Palimpsest - I am in the midwest. The contractor did not specify hours for this part of the work, but he did estimate 4-5 days for the entire project which includes tear out of the old tile (55 in high all the way around the room and in the shower/tub), installation of the cement board and tiling the walls/shower/tub to the same height as before. Bill - the installation of cement board is listed seperately at 130 sq ft for $2.00 per. He is charging me $30/hr for tear out (estimated to take 12 hours) so that gives you an idea of an hourly labor rate. I just want to be sure it's not "too good to be true" because it is so much lower than other quotes I've received.

Peke - did your $200 shipping include installation? I've been quoted $500 from our dealer for delivery (from their shop, 20 miles from us), assembly if required (we may be getting the tall backsplash with the shelf), and installation. Not hook-up - that has to be done by a gas pro, apparently. I reckon $500 is steep, but the dealer has no competition within 500 miles, unfortunately for us.

My queation is to ryanhughes: Are you a contractor or just an employee? There are many possible circumstances that could warrant an extra couple hundred dollars over what you consider a good price. Without personally looking at the job you cannot guess at that. As a business owner i do not think it is good practice to tell anyone that is not liscensed/certified exactly what the equipment cost is. If you are a contractor and you are not marking up the equipment price you are losing money. You have just hurt this guys contractors reputation and i dont think you would appreciate anyone doing this to you. It is fine to give your OPINION on the total cost. There is a reason any old joe cannot walk into a carrier/bryant wholesaler and buy this equipment. That privilege is part of what the customer is paying for. If a business owner has taken the time to get certified to purchase equipment he should be compensated accordingly.

Unfortunately, that seems in line with the kind of prices we were quoted. We have five quotes from five different recommended contractors. I thought I would stroke out when I saw the first bid...but by the 5th...I was ready. I am getting the feeling that they just about double the price...1/2 labor and 1/2 equipment. We are having a lot of duct work done with our bid however.