Dealing with repairs, maintenance or renovation works in Hungary

Get a naitve speaker to help you or the price is going to be higher for all repairs.

Marilyn is 100% right. 

Foreigners should not open their mouths when dealing with tradesmen. 

Some are OK about it and do not overcharge but there are some who are just con artists.  I'd put it at 50-50 on rip off to OK.

But there's a way to get minor purchases sorted.  That's online purchases.  Anonymous, fixed prices and EU 14 day rejection period for online purchases.

This morning our electric kettle went south.  Completely dead. I tested electrically and it's the actual kettle. Probably the switch has gone US (unservicable) so as of this morning, I've been online and now I've ordered a replacement from Alza.hu (bit like Amazon). 

It costs 800 HUF to have it delivered to the delivery box down the street 300m away.   We pass it every day. 800 HUF is about 1 and a bit litres of fuel to go to the actual shop 11km away.  So why go to the bricks and mortar shop at all for the exact same thing?  The price was the same and 2 year warranty.  Middle range Russell Hobbs is the manufacturer. Same as the old one.

It's not even worth fixing.  The switch would cost a few thousand but there would be no warranty for those 2 years.  Makes no sense to spend any time repairing it.   

We have multiple spare kettles anyway so we're not suffering without the new one.

I looked up the cost of an electrician a week ago.

If they speak English the average price was 12,000 forints per hour, no English was 9,000 per hour.

Better yet we walked past a electric supply shop and they guy was on the sidewalk smoking; Hubby chatted with him, guy siad our issue sounded minor and he wrote down about 3 different electriains he said were, Honest.

Better to ask a local in Hungarian unless you have deep pockets.

I looked up the cost of an electrician a week ago.If they speak English the average price was 12,000 forints per hour, no English was 9,000 per hour.Better yet we walked past a electric supply shop and they guy was on the sidewalk smoking; Hubby chatted with him, guy siad our issue sounded minor and he wrote down about 3 different electriains he said were, Honest.Better to ask a local in Hungarian unless you have deep pockets. - @Marilyn Tassy

I do a lot of my own repairs and enhancements.  I think myself qualified to do electrical work but I know my limitations - 3 phase power is a killer.  A lot of Hungarians mess around with their electrical installations themselves.  Some of the work is criminally dangerous.  They do not have any safety considerations in their minds.  I have even argued with electricians to install proper stuff.  I do not know why they resist.

I've seen really absurd installations in many countries further East - for example sockets in showers!  Yup, really mad.   

BTW, 9-12K HUF an hour will put a lot of locals off.  Then they'll fiddle with it themselves and risk everyone's life. 

I'll change sockets and light fittings, even install lights. But I would never go as far rewiring a house. Like you fluffy I know my limits. Oh and I would never mess with gas.

I'll change sockets and light fittings, even install lights. But I would never go as far rewiring a house. Like you fluffy I know my limits. Oh and I would never mess with gas. - @SimCityAT

Yes, gas is well dodgy.  Really that needs professional installers up on the safety requirements.  Over here, gas emergency vehicles look like police vans complete with flashing lights.

I would rewire a house but really one needs simply more manpower on it in order for it not to take me months. I'm about 3 x slower then the pros but my time is cheap (if I am not working).

My shed needs rewiring but to do it properly, I'd have to empty it, do the job, replaster the walls etc.  To empty it, we need a new shed.  I think it will take me 3 days to empty it.  Half in the shed and half in the house.   We need to strip the shed completely.  Needs a new roof.

Once thing I did recently was convert my shed and cellar fluorescent tubes to LED.  Absolutely easy job and highly efficient.  But now I have about 8 fluorescent tubes I don't need.  No-one will buy them so I guess they go to recycling - they have terrible chemicals for a landfill.

Our heater repair was a simple one for my husband, some small screw or two.

He really does not do electric beyond  a simple fix; The watts are killer here if you make a mistake,220 or 230.

No fun, we all probably have stuck a fork in the toaster and got a buzz but with 120. Hurts like crazy.

My step dad, Dave,s SIL got fried at work by electric. He worked as a lineman and the power was turned on while he was still working. Dave,s daughter became a very rich widow.

When we had a used Bridgeport Mill the 3 phase power had to be rewired.

Bought it from Sandia Labs in NM where it had been sotred outside.

Repainted it machine shop grey and had a Hungarian electrican look at the wiring.

Guy did not know 3 phase so he was not hired.

IDK but 2 teenage American boys , guess they were smart little nerds, came to the shop,not sure think they knew someone from another job in the complex.

They looked at the wiring, talked it over between themselves and told my husband they could fix it. Had nothing to lose, he said OK, they did it in a short time, some simple issue; Would not take money for it either, it was just a hobby thing for them;

IDK, maybe they now work for NASA? Some people are just talented and think outside the box.

I though my husband had rewired it himself but no 2 smart teenage boys did.

I ran that mill a couple of times, hmm, good thing it was not hot wired!