You watch home improvement programs and follow all the home improvement blogs, so you think it should be easy to tackle that home improvement project on your own. Â Fair warning, professionals on those shows make renovations seem like a piece of cake. Here are some of the most regretted DIY projects by homeowners.
- Adding or expanding a room. Â This is a huge undertaking, and mistakes can be expensive. Â A lot more than adding a wall or removing a wall goes into this project. Â It takes a professional to know what to look for, and how to avoid major mistakes.
- Refinishing cabinets. Â It may seem like an easy project to do yourself, but refinishing cabinets in your kitchen or bathroom is very time consuming. Â It requires removing the doors from every cabinet, sanding, staining, and lots of waiting for paint to dry before installing them. Â
- Refinishing an attic.  You can’t just throw up some paint and call it a day.  Refinishing an attic space needs insulation, and there may be more problems like mold and drafts.  An unfinished attic is definitely a job left to the professionals.
- Replacing carpet.  Unless you really know your way around a toolbox, avoid this DIY.  Laying carpet needs accurate measurements and proper tacking to make sure the carpet doesn’t come up.
- Installing hardwood floors. Â You have to take apart the baseboards and doors to insure proper installation of hardwood floors. Â They also require good measurement to make sure that the floor is level.
- Retiling your bathroom floor. Â Any project that deals with water needs to be properly sealed and grouted. Â Without doing this, you can cause a huge amount of problems taking care of water damage.
- Adding a backsplash. Â You have to completely smooth the surface before installing any tile. Â Without doing this, you could run the risk of the final process looking uneven and sloppy.
In the long run, it’s always better to hire a professional to save on costly mistakes and get your renovation done right the first time.
