The Do's and Don'ts of Do It Yourself Home Improvement | ej ...

The Do?s and Don?ts of Do It Yourself Home Improvement

Deciding to take on home improvement tasks on your own is both courageous and honorable. It can save you lots of money, teach you a valuable set of skills and leave you with a very satisfied feeling. Tackling the wrong home improvement project can also be the worst decision you?ve ever made in your life. So before you pick up that hammer, you might want to read this article on what to do and what not to do with taking on a do-it-yourself project.

Do take a step back

First thing you want to do is really access the project you need to do. It?s admirable to grab a set of instructions you found online and dive in but you could be opening up the possibility for irreversible damage and in some cases safety concerns. Access your understanding of what needs to be done and compare it with past experiences with similar or lesser projects. Ask friends, neighbors or co-workers if they?ve been in a similar situation and ask for tips and things to avoid. A good rule of thumb is that if there are major safety questions, best to look into other options. Once safety is reviewed and understood, it?s time to?

Do Get Prepared

Whether you need plans, tools, safety gear or even a ladder ? make sure you have everything you need. It?s cool when MacGyver makes a gun out of a pen on TV but in real life, the last thing you want to do is cut corners or use the wrong materials when dealing with your home. Create a detailed Excel spreadsheet or open a Google Document (docs.google.com) and list product, number needed, and expense. Use online resources to price out as needed to give you fairly accurate estimate of cost.

Do Set a Budget

Let me repeat that. Set a budget. It?s ok if you need to peer over the surface, but if you start pulling out your second charge card, you might want to stop and think about what you?re spending and if it is worth the cost. There are many cases where Do-It-yourself projects are started with the intention of saving money, but after many trips to the hardware store, repairing mistakes, the cost of the DIY project starts to get closer to what a professional would cost.

A quick tip could be: meet with a professional and pay him/her to consult with you on the best way to tackle a project. Paying someone to oversee or give guidance or solve problems with you doing the work would save time and costs considerably, but still get that professional oversight.

Don?t Ignore Safety Concerns or Codes

This is the most important thing to remember. No one will applaud your gusto if you hurt yourself, someone else or end up causing major damage to your home or rental property. Make sure you understand and adhere to all safety precautions, identify and protect yourself from hazardous materials and make sure you look into your county?s building codes and regulations. Do-over?s are fun in mini golf, not home improvement.

Don?t Be Afraid to Ask for Help

No one learns anything without asking questions. Guys at your local hardware store are usually more than happy to share their knowledge with you. If you have a handy friend, see if they?ll help. Two heads are always better than one and can also help you avoid frustration when there is someone else there to bounce ideas off of. And there?s almost always a few articles or videos online that may be able to shed some light on your project.

One good example of a DYI website with great resources and tips can be found here, http://www.familyhandyman.com/.

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Source: http://ej-fransen.com/the-dos-and-donts-of-do-it-yourself-home-improvement/

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