There are all sorts of home repairs that we can do ourselves – installing simple storage systems and hooks, for example, taking the doors off kitchen cabinets to make shelves, wallpapering and painting, landscaping and so on. There is a vast DIY industry dedicated to just these pursuits. It’s fun (sometimes) and very satisfying to take care of things around the house ourselves. And then there are the other kinds of repairs, repairs we should probably get expert help with: structural issues, changing out doors and windows, taking down walls, most tile work, electrical and plumbing upgrades (beyond unstopping a drain and installing a dimmer switch, of course) and similar ambitious projects.
For these and other big undertakings, call in some experts before going ahead. Believe or not, a great deal of work many contractors do involves first fixing bad DIY work. We can’t count the number of times we’ve been called in to finish a project started by a well-intentioned homeowner who promptly got in over his/her head.
It never hurts to ask questions and get an idea of what you might encounter before ripping up the flooring or knocking out some studs only to have the doorways collapse! Maybe you can take on that project yourselves; maybe you’d be wiser to hire some expert help. So before you head off to the hardware store or Home Depot, talk your plans over with a reliable local builder or contractor. As always, prevention (no collapsing doorways) beats cure (restoring structural integrity of house) every time!