumbing forum.

 

[fuzzy]

I'm not a full time, work any hours type of plumber but it is my full time job, if that makes sense.

This year started well but the summer was not good.

Just done a calculation and in this financial year I've earned the grand sum of £183.16 per ...

week

(That makes it about £36 a day or £4.88 an hour).

How I'd love to be on £75 a day, let alone more than this. I'm not complaining though, it's just the way things are at present.

this is the info people dont always see

 

[dontknowitall]

Yeah but £36 a day for how many hours work? I guess an average of 1-2. So pro-rata you're onto a cushy number - with plenty of time left to go fishing, write the all american novel or post on a plumbing forum.

Fair point!

344.6 direct working hours
At least 400 hours for travel, chatting to customers, "could you just jobs", etc

And, in case you're wondering
Charge to customer per hour: £31.51

Out of this I receive £26.11 per hour gross (labour plus profit on stock sold) (£31.51 minus travel time costs)
Taken down to £16.66 per hour after some costs e.g. motor and travel, advertising, sundries, etc, etc
This will come down further due to remaining costs not yet taken into account. For example, depreciation, office use, insurance, clothing, etc as they're calculated at the end of the year.

This takes the £16.66 down to say to around £10.80 per hour.

£10.80 x 7.5 = £81 per day
= £405 per week = £19,440 (48 weeks)

£19.5k is the maximum because we all have days where we're ill, family commitment, customer not in or cancelling at the last minute, delivery late, etc, etc.

I've not typed this to prove a point - just I've never worked out these figures before despite taking time to record the necessary information!