16 Common Scenarios: When To DIY and When to Hire a ProPosted by Josie Bumgamer on December 3rd, 2020 Owning a home is generally liberating, you can make the space what you want, contribute towards your personal equity and not be at the mercy of your rent possibly increasing by 100%. However, it does come with more responsibility as you can no longer call on your landlord for maintenance and repairs. The toilet you never had to use if it wasn’t to dispose of your own bodily fluids? Now you have to upkeep. The beautiful yard which looked so luscious and green when you purchased the property? Yep, your lawnmower has to take care of that now. You may be tempted to call a professional contractor, plumber, electrician, or landscaper but these things can add up and eat away at your budget. At the same time, in today’s day and age finding online video tutorials which explain how to do (almost) anything is so easily attainable that it becomes increasingly tempting to just pick up some tools of the trade and do it all yourself, even if you don’t have the skills needed to fix your own home. It’s important to note that a DIY home project without the right planning and knowledge can actually end up being more expensive in the long run as calling a pro down the line would require they fix the original problem plus the new problem that was caused by the homeowner taking on a project he or she was not ready for. Even if you are comfortable with some projects, the knowledge base needed for another project may not be the same. You also have to consider the amount of time, materials, tools, and in some cases permits that are needed to tackle your home improvement projects. So what should you DIY and what should you leave to the experts? While we’re all about saving some bucks, there are some time when pros are needed and other times when you should save some cash and do the handiwork yourself. So whether you are a homeowner who wants to save some money or a renting tenant who just wants to take care of some things without having to wait for your landlord, here are 16 common situations and when you can DIY versus when a pro should be called. Spoiler alert: it’s an even score!
For starters, removing popcorn ceilings is extremely messy. Though it is gaining in popularity lately as popcorn ceilings seem to be tied to an old world style, taking on this project requires a lot of steps. To start, the popcorn must be sprayed and softened by a softening agent. The next step would be for all of the surface area must be scraped with a blade. This part can be particularly difficult as scraping unquestionably creates divots and holes on the surface. Those divots and holes need repair with compound that will need to dry and then be sanded smooth before painting. For the last step, everything needs to be primed and then painted with two coats of paint. Since it is all done on the ceiling, the work is overhead and requires the person doing the job to be standing on ladders for long periods of time.
Sounds scary, but this can have a simple solution. Sometimes parts of the draining system become lose so it may just be a quick fix. All you would have to do is tighten a slip-nut near the P-Trap. If the leak is coming directly from a hole in the drain pipe, the fix would require a flexible coupling with hose clamps. However, if the leak is inside the wall, then you may want to consider calling a pro.
While this seems easier than fixing a leaky kitchen or bathroom pipe, the challenge is getting the wallpaper straight on the wall and matching up the patterns correctly so that it looks smooth. This typically requires two people to do the job. Also, sometimes the wallpaper you hang up can cause bubbling; when this happens you have to remove the wallpaper and install a new strip of wallpaper. This can (1) be very labor intensive and (2) end up using up more wallpaper than needed which would then run up your expense as you would need to order more. Since this isn’t a safe vs not safe scenario, it’s up to your discretion to decide whether going down the DIY route and the potential savings outweigh the potential risks. Getting a pro to do this job basically guarantees a smooth and predictable result.
Talking about labor intensive jobs, painting the exterior of a house is a huge job. The majority of homes require all of the trim, soffits, and rake boards to be painted. Depending on the type of home, all of the siding would of course need to be painted as well. Not only will this take hours to be done correctly, but it also required extensive use of ladders at high levels and sometimes climbing up on the roof. As a homeowner, you need to consider safety requirements before taking on an exterior job.
As a first method to repair the problem, you may be able to DIY yourself out of this one. You may be able to clear a clogged disposal by using a small specialty wrench that fits into a hexagonal opening on the underside of the disposal. Make sure that the disposal is turned off before starting the work. If this doesn’t work it would be wise to call on a pro to take a further look at it.
This one comes with a huge caveat. We only recommend to DIY it if it’s a centerset type faucet as all you would need to do here would be to follow the faucet manufacturer's installation instructions. A more complicated, wide-spread type of faucet with various hose connections on the underside, however, would be best handled by a professional.
You can get a toilet rebuild kit from big box or hardware stores and fix a running toilet easily by following the straightforward and easy-to-follow instructions that come within the kit. If you have a one-piece or specialty toilet, these can become tricky and would therefore need the professional touch.
Though electrical repairs and installations are mostly always expensive, these tasks are best left to a professional electrician. If you’d like to give it a go and take some time to research and understand your electrical system, you may be able to get the necessary skills to complete simple electrical projects yourself. As a rule of thumb for installing a light fixture, low voltage projects can be safely done by a homeowner, but if your project is over 50 volts, it’s best to get an electrician in.
This one almost goes hand in hand with the above as installing a ceiling fan is not extremely difficult but would require some electric wire work. This task may also be a bit labor intensive and take a few hours depending on your home maintenance experience and the fan itself. Save this project for a professional to ensure the fan is safely installed and isn’t left wobbly as this can be a safety hazard when the fan is on, specially at a high fan setting.
A simple home improvement project would be to add chimes to your existing doorbell system. If this is something you are interested in doing, you can do this easily as it is a low-voltage project that doesn’t require the know-how of the pros.
Perhaps one of the simplest fixes you can take on is patching a nail hole in your wall. This is an easy way to give your old drywall a fresh face. Just take a spackle knife and fill in each hole with lightweight putty. Then scrape off any excess putty from the wall and let it dry. Once dry, sand the spot down until it is smooth and paint the area which was repaired with primer. If you are looking to take care of a bigger hole, or if drywall cutting, replacing, or mudding is required then its best to get a pro in to take care of it.
Only go the DIY route on this one if you are comfortable on a ladder. When gutters are clogged, it can cause water to sit still around the house, eventually leaking into the basement, and seeping under siding. Sooner or later this will cause major mold and rot issues. To be preventative in these scenarios, get into the habit of cleaning leaves out the gutters every spring and fall. Please note this is only recommended as a DIY task for single-story homes with level grounding around the foundation and an experienced ladder climber. It is also recommended to do this project when someone else is there to hold the ladder still and help. If your home is two stories or more, or if you aren’t comfortable climbing up a high ladder in order to clean out the debris, it’s best to hire a pro.
This may not be the DIY project you start off with, but once you are comfortable with other DIY home maintenance projects then this is a common household fix (or upgrade) which you can do. Since the surface of tile grout is porous, it is easy for dirt to get caught in the cracks of the grout which makes the grout look discolored. To complete this project you first need to choose the right one out of 4 choices: sanded, unsanded, acrylic latex, or epoxy. To figure out which one you will need, measure the space between your tiles. As a general rule, if the space between the tiles is under 1/8-inch, use an unsanded, acrylic, or epoxy grout. If it is over 1/8-inch, use a sanded grout. Also, don’t forget to match the grout color! Once you purchase the right grout, clean the grouted area. Next use a grout saw in order to remove the damaged grout and then dampen the joints with a wet rag. Take a look at the directions on the grout you purchased and mix accordingly. It is important to fill all the joints completely and smooth over the surface with a damp sponge to remove excess grout. Allow the grout to set firmly and then clean with a damp rag.
The toughest thing about installing crown molding is the necessity for accurate measurement. Though you may have a power saw (or know where to rent one from), this is also a job that requires great stability while standing on a ladder. You must be able to not only the measurements accurately but also line up the cuts seamlessly. If you have done a good amount of other DIY projects, you may be able to take this on if you feel confident in your skills. Otherwise it would be best to get a pro on this job.
If you are simply replacing one door with another door that is exactly the same, then you should be fine doing this yourself. However, adding a new door as a major overhaul can be a big project. For example, if you are looking to add a new door to brighten up a space (like turning two windows into an opening for beautiful French or sliding glass doors) or to cut down on heating and cooling costs, then you want to be sure that the job is done right.
This may seem like a fairly innocuous task, but it can become labor intensive and complicated quite quickly depending on the reason why the window it stuck in the first place. Sometimes it can be caused by a buildup of dirt and debris in the window casing. Other times it can be due to problems in the foundation of the home shifting and therefore causing windows to lose alignment and get stuck. Or it can be something as simple as forgetting to let the paint dry during the last DIY project and closing the window before it completely dries, thus causing the window to glue closed. If you live in a high humidity area, this can also cause doors and windows to swell and bind them in the jamb. Since there are so many causes for a sticking window, in order to fix a stuck window often involves removing the window which could require using a belt sander or planer. If you’re not super experienced at home repairs or home renovations and do not have the know-how to safely use the tools required, it’s best to let the pros handle this task. Like it? Share it! More by this author |