The suite budget is the whole conversation
The customer fixates on the £600 suite and forgets the four days of first fix, chasing and tiling around it. Prime cost sums put the suite in its place: one line among fifteen.
For bathroom fitters
Bathroom refit estimates from your rip-out notes
A bathroom is the most-compared quote in domestic work, because everyone has had one done and everyone knows someone who paid less. A proper breakdown showing the first fix, the tanking and the tiling is the difference between a considered price and a big number.
Why estimating is the worst part of the week
Nobody warned them the room is out of use for a week
Five working days with no bathroom is the real cost to a family, and if the programme is not written down, day four is when the pressure starts.
Waterproofing is invisible and gets undercut
The fitter quoting £900 less is not tanking the shower wall. You cannot see the difference until the ceiling downstairs stains, and by then it is not your problem to argue.
A real example
Bathroom rip-out and refit, three-bed semi
On the left is what you would actually write down. On the right is what your customer receives.
Your notes
bathroom rip out and refit, 3 bed semi. room is 2.2 x 1.9. take the whole lot out, tiles back to brick. chase the walls for new pipework, the existing is in the plaster and its 15mm barrier pipe of some sort. stud out and box the concealed cistern, geberit frame. 900 quadrant enclosure and tray, thermostatic bar valve. check the flow rate BEFORE we promise them a decent shower, the combi is 12 years old. 12sqm of wall tile, 4.2 floor, they're budgeting £28 a metre. UFH mat under the floor tiles with a stat. extractor to the outside wall, thats a core drill. ceiling needs a skim, get dave in for half a day. skip. 4 days plus a mate on strip out day
The estimate
| Item | Qty | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Strip out existing suite and tiling, back to brick | 1 job | £480.00 |
| Skip hire and waste transfer | 1 each | £320.00 |
| First fix pipework, chase walls and reroute waste | 1 job | £640.00 |
| Concealed cistern frame and stud boxing, including access panel | 1 job | £420.00 |
| Supply and fit back-to-wall WC and basin unit | 1 job | £560.00 |
| 900mm quadrant enclosure and tray, supplied and fitted | 1 each | £690.00 |
| Thermostatic bar valve shower, supplied and fitted | 1 each | £340.00 |
| Electric underfloor heating mat and thermostat | 4.2 m² | £285.60 |
| Wall and floor tiling, labour and adhesive | 16.2 m² | £777.60 |
| Tiles, prime cost sum at £28/m² including wastage | 17 m² | £476.00 |
| Extractor fan, core-drilled to external wall and wired | 1 each | £260.00 |
| Plasterer, skim to ceiling | 1 day | £240.00 |
| Total before VAT | £5,489.20 | |
An illustration using typical UK rates, not a price list. TradeScribe prices from the rates in your own notes and your saved day rate.
What we know about bathroom fitting estimates
These are the lines that come up again and again on a bathroom fitter's estimate. Mention any of them in your notes, however briefly, and they come out properly worded.
- Strip out existing bathroom and remove waste
- First fix pipework and chasing
- Concealed cistern frame and boxing
- Shower enclosure and tray, supplied and fitted
- Bath, basin and WC installation
- Wet room tanking and former
- Wall and floor tiling, per square metre
- Electric underfloor heating mat and thermostat
- Extractor fan, ducted to outside
- Prime cost sum for sanitaryware and tiles
Bathroom fitting estimating questions
How many days should I allow for a full bathroom refit?
Four to six working days for a standard three-piece in an average room, longer if you are moving the soil pipe, forming a wet room or waiting on a plasterer. Put the number of working days on the estimate and say the room is out of use for that period. Customers manage a week without a bathroom fine when they are told; they do not manage a surprise week at all.
Should the sanitaryware be in my price or a prime cost sum?
A prime cost sum, almost always. Suites range from £400 to £4,000 for the same fitting labour, and pinning your quote to whatever they liked on the first showroom visit means re-quoting every time they change their mind. State the sum, state that it will be adjusted against the actual cost, and get on with sending the estimate.
What do I do if their boiler will not run the shower they want?
Test the flow rate on the survey and write the result on the estimate before you price any shower. A 12-year-old combi delivering 9 litres a minute will not run a rainfall head, and the person blamed for a disappointing shower is always the fitter, never the boiler. Offer the pumped or lower-flow alternative in writing so the choice is theirs on paper.
Do bathroom electrics need certifying, and should that be on the estimate?
Yes to both. New circuits and most work in a bathroom are notifiable under Part P in England and Wales, and the fan, the underfloor heating and any shaver point need to be installed and certified by a competent person. Put the certificate on its own line so the customer sees they are getting paperwork, not just a fan.
Is a bathroom adaptation for a disabled person zero-rated for VAT?
It can be. Work such as installing a level-access shower, widening doorways or adapting a bathroom for a person who is chronically sick or disabled can be zero-rated in their private home, provided you hold a signed eligibility declaration from the customer. It is a genuine saving for them and it is your responsibility to hold the paperwork, so get the declaration before you invoice, not after.
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