I have a
lot of respect for those who can renovate their own homes. In an age of do-it-yourselfers, it’s quite an
honour to be able to say, “See that new bathroom vanity? I did that.”
I’ve got a
few of those places in my own home. “See
that new light fixture? I did that.” “See that caulking in the bathtub – I did
that.” “See that new drywall and crusty
mudding that still isn’t painted? Yah, I
did that, too.”
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| When installing light fixtures, turn off electricity |
You get the
picture – I don’t do renovations on a large scale. I try to patch up small areas where I can to
maintain our home, but I certainly don’t try to make any structural changes. And I avoid contractors as much as I possibly
can.
When it
came to installing new plumbing under my sink, I let a friend do it – having
only done it once before, he did a fabulous job (still no leaks!) When I needed an extra cabinet beside my
newly installed dishwasher, I got my brother-in-law to do it. And he too did a fine job with the supplies
he was provided with (I only gave him $20 to work with – just kidding!)
Contrast
that with a few experiences I’ve had with contractors. When I got a contractor to put in a new
countertop in my kitchen, he got the measurements wrong and had to do the whole
thing over again – a process that took six extra weeks. When I got a so-called plumber to hook up my
dishwasher, he hooked up the wrong pipes.
That’s not
to say that there aren’t good contractors out there, but one must be quite wary
of the quality and cost.
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| When caulking, use your finger to create a nice smooth surface |
In a
booming economy like ours, contractors are a costly bunch and hard to
find. If you can get a trusted
contractor who works for $50 an hour, you’re doing quite well. Compare that to my dad’s handyman, a retired
farmer who will fix anything that is made of wood or steel, and works for a
humble rate of $15 an hour. Your best
bet is to find someone you know.
That’s why
I also feel sorry for those who have the innate ability to fix things. They’re in high demand. I’m sure they select their friends
carefully. They look for friends with
newly renovated, well-maintained homes.
When we
bought our home we were pleased with the work that had already been done. We didn’t want a fixer-upper, but
nevertheless, there are always things you want to change in a 35-year-old
home. Renovating our basement was my own
personal project that brought about some tears, but also a sense of
accomplishment once it was done. (I
should clarify – when I say renovate, I mean painting the walls and ceiling,
adjusting some wood panelling, and installing new light fixtures!) The new carpet and trim was professionally
installed – I don’t dare dabble in work involving air guns and saws that
require electricity.
 | ||
| On drywall, try to fan the mud in all different directions |
Sure, as my
handyman cousin suggested, I could have saved some money on the trim by buying
a saw myself and doing the work. And
sure, I could have also had one less finger – would I be the better for
it? Not at all. There are some things I would rather not
learn how to do. I simply do not have
the interest or temperament.
Give me a
book and I’ll write you a book review, but don’t give me a hammer and nails to
make a bird house.
And I feel
no shame. So I paid someone a few
hundred dollars to expertly do something I could spend months learning to do on
my own? I saved both time and tears (and
I do cry when it comes to renos).
I take the view of one of my
co-workers who was rather frank when commenting on what he did last
weekend. “I cut the grass,” he said. “I didn’t do anything else. I don’t like to work with my hands.”
Amen, brother, amen.
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