You would have seen the ads on TV for Bunnings Warehouse “D.I.Y Renovation – Do it yourself at Bunnings”… and thought to yourself, “maybe I could do that myself”. Have you also tried and got it horribly wrong? There are positives and negatives to this and it’s not just Bunnings promoting the D.I.Y revolution but TV shows such as ‘The Block’ and ‘House Rules’. Doing it yourself is so trendy right now that everyone wants to get in there and get their hands dirty.
As professional renovators PCM Carpentry began renovating properties in 2006. We have the know how, skills and experience to know what can go wrong during a renovation. Now it’s a real skill set renovating houses and you really need to know what you are doing to make the whole process run smoothly and avoid disaster.
For example: which are your structural walls or load-bearing walls? These carry the weight of your house. Remove one and your setting yourself up for a major disaster.
We are advocates of outsourcing jobs wherever possible as we have seen too many D.I.Y renovations go terribly wrong. There are things you should do yourself and things you shouldn’t. I get calls periodically from the “D.I.Y Divorcee” who has taken on a D.I.Y project which has ended in disaster.
If you don’t know what you are doing, outsource the job.
Emma from Hawthorn had a family friend renovate her bathroom. She called PCM Carpentry in tears as she was trying to sell and her shower was leaking. We had to pull apart the bathroom as there was a water leak, re-waterproof, re-tile and re-finish the bathroom.
There are however things you can do yourself to save you money like source materials or remove the existing kitchen. Liaise with your renovator if your unsure what materials are required (they should be able to provide you with a list upon request).
Mark from Croydon paid a sub-par unqualified handyman to install his kitchen. The tiler then came in and told Mark his kitchen is out of level which flows on to the rest of the renovation i.e. tiles, splash backs etc. The tiler recommends PCM Carpentry who can remove and re-install the kitchen which sets Mark back financially as he has to pay for kitchen installation twice.
If your not 100% sure, don’t do it yourself. And if an unskilled family friend offers to do it for you, graciously decline. Renovating should be undertaken by a professional who can start and finish your renovation without disaster.
