Building services are the trade you never see in a finished flat and use every single day. In a renovation they are decided earliest and repaired at the greatest cost: the cable goes under the plaster, the plaster goes on, the tile goes up — and from that point every change means taking work back out. This article goes through every network, with real labour rates.
Electrical installation
In an old Budapest flat this is usually not an extension but a full replacement: aluminium conductors, no earthing, three or four circuits for the whole flat. A modern flat needs considerably more — separate circuits for the hob, the dishwasher, the air conditioning, the bathroom.
| Item | Unit |
|---|---|
| Chasing | lm |
| Cable laying | lm |
| Conduit | lm |
| Junction box | each |
| Socket or switch | each |
| Downlight, wall or pendant fitting | each |
| Track lighting | lm |
| LED strip | lm |
| Flush consumer unit (small) | each |
The rates look modest on their own; the quantities do not. A two-bedroom flat takes 60–90 linear metres of chasing and cable, 25–35 accessories, plus the consumer unit — together one of the largest net labour lines of the job.
Water and drainage
We price plumbing by point, because that can be checked: a water supply point and a drainage point are separate lines. A normal bathroom plus kitchen comes to 8–12 points.
Fitting the sanitaryware is separate, priced per item: basin, bath, shower tray, shower enclosure, concealed cistern, WC pan and boxing in the cistern. Connecting a washing machine or dishwasher, and an electric water heater, are lines of their own too.
Tanking under a bathroom is charged per square metre, and it is the worst possible place to economise: the consequence of skipping it is the ceiling of the flat below.
Heating
On a radiator system, forming a heating point, hanging the radiator and hanging a towel rail are three separate items. If a radiator has to move — because furniture or a window leaves no room — the new route and its chasing count too.
For electric underfloor heating, the heating cable is charged per square metre and the thermostat per unit. In a bathroom this is usually the realistic option: a small area, no height to spare for a wet system, and it sits under the tile.
Air conditioning — decided last, needed first
Air conditioning almost always comes up as an afterthought, when it should come up earliest: the copper line, the condensate route and the power cable are all settled before plastering. Retrofitted, it becomes either external trunking or a second round of chasing.
| Air conditioning item | Unit |
|---|---|
| Indoor unit | each |
| Outdoor unit | each |
| Line run (copper pipe + cable) | lm |
| Commissioning and connection | per system |
A complete split installation therefore adds up to a noticeable amount of net labour, depending on the length of the run. The position of the outdoor unit may also be governed by the building association — worth clarifying in advance on a street-facing façade.
Ventilation and extraction
Old Budapest buildings ventilate through gravity flues, which effectively stop working once modern windows go in: the flat becomes airtight and the moisture stays. This is the most common cause of mould after a renovation — not the wall, the air.
Connecting a kitchen or bathroom extractor is a line of its own, with the duct run in the suspended ceiling. Heat-recovery ventilation requires its own design and its own budget — we do not list it at a unit rate, because the geometry of the flat determines it.
Low voltage: internet, entryphone, alarm
The most frequently omitted network. Wi-Fi does not replace structured cabling: in thick brick walls the signal is gone by the second wall. Laying data cable costs the same as electrical — but only if it happens during the same round of chasing. Retrofitted, the same work costs several times as much.
Connecting an entryphone or video entryphone is a line of its own. If the whole building is changing system, the association organises that — but the route inside your flat is something you have to ask for in advance.
The right sequence
Demolition → services and electrical first fix → plastering → screed and tanking → tiling → accessories and sanitaryware. That order is not tradition but arithmetic: modifying any step backwards means removing work already completed.
Services typically account for 25–35% of the total renovation cost — as much as tiling and painting combined. That is why we ask for the furniture layout and appliance list before any chasing begins: this is the point at which design genuinely saves money. We wrote more about this in our article on what a quote includes.
Frequently asked questions
Typically 25–35%, at the upper end in an old flat where full replacement is required. That is as much as tiling and painting combined — which is why the decision should not be left to the end.
With copper conductors, existing earthing and a sound consumer unit, yes. With aluminium wiring, no: it cannot carry a modern load, and a partial fix leads back to the same place in a few years.
Before plastering. That is when the copper line, condensate route and power cable go into the wall. Retrofitted, it becomes external trunking or a second round of chasing.
Yes. New windows are airtight, and the gravity ventilation of an old building effectively stops as a result. Without extraction you get condensation in the bathroom and kitchen — the most common cause of post-renovation mould.
Yes, every figure is net labour without materials; 27% VAT comes on top. Material cost depends on your choices, which is why it sits on a separate line.