There are a huge amount of people in the UK that devote evenings and weekends to carrying out those essential DIY jobs in their homes. There is no doubt that there are some people that have very good DIY skills and are able to save themselves a small fortune by doing most things at home. But what if your DIY skills are not up to scratch?
Here is a staggering statistic for you. Between July and September 2017 DIY enthusiasts in the UK spent over £3 billion on tools for the home and garden. That’s just tools! When you add in money spent on materials then the number is incredible.
The problem is that a poorly executed DIY job can end up costing you a lot of money to put it right. Even something as simple as painting can go wrong if you are not completely sure what you are doing. Here are some of the most popular DIY jobs and the cost of getting them wrong.
Putting up Shelves etc
Putting up a shelf on the wall (or anything else for that matter) seems like a DIY job that should be within the reach of most people. All you have to do is measure, drill the appropriate holes and then fix the shelves or hang the mirror right?
Well unfortunately these simple jobs do go wrong sometimes and the average cost of putting them right by a professional can cost more than £200. The biggest problem with hanging stuff on a wall is the danger of hitting an electrical cable or even a water pipe hidden beneath the plaster.
How can you avoid a disaster like this? Well there are very good digital wall detectors available now that will tell you what lies beneath. They cost around £30 and can save you a fortune in costly repairs.
Painting
You may find it hard to believe that the average person can make a complete mess of a painting job but it does happen. In the worst cases it can cost upwards of £300 to put it right. The secret to a great painting job is all in the preparation.
You need to prepare your walls properly for painting. You also need to purchase high quality paint and apply enough coats for a great job. So the tip here is spend the right amount of time prepping your walls and don’t go cheap on the paint.
Fixing that Squeaky Floorboard
It is really irritating walking over that floorboard that squeaks every time isn’t it? There can’t be much to repairing a squeaking board can there? Surely all you need is a good hammer and the appropriate nails?
The problem with this is the same as the hanging shelves job. You just don’t know what is underneath. If you hammer a nail into a pipe then you could be facing a bill of around £420 to fix the problem.
A good tip here is to actually remove the offending floorboard completely and inspect what is underneath. If there are pipes and cables then you can see where they are and avoid them. If the room is upstairs then hitting a pipe can mean flood damage to a downstairs room which will be really expensive to put right.
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