Remember that while you may be able to do some of the work yourself, be sure you know what you are doing and that the desire to save a few dollars up front does not cost you more in the long run. A broken pipe can create major damage. Since you only have one sink, what would happen if the sink failed you on a busy Saturday morning and you had to wait hours for a plumber to arrive charging an emergency and the loss of business you may suffer.

That $460 might b e right or wrong, but it indicates that it may not be the plumber who is trying to rip you off. The plumbers estimating this could be including the permit in their estimates

Perhaps since you claim your husband knows how to do the work a plumber can inspect and certify it to the inspector if that meets with local requirements. That may save the plumber the labor costs and only charge for the "inspection" and pulling the permit. Not all plumbers will do this even if it is a permitted practice.

Try asking the plumber for a discount or to break up the payments....or ask the inspector for a referral. Ask the plumber what kind of discount if your husband helps....recognize the frustration but it's the cost of doing business sometimes....luck!

Negotiate a fair price with your plumber and then add an extra dollar to the prices you were planning to charge your customers so that you can recuperate the money over time. That's how legitimate businesses stay in business in the long run, by figuring out what it costs to do things the right way so their customers are protected and then charging a fair price that allows them to cover those costs. Here's wishing you a successful opening day and years of successful operation of your salon.

Not many plumbers want to buy someone else's mistakes and liabilities by signing off on work that is not their own!

Do not forget that electrical power will be needed and all outlets needed to be installed will also require permits. Do not forget about fire protection, and even powder room requirements. Once you start on this you will be surprised on what jumps out at you that you may never even had thought about before starting this venture.

Good luck with your business, its a lot of hard work, but if you are successful the rewards of satisfaction are really great.

2nd thing is that you said that you wanted to install a sink and tap into a drain in which you already drilled into? On this last post your saying you want to fix a clog? totally different thing.

All successful contractors charge you a portion of what it costs for them to be in business, As I told you in my prior post. So every client that we do work for pays for a part of this. If your in business and want to grow and survive you too must be charging a portion of your overhead costs with each hair cut that you do. If your not, you will be out of business in a very short time or make very little for all your hard work and past experiences that make you good at what you do. So do not get offended by the message, its just part of business and you asked for a way to do it for less, I am just telling you why your paying so much for it.

Sometimes we just don't like the advice we get. In order to open , you have to play by the rules...which requires a state certified plumber and it costs what it costs. There's apparently no way around it. Since it's an older building, most plumbers are going to charge more for the work because it's not fresh & clean AND they may have to deal with issues created by someone else. If you can't cut a better bargain, then you have to pay the charges as a cost of doing business. You can also look at it another way....the more you delay, the longer it takes for you to open and start making revenue.

Many of us write responses, not just for you but for others who read these postings. The other part of all of this, honestly, is that all business people need to figure out their costs and how much upfront money they need to start and how much they should have in reserves to carry on the business. Sadly, most people who enter the hair business are the same as many in contracting....being great at doing haircuts or carpentry work doesn't translate into a successful business. That's why you see so many in both trades come and go.

If you don't have the money...see if you can barter somehow...which is much more common now. Clients do that all the time....I had an older client make me brownies recently for a roof repair she didn't have the money for. Your plumber might trade out for haircuts or some hair work for his wife or girlfriend....get creative as it doesn' t hurt to ask. In the end you're going to have to do the work as required by your local government or you won't be able to open. We'll all be cheering for you!

We might be a little long winded but I promise you, all here are trying to be helpful. Good responses from everyone!

Whatever gave you the idea that this website is a good place to get what you want to hear instead of helping with good healthy advice?