ᐅ Additional Cost for Electrical Installation – Is That Really Possible?
Created on: 11 Feb 2020 05:35
A
Alexander1984
Hello community,
My wife and I are currently building a house. It is a turnkey single-family home through a developer contract. We recently had a meeting with the electrician and shared our special requests. The customizations mainly include:
- A larger distribution board
- Network cables
- Four-way and two-way switches
- LED touch dimmers
- Additional lighting points
In the end, the price blew me away. Overall, we are looking at an extra cost of about €12,000 (approx. $13,000 US). Are these prices for the following tasks realistic?
Would you still install telephone sockets in a new house, or run everything over the network cable?
Thanks in advance for your feedback!
My wife and I are currently building a house. It is a turnkey single-family home through a developer contract. We recently had a meeting with the electrician and shared our special requests. The customizations mainly include:
- A larger distribution board
- Network cables
- Four-way and two-way switches
- LED touch dimmers
- Additional lighting points
In the end, the price blew me away. Overall, we are looking at an extra cost of about €12,000 (approx. $13,000 US). Are these prices for the following tasks realistic?
- Installing network cables (2x RJ45 duplex Cat7) – €226.3 (approx. $246) each
- Additional lighting point – €29.75 (approx. $32) each
- Expansion of the distribution board with a consumer unit including a residual current device (RCD) switch – €659.45 (approx. $718) (I can get one of these online, and the other one is not even charged)
- Surface-mounted patch panel 12x RJ45 – €226.1 (approx. $246)
- Four-way switch with lighting point – €146.8 (approx. $160) each
- Satellite system (6 connections) – €1,538.4 (approx. $1,675)
Would you still install telephone sockets in a new house, or run everything over the network cable?
Thanks in advance for your feedback!
Everything has basically already been said. But if you can do some of the work yourself or have a family member who can help out, you can save a considerable amount.
Alexander1984 schrieb:This can easily be done by two people in an afternoon if you have access to the construction site. Order the cables and conduit beforehand, then install as much as you need plus some extra on site.
Installation of network cables (2x RJ45 duplex Cat7) – €226.30 each
Alexander1984 schrieb:That’s just how it is. A car in another EU country is often cheaper than buying it from the dealer next door.
Extension of the meter cabinet with a distribution panel including an SLS switch – €659.45 (I can get one online, and the other isn’t even included in the price)
Alexander1984 schrieb:Probably the usual Telegärtner brand. Here, too, you can simply do it yourself and order a basic to mid-range quality panel from any online retailer. You’ll end up paying around €150, but that includes a router and a 24-port patch panel.
Surface-mounted patch panel 12x RJ45 – €226.10
Alexander1984 schrieb:The biggest area to save. For about one-third of the price, you can get a comparable system—though, admittedly, you’ll have to do the installation yourself.
Satellite system (6 users) €1,538.40
This is the typical rip-off with developers, but there’s nothing you can do about it anymore. The only way to save costs is by doing some work yourself, if the developer even allows you to interfere with the house.
We found an electrician where you pay normally for both materials and labor. In that case, you end up paying about 40-50% of the costs you mentioned. With flat rates per connection point, outlet, etc., they are making a fortune. For example, a complete satellite dish installation for six participants cost around €700-750 (about $750-$800).
We found an electrician where you pay normally for both materials and labor. In that case, you end up paying about 40-50% of the costs you mentioned. With flat rates per connection point, outlet, etc., they are making a fortune. For example, a complete satellite dish installation for six participants cost around €700-750 (about $750-$800).
Hello community, hello Alexander,
I currently have the same question in mind.
To begin with, my electrician took over the electrical installation after the previous electrician quit after working for 4 hours.
The new quote for our purchased turnkey semi-detached house was even cheaper than the previous offer from the old electrician. It includes all the services listed in the purchase contract.
Our additional services included:
2 additional RCDs (residual current devices) at €80 each
4 additional Cat7 network cables at €360 each
4 in-wall speaker cables with connectors at €265 each
A patch panel with a switch and a small server cabinet would have cost €3,320, which I obviously declined after a brief review, just like the speaker cables.
I actually believe that you can at least install the 4 additional network cables and also the 4 speaker cables yourself.
Since I am basically just the buyer, I am not allowed to do anything on the construction site unless the builder gives his approval, which I think he probably would.
However, I am unsure whether the electrician would allow someone to interfere in his trade—I rather doubt it.
What would you do?
Greetings from Bavaria
I currently have the same question in mind.
To begin with, my electrician took over the electrical installation after the previous electrician quit after working for 4 hours.
The new quote for our purchased turnkey semi-detached house was even cheaper than the previous offer from the old electrician. It includes all the services listed in the purchase contract.
Our additional services included:
2 additional RCDs (residual current devices) at €80 each
4 additional Cat7 network cables at €360 each
4 in-wall speaker cables with connectors at €265 each
A patch panel with a switch and a small server cabinet would have cost €3,320, which I obviously declined after a brief review, just like the speaker cables.
I actually believe that you can at least install the 4 additional network cables and also the 4 speaker cables yourself.
Since I am basically just the buyer, I am not allowed to do anything on the construction site unless the builder gives his approval, which I think he probably would.
However, I am unsure whether the electrician would allow someone to interfere in his trade—I rather doubt it.
What would you do?
Greetings from Bavaria
If you’re not allowed to do the work yourself, have empty conduits installed. You won’t get them for free, but you can pull in whatever cables you want, even years later. Have a junction box installed at the end of the conduit. If you don’t need it right now, you can cover it with a blanking plate. Also, install a pull wire inside the conduit. Choose the conduit diameter based on the cables you plan to use, and consider going one size larger.
In my opinion, this is outrageous.
Have conduit installed yourself; it might only cost you about 10% of that.
230€ to install a network cable inside the wall? That’s just not reasonable.
Is the two-way switch setup instead of a simple switch?
And to charge another 150€ for that? That should basically be cost-neutral.
Satellite installation is also way too expensive; you can distribute that via IP as well.
You can skip the telephone outlets. One connection in the server room is enough, the rest can be distributed through IP/DECT.
Have conduit installed yourself; it might only cost you about 10% of that.
230€ to install a network cable inside the wall? That’s just not reasonable.
Is the two-way switch setup instead of a simple switch?
And to charge another 150€ for that? That should basically be cost-neutral.
Satellite installation is also way too expensive; you can distribute that via IP as well.
You can skip the telephone outlets. One connection in the server room is enough, the rest can be distributed through IP/DECT.
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