is taking on a home improvement project really worthwhile,or should it be left
By xialinye
@xialinye (1403)
China
July 24, 2008 8:14pm CST
to paid professionals?
improving a home yourself by redecoration,putting in a new kitchen or bathroom,or even adding an extension is a popular leisure activity for millions of people worldwide,especially in english-speaking countries like the USA,Australia and Britain rather than employing professional crafts and tradespeople to do the work,people often choose the DIY route.
so what will you choose?
5 people like this
14 responses
@derek_a (10874)
•
25 Jul 08
I have been doing DIY all my life and I learned most of the skills from my father and some professional trades people over the years. I rarely employ a professional unless it is something I know I cannot tackle. Lately I have employed some professional painters to paint the eaves of the house because it is a bit too high for me these days.
2 people like this
@tessah (6617)
• United States
25 Jul 08
im up to my eyeballs in home improvements myself. painting stripping refinishing, demolishing walls, rebuilding stairs.. you name it!! my home is very old and very neglected, and needs a whoooole lotta tlc (and elbow grease!) and for most of it.. we are doing it ourselves.. my husband and i.. as a team. building our home together from one end to the other and making it our own. for the bigger more difficult things like electrical work and full plumbing, we are hiring professionals.. but there is alot to e said of the satisfactions that come from doing it yerself.. having the ability to stand back and admire work you did with yer own hands and say "*I* did that!!" and creating the memories thatll last forever 
2 people like this
@tessah (6617)
• United States
25 Jul 08
not difficult really.. just rather tedius. stripping wallpaper and conditioning walls to be painted is a messy yucky time consuming task. not hard to do.. ya just grab a putty knife and start ripping it off.. then youve gotta disolve the glue/paper thats left behind and scrap all that off.. then sand everything down where theres marks from said putty knife and other nicks in the wallboard.. then cover with a couple coats of fresh paint. took a couple weeks or so to do my livingroom/diningroom, which is a very large area and that included refinishing the hard wood floors by first cleaning, then sanding, couple coats of varnish and sealant.. and resealing all the windows on top of doing the walls and ceilings. but it sure does look beautiful now thats its done!! 
bit by bit the place is coming back to life all fresh, shiny and new. another perk is we are saving thousands upon thousands of dollars by taking our own time doing it ourselves. if wedve hired people to come in and do just what we did in those two rooms alone, it wouldve run us about 4-5 grand. in total it only cost us $150 and two weeks of our time.
bit by bit the place is coming back to life all fresh, shiny and new. another perk is we are saving thousands upon thousands of dollars by taking our own time doing it ourselves. if wedve hired people to come in and do just what we did in those two rooms alone, it wouldve run us about 4-5 grand. in total it only cost us $150 and two weeks of our time.
@danishcanadian (28953)
• Canada
25 Jul 08
My step-dad works construcion, so anything hat needs to be done around my mother's and his place gets done easily. Home iprovement projects sould be left to people who know what hey are doing. They may e professionals, or they may just be regular people with talet. Either way, make sure people know what they are doing before taking on such a project.
1 person likes this
@ElicBxn (63235)
• United States
25 Jul 08
Some people are able to do major things, not me. I can change a door knob, probably fix a toliet, but I'm not taking down a wall or messing with electricity, I know my limits.
I've been known, in my younger days, to go up trees to cut limbs, but even there, there are limbs and then there are LIMBS. Some jobs should be left to professionals, at least when you are talking about someone like me.
1 person likes this
@xialinye (1403)
• China
25 Jul 08
yeah,home improvement is very hard work,involving many hours of manual labour,sore hands and an aching back.most of people work long hours in demanding jobs,with stressful commutes and tiring domestic commitments.the last thing they want to do in the tiny amount of spare time we hafve left is to turn around and tackle heavy construction or redecorating jobs around the house.
1 person likes this
@mentalward (14691)
• United States
25 Jul 08
It depends entirely on experience. My husband is going to build a new deck and sunroom onto our house, but he has experience at this kind of thing.
If it came to putting in a new bathroom or room addition, I think we'd have to hire professionals to do it. It's safer that way and you know that it will pass inspection.
Around our home, there are many self-employed people. I will hire them to do smaller things, like checking our well-water to make sure it is useable and healthy.
But as far as decorating goes, I'm definitely a "do-it-yourselfer"! I took a course in interior decorating/design. I also look through magazines for ideas. Things like new pillows I never buy. They are so easy to make and a lot cheaper, too! I make our curtains and drapery and new covers for the furniture.
Anything really major, though, I believe should be left to professionals. They KNOW what they're doing, get permits if they're needed, walk through with inspectors, etc.
@nutanjain (898)
• India
25 Jul 08
well its jusy about perfection that you either achieve throught the professional way or through ourselves moreover it also depends on how much finances do you have and therefore you can tkae the step according to your finances mmoreover the desigenrs are experienced in their work so they know how to utilise the each and every dimension of your mansion
@tholitz (1127)
• Philippines
26 Jul 08
Hi xialinye!I think it really depends on the knowledge and capability of the person who will do it. Personally, I will choose to hire a professional interior designer if I will redecorate my house. I think they brought artistic taste and value to the house, from the furnitures up to the paint colors and details of the house.
So I think it is better to know what you can do on your own and what is not, also we should consider the budget if ever we decided to hire someone.
@suspenseful (40193)
• Canada
25 Jul 08
My husband is fixing up the basement, that is until he had his small stroke. He can do most of it, like framing it and rewiring, but he might not be able to put the paneling in or do the heavy work so he is leaving that to the professionals. We will also get someone to do the landscaping, and the rest of the house. So part of it he will do himself, and that which he cannot, will get someone else to do it. It all depends on the money situation. Professionals cost a bit more than doing it yourself.
@zandi458 (28102)
• Malaysia
25 Jul 08
I personally have no skill in home improvements. normally if I need renovation, I will ask the specialist to give me an estimate and if it is within my budget I will go ahead with the renovation.
@ratyz5 (7808)
• Philippines
27 Jul 08
If I am able to do it by myself, I would really do it given that I have time for it.
Then, if I don't have time to do it by myself and have money to spare to hire professionals to do it, of course, considering my own point of view and suggestions as well as their own, I would let them do it.
@kun2349 (23381)
• Singapore
25 Jul 08
I will choose the DIY route ^_^ As i'm the one staying and living in the house and i dun ask for it to be very nice, all i want my house to be, is to be comfortable because it's a place whereby we relax ^_^
What's more, those professionals are not us and they dun know what we really wants and even they can get ti right, but the feel is the there and we will feel that something is missing ^_^
@jstaubin (423)
• United States
25 Jul 08
I have a house that is a fixer upper. I feel that it is totally worth my time and effort. We have chosen to do the improvments ourselves because it save us money. Then when it is done we will have a house that is worth more then it was when we got it.
@TessWhite (3146)
• United States
25 Jul 08
It would depend on the project. If I planned to redo my kitchen or bath I'd need a professional to install sinks, cabinets etc. My next project is to redecorate this second bedroom and turn it into a home office that we want it to be. I've already bought the paint and supplies. I've got the fabric sitting here ready to sew into curtains as well. Those types of things I can do myself. If I hired someone to do that, it would cost me 4 times the amount (at least) that its costing me now. Besides, I enjoy it, even though it will take me longer than a professional and I'll pay with pain later for my efforts. I even do my own landscaping when able. Why pay someone when I can't afford that anyway?
