I contacted CV Wenger to have a bathtub with a shower surround removed and a new shower installed. The estimator came out within a few hours and looked at the job. He brought no books with him to show me any showers or hardware options. He told me there were two brand names they deal with, to look them up on the internet and to contact the office to inform them of which shower I want. Within a few hours I picked out my shower and contacted the office with my information. I received the estimate via email the very next day. I was shocked by the estimate which was for $5,895.00. The estimate had no details and was not itemized. There was no hardware listed because we had never discussed hardware. I was able to obtain the price for the shower of $735.00. I estimated the cost of all other materials to be no more than $300.00. That is a total of $1035.00 for materials. That leaves $4860.00 for labor. At the most, the job would take 8 hours - probably less. They were to remove the old shower, frame a 5" wide by 25" long wall, change some of the plumbing and install new shower. I would be doing the drywall, painting, caulking and trim work. So 8 hours comes to $607.50 per hour.
CV Wengers estimate was $3500.00 higher than another well-known plumbing company in the area. That plumber brought books to show me shower and hardware options. He spent about an hour going over all my options and helped to pick out hardware that would match the bathroom hardware I already had. He also showed me the shower I had previously picked out was not my best option and showed me a better shower from the same supplier.
I wrote CV Wenger an email asking them if they made a mistake on the estimate and asked them to contact me to discuss it. Two weeks have passed and I received no email, phone call or any other communication from them. read more
