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Cost of ramonnage


mint

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Ramonneur came today and, yes, it's a cause for celebration because this elusive breed of French workmen is not easy to pin down.

Anyway, we had one easy chimney with the stainless steel exterior piping that just needs emptying and the brush run up and down it and a trickier stove in the kitchen with an "exhaust" that needs taking apart and the whole hoovered out.

He was here for an hour and the charge was 104 euros.  We are quite pleased with that and I thought I'd just post this here so that people could compare costs, etc.  After all, this is the sort of issue that posters like to know about, isn't it?

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55€ here.  Yes he was here for about an hour, but much of that was spent clearing the c**p from his vacuum cleaner, from the previous visit.  He did remark how clean our chimney was, which speaks well for the o/h's diy efforts for the last four years.  We decided we'd better splash out this time, if only for the bit of paper to keep the insurance company happy.
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140€ an hour, 8 hours a day, I make that 1120€. For a 5 day week that's 5600€. Assuming he has six weeks holiday a year that means he earns a total of 257,600€ before tax etc. So the old saying "where there's muck there's money" is true.

Even 104€ is a rip off for a job which requires no qualifications or specialist equipment. Why is it we just accept such blatant robbery. To clean my 3 chimneys takes me about an hour, I spread the soot on the garden and the equipment (brushes) cost me 8.50€. OK...OK.... I know I can't write myself a scrap of paper saying job done and if my house burns down I may not be insured so don't shout at me!

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On the surface what you say looks good but bear in mind that a) it is seasonal work b) he also pays for transport and petrol and c) he pays all his cotis.  I doubt his books look quite as healthy as it would appear they might in theory.  Few businesses of this sort give uninterupted continuous employment, do they? 
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[quote user="cooperlola"]55€ here.  Yes he was here for about an hour, but much of that was spent clearing the c**p from his vacuum cleaner, from the previous visit.  He did remark how clean our chimney was, which speaks well for the o/h's diy efforts for the last four years.  We decided we'd better splash out this time, if only for the bit of paper to keep the insurance company happy.[/quote]

What do you mean?

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[quote user="cooperlola"]On the surface what you say looks good but bear in mind that a) it is seasonal work b) he also pays for transport and petrol and c) he pays all his cotis.  I doubt his books look quite as healthy as it would appear they might in theory.  Few businesses of this sort give uninterupted continuous employment, do they? [/quote]

Yeah, my post was a bit tongue in cheek, where's your sense of humour?

Point is, it is not a specialist job and I still say it is a rip off because they are the only people who can issue the scrappy bit of paper each year.

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[quote user="Richard"][quote user="cooperlola"]55€ here.  Yes he was here for about an hour, but much of that was spent clearing the c**p from his vacuum cleaner, from the previous visit.  He did remark how clean our chimney was, which speaks well for the o/h's diy efforts for the last four years.  We decided we'd better splash out this time, if only for the bit of paper to keep the insurance company happy.[/quote]

What do you mean?

[/quote]

Oh my gosh - you mean to say you don't have your note to say your chimney has been swept by a "professional" for the house insurance company? Wow, you do live dangerously.

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[quote user="Jay"]140€ an hour, 8 hours a day, I make that 1120€. For a 5 day week that's 5600€. Assuming he has six weeks holiday a year that means he earns a total of 257,600€ before tax etc. So the old saying "where there's muck there's money" is true.

Even 104€ is a rip off for a job which requires no qualifications or specialist equipment. Why is it we just accept such blatant robbery. To clean my 3 chimneys takes me about an hour, I spread the soot on the garden and the equipment (brushes) cost me 8.50€. OK...OK.... I know I can't write myself a scrap of paper saying job done and if my house burns down I may not be insured so don't shout at me!

[/quote]

Totally agree Jay.  We clean our own chimney here in the UK and really begrudge paying those sort of rates.  The certificates are just a license to print money.  We only use our burner a handful of times a year so have only had the chimney swept once since we bought the place.  If we had it done annually, as we are supposed to, we could end up sweeping the chimney more often than we lit the fire!

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[quote user="Jay"][quote user="Richard"][quote user="cooperlola"]55€ here.  Yes he was here for about an hour, but much of that was spent clearing the c**p from his vacuum cleaner, from the previous visit.  He did remark how clean our chimney was, which speaks well for the o/h's diy efforts for the last four years.  We decided we'd better splash out this time, if only for the bit of paper to keep the insurance company happy.[/quote]

What do you mean?

[/quote]

Oh my gosh - you mean to say you don't have your note to say your chimney has been swept by a "professional" for the house insurance company? Wow, you do live dangerously.

[/quote]

I have never heard of such a thing. And the insurance company have never asked for a piece of paper either. Been here 4 years too lol.

Better have a word with AXA tomorrow.

How often does it have to get done?

What other hidden things do I have to get done to satisfy insurance?

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[quote user="Richard"]I have never heard of such a thing. And the insurance company have never asked for a piece of paper either. Been here 4 years too lol.[/quote]I don't suppose they would - until after the house had burnt down - but by then the piece of paper would have probably gone up with the rest of it [blink]

Seriously though, I don't know the legalities of this. I've heard that it's required and have had cold calls from sweeps but declined their kind offers.

Personally I'm with Scooby. My flue is about 3m straight up with a 'T' piece at the bottom for easy and instant cleaning. The stove only gets lit maybe 3 or 4 evenings a week in the Winter for maybe 4 or 5 hours at a time and I don't burn rubbish wood so I reckon a DIY sweep once every 5 years or so will be more than adequate.

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NNNNNnnnnnnooo, but he is MMMMMMadddd an an an an an and ANDDDDDDDddddd DDDDdddd DDDDDDde DDDDDddddeaf Sir!

IIRC Mac, Dee Dee, Johnny and Joey have all taken the Road to Ruin, turned up their toes and said Adios Amigos, the others are all Too Tough to Die.

Had my poele thoroughly "ramonaged" today, cost €60 (inc TVA).  A friend of mine in the village swears that you don't need a certificate with her insurer to cover you in the event of a chimney fire.  She says it is only the pompiers who would wish to see one (a certificate would indemnify one against the charges for calling them out). 

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[quote user="BIG MAC"]Wonder what happened to the Ramones[/quote]

 

Don't mess with those cowboys when you want your tubes swept... even the Pink Fairies are better, ultimately the Flamin' Groovies do a better job!

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