Things to consider when doing a DIY Project

During the pandemic it’s been hard to get contractors in to do the jobs that were needing done around the house or the upgrades that were needed to fixtures and fittings and many people have embraced or resorted to “do it yourself” just to get things done. 

For some this has been very successful as you can see by entire kitchen renovations just using one tin of Frenchic paint for peanuts instead of what would normally cost many hundreds of dollars through a contractor.  
It’s not been plain sailing for everyone though and there’s been botched jobs left, right and centre as 50% of Brits managed to botch a DIY job during lockdown!  That means for every nice, neat and safe job done by someone out there, there’s another job just hanging by a thread.  Correcting these jobs have been estimated to be an average cost of £200 per job – totting up to millions across the country.

Top mistakes include putting up shelves, curtain rails and filling in cracks and although you can buy building supplies in a local store there’s nothing that can make up for the experience and training that comes with completing professional, time served handyman tasks – who has experience with exactly the right tools for the job and the best materials.

If you are going to bite the bullet and take a 50% chance of botching your DIY job then here are some considerations that you should be making;
Get clear and easy to follow instructions.  Watch or read them several times through before getting into the task.  YouTube can be an amazing source of tutorial videos – I know a chap who renovated an entire apartment in France just using YouTube videos.  Although he was a very smart, very bright individual and he knew what he was capable of.  Which leads me carefully to point 2

Don’t overreach on your abilities.  Ok so you watched the YouTube tutorial, seems easy enough.  Doesn’t it?  Ask around – see if other people have done a task like this and if people warn you off it – citing that it is harder than it looks – then heed the warnings and hire a professional.  Putting up a curtain rail for example – probably isn’t too much of a drama and the worst that can happen is that it falls down.  Ideally not on someone’s head.  If it’s something that could cause injury or damage if not done properly – I’d be leaving it to the professionals!

Don’t substitute materials or tools.  How often have we seen the instructions call for a certain tool and we’ve shrugged and said “don’t have one of them” and pulled out the trusty flat headed screwdriver.  Best not to do that.
Take Your Time.  There’s a reason there’s a saying that goes along the lines of “if it’s something worth doing, do it well” which generally means take care and time over it.  If you are going to DIY it, take your time and do it right.