Dealing with Decorators
Painting
Q - We have a painter decorating our house but he is constantly moaning about how difficult his job is because the surfaces he is working on are poor and that it is taking him longer to produce a good finish. He hasn't yet asked for extra payment for this but we feel it is on the way. How should we handle this problem?
A - It may be worth just agreeing with him and praising the work that he is doing and that may be all that he is after. If he does raise the matter when he is completed his work, you have the choice of paying him if it is just a notional amount or pointing out that he should have allowed for this when he first quoted you and not pay him any extra money.
Kitchen Wall Coverings
Q - Could you give us some comparative costs for wall coverings in our new kitchen?
A - Here are some wall covering costs per square metre
Two coats plaster £18
Two coats emulsion £10
Textured plastic coating £20
Wallpaper £7 per roll £6.50
White wall tiling £50
Coloured wall tiling £55
Pricing of Suspended Ceiling
Q - We would like to install a suspended ceiling similar to one we saw in a show house recently. It had transparent panels beneath what I assume was strip lighting and it produced an attractive diffused lighting effect. How much do these systems cost?
A - There is a wide variety of these products on the market and the installed costs range from £40 to £60 per square metre depending on the quality of the materials. Type ‘Suspended Ceilings' into Google and you will see a wide selection of ceilings.