Home/Rants/⚡ Electrical/Client in Chicago balked at $2800 for the panel upgrade, acting like I'm robbing him
Client in Chicago balked at $2800 for the panel upgrade, acting like I'm robbing him
B
BoltBuster2
·3mo·37 replies·32 participants
B
BoltBuster2⚒️ JourneymanOP3mo
64
Out here in Chicago, this homeowner calls me for a 100A service upgrade to 200A because his old Federal Pacific panel is a fire hazard waiting to happen. I quoted him $2800 flat rate, including the new Square D QO panel, permit, and all the trenching to the meter base. Dude lost his shit, said he saw a YouTube video where some guy did it for $800, and now he's ghosting my calls. SMH, these cheapskates don't get that skimping on electrical work can burn the place down.
S
ShingleShuffler⭐ Expert3mo
9
had a similar idiot last week who thought $500 covered a whole rewire.
S
ShingleShuffler4⚒️ Journeyman3mo
22
man i feel that, chicago winters mean we gotta trench deeper sometimes and that jacks up the price. same bs here every time.
B
BugBusterBob2⚒️ Journeyman3mo
2
deeper trenches? yeah but explain it to the client and they still freak. i just walk away now.
N
NotAnElectrician16⚒️ Journeyman3mo
28
walking away saved my sanity. better no job than a pissed off customer calling the board.
O
OddJobOtto⚒️ Journeyman3mo
8
board complaints are the worst, had one last year that cost me $2k in legal.
W
WireWhizKid⭐ Expert3mo
24
those youtube hacks are killing us pros. clients come in with printouts demanding the same.
S
SawdustSavant12⚒️ Journeyman2mo
27
printouts from hacks? lmao i tell em to call the hack then.
V
VacuumViking⚒️ Journeyman2mo
15
eff that noise, chicago clients are the worst for this.
C
CircuitSavant⚒️ Journeyman2mo
9
worst? try nyc, but yeah chicago ain't far behind with the attitude.
R
RollerRogue6⚒️ Journeyman2mo
7
i charge $3500 min for panels now, weeds out the cheap ones quick.
C
CircuitSnake2⚒️ Journeyman2mo
15
$2800 is a steal for chicago, permits alone are a nightmare there.
G
GutterGoblin2⚒️ Journeyman2mo
1
client accepted the eff you price? hell yeah, post that win.
W
WireWizard⭐ Expert2mo
23
same crap, guy wanted free labor cuz 'i know you from church'. nah.
A
ArcFlashAl⭐ Expert2mo
7
we all deal with this, it's the trade.
W
WireWizardess⚒️ Journeyman2mo
8
yep, solidarity brothers.
L
LeakHunter4🔧 Apprentice2mo
15
ugh, lost a weekend to a no-show after quoting.
L
LawnLizard⚒️ Journeyman2mo
12
these clients make me wanna quit residential.
P
PipeDreamer2⭐ Expert2mo
11
exactly, stick to commercial where they pay what it's worth.
P
PipeDreamer10⚒️ Journeyman2mo
3
commercial? good luck with the red tape there too.
S
SawdustSavant10⚒️ Journeyman2mo
16
pro tip: get 50% deposit upfront on electrical jobs like this.
A
AntAnnihilator⭐ Expert2mo
12
deposit or die, saved me twice this month.
P
PipeDreamer16🔧 Apprentice2mo
12
don't touch jobs without a signed contract, lesson learned the hard way.
R
RoofRat87⚒️ Journeyman2mo
11
watched a dustin stelzer vid on electrician u about dealing with cheapos, spot on.
S
SpringBreaker2⚒️ Journeyman2mo
16
sharbites behind walls? nah but for panels always use qo.
G
GarageGuru2⭐ Expert2mo
21
sparky nate on tiktok has funny skits about clients like this.
Z
ZapMaster3⚒️ Journeyman2mo
13
saw a rant in electricians network fb group, everyone piling on the cheap client stories.
F
FixItFelix8⭐ Expert2mo
9
asked r/electricians about panel pricing, got $2500-4000 range depending on location.
B
BugBlaster2⚒️ Journeyman2mo
1
what's the going rate for 200a in chicago now? mine's creeping up to 3k.
C
ConduitCrafter⭐ Expert1mo
15
don't quote without seeing the job in person, saves headaches.
B
BenderBreaker⚒️ Journeyman1mo
9
use square d always, siemens is junk imo.
C
CircuitSmasher⭐ Expert1mo
10
rants in the contractor fight group are full of this, clients thinking we're mechanics.
S
ShingleShuffler⭐ Expert1mo
2
contractor fight? yeah tom reber calls em out good.
W
WireWizard⭐ Expert1mo
1
ghosting after a quote? block and move on, plenty of fish.
A
ArcFlashAl⭐ Expert1mo
12
block em, but sometimes they come crawling back at double price.
W
WireWizardess⚒️ Journeyman1mo
1
crawling back? make em pay extra for wasting time.
L
LeakHunter4🔧 Apprentice1mo
13
extra fee for rescheduling, i started that policy.
