Overwhelmed by military conscription - Alternatives?

Now we have an offer from the main contractor's go-to installer.

Talk to your main contractor and tell him about these surcharges. Maybe he also has another plumber up his sleeve.

I don't dare to do it, but I have built other handyman things myself like a garden house, planted a hedge, done the outdoor area alone. But those are not "delicate" jobs. If a wooden beam is a bit crooked or the board is too high, you just knock against it. If the thuja is crooked, you pull it.

For sanitary tasks with expensive material you need more than just handyman skills.

As I said, I had never done it before either and the things we did turned out quite well, I would say. Often I tend to be rather perfectionistic (says my wife). I didn't want to imply you have two left hands plus ten thumbs either, but as an engineer you might have a more relaxed attitude towards it than a pure desk worker.

Hello Peanuts,

thanks for your assessment. That gives me some courage. I also dare to install it myself. Maybe in the end I will get a great bathroom at a good price. Still, I don't really want to do it, because sooner or later I get into conflict with other commitments (work) with such projects.

: The standard elements are not appealing. The parts for the price mentioned are quite a difference, even if the sum is not justified in my opinion. Yes, the contract is signed, the shell is half finished.

Depending on which washbasin (the price for yours is exorbitant), it can be installed in 2-3 hours, a toilet as well, if the element with flush tank is installed. That was part of the pre-installation done by the company for us.
Aligning the bathtub with drain and all is a bit fiddly, but you can take your time for that.
Installing the fittings was no problem at all with good old hemp!!!
Just don't use some modern tape, because if you unscrew a little bit again, the connection leaks.

BTW, our standard was indeed from Villeroy & Boch, but rather the cheaper series (Omnia).
We wanted to upgrade to Subway then, which would have cost at least 5000.- extra. With bathroom furniture they wanted about 13000.-, I think, on the internet we paid between 7-8k.

Try using the search function to find the other threads on the same topic. With tapatalk, I only find the one from two days ago by @Miliz.
Your question seems to be asked every week.
The extra charge from the installer includes, among other things, the warranty.
Otherwise, I’d also like to give the tip to check whether you might have made a mistake in the price range during the sampling.
Everyone wants something nice and stylish. Then you see something special, which costs an immense amount, but you could also get something nice for a fraction of the price. You can also have too much of extraordinary design quickly, especially when it comes to the main bathroom. Many special features are not exactly easy to care for or may even require more intensive maintenance, like open faucets with lime deposits.

Otherwise, I would also gladly give the tip to check whether one might have possibly mistaken the price range during the sampling. Everyone wants something nice and stylish. Then you see something special, which costs immensely, but you could get something nice for a fraction of the price. One can also quickly have too much of the extraordinary design, especially when it comes to the main bathroom. Many special features are not exactly low-maintenance or even require more intensive care, such as open faucets with limescale.

Hello ypg,

we had looked at the items online beforehand. There, the Keuco base cabinet costs 827 euros gross. The installer charges 1890 net. I would be willing to pay for the warranty, but not more than a 100% surcharge. We had set a limit of 15,000 euros. The parts are all rather classic and not extraordinary at all.

I will take the matter with the search function on board. Sorry.

The warranty on the cabinet itself is usually covered through the dealer anyway. And drilling a base cabinet into the wall really isn’t rocket science to justify an extra charge of over €1000 just for the materials.