Don’t Fail this Fall! 5 Home Improvement Projects to Never DIY
The start of September signals the end of the summer travel season and the beginning of a new school year. This fall, you can count on spending cool weekends enjoying pumpkin-spice-something, watching a little football and possibly completing a few DIY projects around the house. When it comes to home renovations, there are those that are definitely D-I-Y and some that are simply D-I-Don’t! Here are five home improvement projects that you should leave up to the professionals: 1. Painting Cabinets When homeowners think about DIY projects, painting is probably one of the first that comes to mind. Sure, brightening up your walls or even replacing dated wallpaper with a fresh coat of paint are fine ideas for DIY home improvements. But, when it comes to kitchen and bathroom cabinets, you may be better off calling in a professional. What could be so hard about giving your cabinets a new look? Well, the prep work, actually. Kitchen cabinets are prone to cooking splashes and spills. They also are filled with a family’s worth of fingerprints! The degreasing process alone may be reason enough to hire professional help. 2. Demolishing Walls We recently suggested that every homeowner would LOVE to have their own demo day. You know, the first day of a home improvement project where you are able to take out a little extra aggression by tearing apart the area that you are planning to reconstruct. While the process is certainly gratifying, you’ve got to proceed with caution when it comes to demolishing things around the house. (Should go without saying, right?!) When it comes to tearing down walls at home, it is often helpful to have a professional’s help so that you can be sure you’re not knocking down a wall that serves a greater purpose. You may want a more open floor plan, but not at the expense of your home’s structural support. Load-bearing walls are a no-no when it comes to demo days. Make sure you are steering clear before you break out the sledge hammer. 3. Fixing Roof Leaks “It’s only a small leak. I can take care of it.” These two sentences should probably never come out of a homeowner’s mouth—unless they also happen to be a professional roofer! Even the smallest of leaks can cause the biggest of problems when it comes to a DIY roofing project. DIY roofing can become a hazard from the first moment a homeowner climbs on top of their house. Walking around the roof searching for the problem spot is a dangerous undertaking for anyone. When you do find the affected area, you’ve got to have the supplies, tools and know-how to fix it. If you don’t repair it right the first time, you could end up paying a professional even more down the road. 4. Refinishing Floors You’ve seen (and possibly even used) those carpet cleaning machines that you can rent at local supermarkets and hardware stores. But, when it comes to hardwood flooring, it is often best to leave the machines “for rent.” Oh, they’re affordable and seem to be easy to use, but they are also easy to misuse! If you want to preserve your hardwood floors, proceed with caution. If you decide to do a little DIY sanding, you’ve got to be sure to evenly reach every spot on the floor. Uneven sanding is noticeable, hard to cover up and can be expensive to fix! Spring for professional help when it comes to refinishing your floors. 5. Installing Plumbing OK, we get it. You can unclog a sink or toilet around your home, no problem. But, before you attempt any other home plumbing tasks, you really should hire a professional. Where there is a plumbing job, there is a potential for flooding. That can mean major damage in any home. Even installing a dishwasher may be a major D-I-Don’t for any homeowner. If you do try to DIY, you may have to do some guesswork when it comes to drilling holes in your walls or cabinets to run water lines. Yikes! Either pay the installation fee or hire a plumber for some help. Instead of doing a few DIY home improvement projects this fall, stick to DIY home décor! It is the perfect season for making festive fall wreaths, painting pumpkins or adding other seasonal spice to your home!
