In our home, most of our appliances are powered by electricity, which means if there is an electrical issue, you won’t have access to the resources that you need most of the time. You won’t be able to cook, your refrigerator will stop working, your phone will die, and what about Netflix, it won’t work, either!
So, what will you do to fix these things? Just call in for an electrician, but how much do they charge for their services? Are you getting a bill of a thousand dollars, or a few hundred bucks will do the work?
The cost of an electrician depends on a variety of factors, including the nature of the job, the region where your house or office is located, the time the job will take, and the experience of the tradesperson. However, on average, qualified electricians in Melbourne, Australia, charge between $80 and $140 per hour.
Keep reading this exclusive blog on “How much does an electrician cost in Melbourne” to comprehend the electrician hourly rate, electrician call-out fee and many other things around this topic.
1. Who are Electricians and What Do They Do?
An electrician (aka sparkie) is a tradesperson who specialises in electrical wiring of buildings, stationary machines, transmission lines and other related equipment. They can be employed for the installation of new electrical components or the maintenance and repair of existing electrical systems. Overall, an electrician can help you with a wide range of wiring jobs. The list includes:
- Maintenance and Repair
- Home Automation System
- Entertainment Systems
- Lighting and Solar Power
- Power Points, Cabling Lighting installation (new homes)
Whether you are facing any problems with the wiring of your home, your electrical appliances are not working or need to install new lighting, powerpoints, etc., in your new house, a qualified electrician can do all these tasks in a breeze with their years of expertise.
2. Electrician Hourly Rate in Melbourne
You might want to know how much an electrician charges per hour so that when you call an electrician for a job next time, you at least have some idea of how much you may have to pay to the sparkie. An electrician charges a call-out fee with an hourly rate for most jobs, the call-out fee of an electrician ranges between $50 to $140 and you can expect an hourly rate of $70 to $95.
If there is no call-out fee for an electrician, the cost of the first hour of work is increased by the sparkie. The electricians who work on an hourly basis generally calculate their working time with a 15-minute increment. To understand how this working time increment works, see the example below:
- If the electrician works for 33 minutes at an hourly rate of $75, the amount will be rounded off to 30 minutes. It means you have to pay them $37.5.
- On the other hand, if you call in an electrician and the job takes 37 minutes, the work amount will be rounded off to 45 minutes, which means you have to pay $56.25.
Not every electrician works the same way and for the exact hourly rates of an electrician and the way they charge, you have to connect with your electrician.
3. Factors Affecting the Cost of an Electrician
As mentioned above, there are a lot of factors that affect the cost of an electrician in Melbourne and you might be interested in knowing those factors. Here is the list of factors that might affect the cost of an electrician:
Your Location
The location of your house, office or wherever you need an electrician will greatly affect the cost of an electrician in Melbourne. Generally, in cities where the cost of living is high, people have to pay more for the tradespersons compared to those living in the country or in cheap cities.
Job Size
The bill you are going to get will also depend on the size of the job; the bigger the wiring or electrical job is, the longer it will take to get accomplished, which will affect the cost of an electrician in Melbourne, especially if they are charging you on an hourly basis.
Difficulty Level
The complexity of the job will also affect the cost of an electrician in Melbourne, the harder the job is, the more bills you get. To get an idea of how much you may have to pay for the job, you can ask your sparkie for a timetable so that you know if the work is on track or being delayed.
Materials Required
The cost of an electrician will also be affected by the materials required to accomplish the electrical job. Every material has its own price, so it is quite difficult to give you a number, however, you can still ask your electrician about the material required and their cost.
Equipment Needed
The tools required to fix electrical issues in your house or office will also affect the cost of an electrician in Melbourne. If it’s a minor fault, the electrician can fix it in a short time without using much equipment. However, for major faults, your sparkie will need more equipment and more time, resulting in a hefty amount of bills.
4. Common Electrician Jobs and Their Cost
After getting familiar with the factors affecting the cost of electricians in Melbourne, you might be interested to know about the most common electrician jobs and their costs. So, here are the common electrician jobs with cost:
| Electrician Job | Cost of Electrician in Melbourne |
|---|---|
| Install and Fix an Outlet | $140 - $180 for each |
| Safety Switches Installation | $85 - $200 |
| Powerpoint Installation | $150 (approx) |
| Ceiling Fan Installation | $200 - $400 per piece |
| Light Installation | $60 - $75 per light |
| Wiring a New House | $4,000 - $8,000 |
| Rewiring a House | $3,500 - $8,000 |