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Home improvements you can do on your own

Feb 16, 2018
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Although the idea of saving a lot of money by doing small repairs in your home sounds great, you still need to be careful every step of the process. Many easy, do-it-yourself projects can be completed within a couple of hours or over the weekend, so you can consider tackling some of them. You don’t have to call a handyman if you have the required tools and are willing to try to fix the problem yourself.

You can find tips, tricks and solutions for almost everything online and if you pay close attention to the instructions, you can deal with the problem successfully.

Start with painting

This is, without a doubt, the easiest task you can do in your home. You’ll need some paint, different types of brushes, a roll of painter’s tape to protect wooden surfaces, rosin paper for the flooring and a spatula with some spackling paste to patch any holes. After you gather the materials, you can start applying the paint using a small brush and cover the surfaces that are difficult to reach, and only then should you start covering the walls with a larger roller.

Build a brick path outside

Just imagine how intriguing your driveway would look if it was connected to the main entrance of your house with an interesting brick path. You can purchase shattered bricks and colourful tiles, or even break them into pieces yourself, but don’t forget to press them into the ground after paving the path. You can finish the look with quality protective finisher to protect those pieces from damages during winter.

Consider the risk when dealing with electricity

You should avoid doing anything connected to the main electrical lines or natural gas pipes, so just leave those problems to professionals. Even if you have all the tools, you still don’t have the right knowledge and even the smallest mistake can cause a serious damage. If you want to work on resolving some of these problems, be sure to wear proper safety clothing to keep yourself safe. Check the surroundings and examine potential effects your work can have on nearby objects — if something happens, try to prevent the problem from spreading.

Add additional shelves

Additional shelves can be implemented in your kitchen cabinets, closets and bookcases — basically anywhere you need some additional storage space. You’ll need to be precise with cutting the shelves because they need to be measured perfectly to fit into the appropriate spot. Drill small holes to create a stand, be extra careful when installing it and check whether your shelves are levelled. Carefully place the shelves and see whether they need any additional support.

Small fixtures

Don’t call the handyman if you have a small problem you can handle yourself. Anything from changing the door handle through fixing broken tiles to replacing the faucet require just a few minutes and some patience. This can be a great way to learn new things and be proud of the final outcome, too.

Fixing the roof

Every new storm causes damage to our roofs, and if you want to prevent this from happening often, you need to secure your own. First, you need to check for leaks and determine possible problems in the future. To repair a leak, replace the shingles and clean the gutter to prevent water from collecting on your roof. This will direct rainwater away from your house and stop further leaks into your foundation and other serious problems.

Kitchen rollouts

New trends show that old kitchen cabinets aren’t practical anymore and suggest installing drawers instead — where it’s possible, of course. This is one of the easiest upgrades you can do in your kitchen, and it can be done within minutes. Make the rollouts yourselves or buy them in a store to save some time. After you’ve added roller slides glide, just simply place the drawers into your cabinet and start organising.

For more complicated projects you should definitely call professionals and leave the work to them.

You can try out some of the smaller improvements yourself and you’ll see how proud they’ll make you feel. With every accomplished one, you’re going to want to learn more things and find new projects. Apart from feeling great about your new skills, you’ll save a lot of money and will be able to spend it on new tools and accessories instead.

What home improvements have you tackled around the home? Have any of your improvements ended in disaster?

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