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No invented prices on this page — just how plumbing bills are actually built, the broad national ballparks, and the questions that stop a bill surprising you.
The short version: nobody can honestly price a job they haven't seen. The plumber you're connected with through this line sets their own rates, so pin the structure down on the phone — a price, or a call-out fee plus hourly rate — before any work starts. Ring 020 4577 2888 and ask; a decent plumber expects the question.
Two houses, the "same" dripping pipe, two different bills — and usually for boring, legitimate reasons. How long the fault takes to find. Whether the part is on the van or in a merchant's in town. Whether the pipe is under a sink or under a tiled floor. What time of day it is. And travel: around Dungannon that's a real line on the bill, because a job in a town-centre terrace and a job at the end of a lane past Ballygawley or Pomeroy are very different drives. None of that excuses a vague bill — it's exactly why you agree the structure before the van moves.
For orientation only, here are the broad UK-wide figures you'll see quoted: hourly rates for plumbers commonly run from around £40 to £100 or more depending on region, job and time of day, and emergency or out-of-hours call-out fees range from nothing at all to well over £100 before any work begins. Read those numbers the right way:
The only number that matters is the one the plumber gives you, for your job, before starting. Everything else is weather forecasting.
Out-of-hours work costs more — higher call-out fee, higher hourly rate, or both. That's not sharp practice; it's what it costs to get a person out of bed and onto a dark road. The real money-saver isn't haggling at midnight, it's knowing whether you need midnight at all.
Water off and nothing being wrecked? Morning is usually the cheaper job. Water you can't stop? That's what the night rate is for.
The whole game is played on the phone, before the visit. Five things to pin down:
Get the answers before the van leaves. A plumber who's happy to explain their pricing on the phone is usually a plumber whose bill won't need explaining later.
Nobody can price an unseen job honestly, and this site won't pretend to. The bill depends on the fault, the parts, the access, the travel and the time of day — and the independent plumber you're connected with sets their own rates. Ask for a price, or a call-out fee plus hourly rate, before any work starts.
As rough orientation only. Hourly rates for UK plumbers are commonly quoted at around £40 to £100 or more, and emergency or out-of-hours call-out fees run from nothing at all to well over £100 before any work begins. Those are national ballparks, not prices for this service — the plumber you speak to may sit anywhere against them.
Evenings, weekends and holidays usually carry a higher call-out fee, a higher hourly rate, or both — that's the price of someone leaving their dinner and driving out in the dark. If your water is off and nothing is being damaged, ask whether the job can safely wait until morning. An honest plumber will tell you if it can.
Whether it's a fixed price or a call-out fee plus hourly rate; what the call-out fee includes and whether it applies if no work goes ahead; whether parts are extra; a realistic best-to-worst range for the total; and whether anything costs more because it's out of hours. If someone won't give you any figure at all before starting, be wary.
The main page — how the line works and who it covers.
Go to home →Stopcock off first — the right order for the first five minutes.
Read the guide →Pressure, error codes, frozen condensate — and the gas rule.
Read the guide →What to try, what to never pour, when it's NI Water's job.
Read the guide →Pressure, timers, tripped switches and the immersion backup.
Read the guide →Gentle heat from the tap end back — and never a flame.
Read the guide →Damp patches, dropping pressure and the honest stopcock test.
Read the guide →Ring, describe the fault, and ask for the price — or the call-out fee and hourly rate — before anything starts. Any hour, covering Dungannon and the surrounding towns and villages.
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