How much is reasonable to pay for someone to change out a light fixture?

[Anonymous]

It's the one over our kitchen table. I'm not sure what a reasonable amount would be and I don't want to get a ton of estimates for such a small job.

[Anonymous]

Ok, so I know people do not ask these questions to be told to DIY, but this is really something that is very easy to DIY. Do you have any friends who have some sort of basic home repair skills? This is something that takes a good 5 minutes. Have a handy friend help you and buy/make them lunch.

[Anonymous]

It is a very easy DIY, but if you have tonpay someone to come out and do it they will likely charge a full hour or whatever their minimum is.

[Anonymous]

$100 per hour

[Anonymous]

A pan of brownies is what my DH charges.

[Anonymous]

DIY isn't an option. If you knew us you'd understand why. Do we have to hire an electrician or can we call our handyman?-OP

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DIY isn't an option. If you knew us you'd understand why. Do we have to hire an electrician or can we call our handyman?-OP

You don't need an electrician. I've done this myself and the only other things I can do are paint and hang curtain rods. A handyman will be fine.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DIY isn't an option. If you knew us you'd understand why. Do we have to hire an electrician or can we call our handyman?-OP

Yes, this is definitely a handyman task. Have you ever changed a lightbulb? Changing the fixture is only very slightly more difficult. I changed a light fixture once when I was 12.

[Anonymous]

Most home fires are caused by something electrical. I use a handyman for all jobs except electric -- then I call in a licensed electrician. Your insurance may not cover it otherwise, like if the house burns down due to an electrical fire traced to shoddy work.

Price-wise, it's probably a minimum charge of 1 hour so $100-ish.

[Anonymous]

PP here. Do you have anything else you need done? This is such a small task I don't even know what the right price would be. If I were you I'd wait till I had a few other tasks then bundle them into an hour or two's worth of work.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Most home fires are caused by something electrical. I use a handyman for all jobs except electric -- then I call in a licensed electrician. Your insurance may not cover it otherwise, like if the house burns down due to an electrical fire traced to shoddy work.

Price-wise, it's probably a minimum charge of 1 hour so $100-ish.

Have you ever changed a light fixture? It is not exactly difficult to do in a safe manner. You are literally matching colors and putting little caps on some wires. You need an electrician to do that?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:PP here. Do you have anything else you need done? This is such a small task I don't even know what the right price would be. If I were you I'd wait till I had a few other tasks then bundle them into an hour or two's worth of work.

Oops not immediate PP! PP at 22:53.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Most home fires are caused by something electrical. I use a handyman for all jobs except electric -- then I call in a licensed electrician. Your insurance may not cover it otherwise, like if the house burns down due to an electrical fire traced to shoddy work.

Price-wise, it's probably a minimum charge of 1 hour so $100-ish.

Have you ever changed a light fixture? It is not exactly difficult to do in a safe manner. You are literally matching colors and putting little caps on some wires. You need an electrician to do that?

I'm actually an engineer (not electrical, but do understand this stuff) but still I get a license electrician for things like this. I'm not going to take the risk. For example, most modern wiring also has a neutral pole (white) and that (along with how 3-way switches are wired) is just confusing enough to not make it worth the risk.

[Anonymous]

$75-100/hr is pretty standard. If the hourly rate is lower, then there is usually a 4 hour minimum.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Most home fires are caused by something electrical. I use a handyman for all jobs except electric -- then I call in a licensed electrician. Your insurance may not cover it otherwise, like if the house burns down due to an electrical fire traced to shoddy work.

Price-wise, it's probably a minimum charge of 1 hour so $100-ish.

Have you ever changed a light fixture? It is not exactly difficult to do in a safe manner. You are literally matching colors and putting little caps on some wires. You need an electrician to do that?

I'm actually an engineer (not electrical, but do understand this stuff) but still I get a license electrician for things like this. I'm not going to take the risk. For example, most modern wiring also has a neutral pole (white) and that (along with how 3-way switches are wired) is just confusing enough to not make it worth the risk.