DIY vs. Professional home upgrades
As long as you know what you are doing, DIY projects can be fun and exciting to improve your living space without spending too much money hiring a contractor.
But simultaneously, taking on a project meant for professionals while you are a mere passionate amateur can be a cause for serious trouble and even a venture that will cost you more than you could imagine.
That is why it is essential to be realistic about your limits and know what home upgrades you can DIY and when it is better to reach out to a professional.
Stuff you can do yourself
When it comes to remodeling your kitchen, the best course of action would be to visit a place like JD Kitchens and buy a new tailor-made kitchen that suits your current needs. You can hire expert spray painting services for your walls and cabinets to make the job a lot easier or do it yourself. However, sometimes money can be an issue. That is when you should grab a brush and different paints.
Painting the walls and cabinets is an easy thing to do and an easy way to breathe new life into your home.
If you are repainting kitchen or bathroom cabinets, remember to take them from the hinges and sand them thoughtfully. Sanding ensures that the paint will stick to the wood and not wear off over time.
When painting walls, use painter’s tape to make sure you are painting in a straight line and reduce any potential mess. Use neutral colors as they are always in fashion.
While painting your walls and cabinets can be a time-consuming endeavor, it is also a great way to spend quality time with your kids. Make them feel important by asking them to pick colors for their living spaces and allow them to help you as much as you see fit.
Laminate flooring is easy to set up, making it a fun DIY project. In general, you should be able to remodel one room per day. All you have to keep in mind is to always place the boards so that they do not connect at the same place in each row.
Start from the widest place in the room and set the laminate boards to be vertical to your starting point.
As long as you have some skill with a saw and some patience, setting up laminate flooring is an easy project to do.
Accessories and fixtures are easy to replenish or replace. That is one more DIY project that is not too difficult to do that will positively impact the way your home looks and feels.
Sometimes all you have to do to avoid doing an expensive remodel of your home is take a look at old fixtures – such as lights, faucets, and even toilets – and choose which ones to replace with a newer or different model.
Sometimes even changing the mirrors in your bathroom or bedroom is enough to do the trick and freshen up the look. Other times you can achieve a new look by replacing a few small appliances. Take a critical look at your living space and make a strategic decision.
Creating built-in spaces is yet another fun and relatively cheap way to improve the look and value of your home. For example, you can devote a portion of your living room to a dedicated kids’ play area or create a gaming corner for you and your friends. Adding window seats or built-in cabinets is another surefire way to make your home look much better. At the same time, these places bring more value to your home.
Things you should not DIY
On the other side of the spectrum, we have projects that demand a lot of technical knowledge and experience – sometimes even a special permit. Those are the things you should not try to do yourself.
Plumbing, electrical, and gas repairs and installations are best left for professionals. However, working with these things has many potential hazards and risks to health and safety, so these jobs are usually regulated by law.
Trained pros should also do roof repairs of any kind. Any exterior work involving heights requires a great deal of skill and proper safety equipment – that you most likely do not have.
Structural changes such as taking out walls or repairing your home’s foundation are not easy things to do. No matter how skilled you think you are, this is an area of home remodeling when contacting an experienced professional is always smart.
You should also avoid different hazardous situations. This includes things that present any form of health and safety risk, such as mold, lead paint, asbestos, or old and faulty wiring. When in doubt, reach out to a professional.
All things considered, there are plenty of things that you can do yourself – or with a little help from your friends and family – to make your home look and feel new. Just remember to use common sense and – most important of all – have fun!
