Home Improvements 101: Is DIY Worth it?
Everyone experiences growing pains in life; as you get older, these pains move beyond being physical to being psychological. People change and evolve, and as such, they outgrow things, and this can include their homes. Obviously, you can physically outgrow a home as your family gets bigger, but you can also outgrow the décor. This is precisely why home makeovers and DIY are so popular. There is a lot that you can do to your home to adapt and update it to make it feel more representative of themselves and ensure that it can better suit their and their family’s needs. When it comes to updating your home, you are left with two choices: you can hire a professional, or you can choose to go the DIY route. However, is DIY really worth it? Let’s find out.
DIY: The Pros
There are a few advantages to choosing to go for a DIY approach to home improvement projects. Firstly, and perhaps, most importantly, DIY can save you money. This is because you obviously are not paying for the skill and time of someone else. You are only paying for the materials needed for the job. You can also look for ways to save money here by renting or borrowing tools from friends or family and finding secondhand materials or salvaging or repurposing things that you find. In that respect, DIY can be incredibly cheap and excellent value for money.
When you choose to take on a home improvement project, and you opt for DIY, then you have total control over the project. You plan it, you carry it out, you decide and monitor the budget, et cetera. All aspects of the job are down to you. You can plan around the potential disruptions that the job could cause. A lot of people do prefer to have more control over these sorts of projects. Obviously, when you hire someone, you still have the final say over the look and finish of the project, but all other elements are taken out of your control.
DIY also gives you more of a sense of accomplishment and pride in the finished product. You did it all yourself, you created whatever it is, and in doing so, you can learn an awful lot. You can develop important skills and become a handier person all around. The work itself can be a great conversation starter for visitors that come into your home. It can also give a reason to be more house proud – and it is great for those who like to keep busy even in their downtime.
DIY: The Cons
As with anything in life, where there are pros, there are, of course, cons too. DIY has a few downsides that you should bear in mind. First and foremost, almost every DIY job comes with risks of one form or another. This isn’t to say that every DIY project is dangerous or hazardous. Still, there is always some level of risk, whether that is simply the possibility of accidentally hitting your thumb with a hammer or the more serious risk of inhaling dangerous chemicals or electrocuting yourself. Now, these things are not necessarily difficult to navigate; you just need to be aware of the risks and take precautions to offset or avoid them.
Depending on your level of DIY knowledge and skill, you could also be limited in the projects that you can realistically pull off. Obviously, as you go along and take on more DIY projects, you are likely to learn more, but in the beginning, as a novice, your knowledge will be very limited. Now, this isn’t necessarily going to be an issue if the job is small; however, if the job is bigger or the finish is particularly important, then this could cause snags. As your knowledge is limited, taking on any bigger or more involved jobs might not be the best idea because it is unlikely that you will be able to achieve the finish that you want.
In fact, the same can be said for tools and equipment needed. Novices lack not only the practical know-how to complete DIY projects to a good standard, they often don’t have the tools either. This isn’t that big of a deal; you can always buy the tools or even rent them if there is a local store that has a scheme like that in place. However, the point of DIY is obviously to save money, and if you have to spend out a lot of money to get the tools and equipment, then it isn’t necessarily going to work out any cheaper than hiring someone.
Working Out Whether to DIY or Not
If you are trying to work out whether or not your home improvement projects are DIYable, then there are really only two questions that you need to ask yourself:
- How extensive is the project or the changes you want to make to your home?
- How much technical knowledge and skill is needed?
The answers to these questions will illuminate whether or not the project is within your capabilities. If it is pretty simple, like hanging pictures, painting, putting up shelves or putting together flatpack furniture, then you are likely to be able to do this yourself. However, if you want to completely remodel your kitchen say, then you should absolutely hire a business like Beattie Development. You absolutely can learn a lot of technical skill needed for DIY projects from the internet – however, you cannot learn everything, and some projects do require qualified workers.
In Conclusion
There are, of course, many instances when DIY will make the most sense for your home improvement projects. However, you will also need to know when to draw the line and hire someone. If you do not know your limits, then you could make costly mistakes that will be frustrating and time-consuming to rectify. Your choices should always be rooted in realism; think about what you are capable of realistically. The internet can be a truly excellent resource, and as such, you can learn a lot and become more handy.