House jobs that aren't diy

hippychippy

Anyone looking for any jobs done that they are getting nagged about, give me a shout. Too many television programmes these days seem to give the impression that all jobs are diy, I'm sure some of ye have found to your misfortune that all these jobs need some amonut of skill or knowhow. I cringe when I read about guys tiling, fitting kitchens etc, etc, when they haven't held a hammer before

Wibbs

Meh, while I agree that some jobs are a too much a lot are not. Structural work heavy duty plumbing, gas and electrical stuff should be left alone. I will say the idea that tiling is somehow a "black art" is something I could never understand. Sure a pro will be quicker but tiling is not rocket science. Mark it out, space it correctly, slap up your guide battens(rotate the batten on each wall to even up any inconsistency). Buy ready mixed adhesive to save the bother and away you go. You'll get the hang of it quickly enough. Saves a fortune by doing it yourself and is satisfying to boot. Kitchens are difficult(especially hanging doors correctly) but I would do as much of the work myself. Basic plumbing is glorified lego. Read up on whatever it is, observe safety precautions and take your time. In any case should this not be in the DIY forum?

JoeB-

Yeah, hanging doors on 35mm cup hinges is much more difficult than it looks... partly this can be caused by adjustments which aren't independant.. so you adjust the door left and it also moves away from the cabinet... so adjustments have to be carried out in a particular order.

More expensive hinges have independant adjustment in three directions.

With things like tiling and painting the pros just do it so much quicker.. so a ten hour paint job for a good fast pro may take a slow DIYer 25 or 30 hours, and then it may not be as good either... so is it worth it for the 300 Euro or whatever?

Cheers
Joe

Mahatma coat

OK right I work in the timber industry and I trained as a plumber years ago, but what I would like to add to this is




There is nothin more satisfying than standin back in the evenin and surveyin a job well done, even more satisfyin is learnin on the fly how to do that job.


as for hirin profesionals to hang cupbuard doors etc,

I was fittin kitchens for <a very large firm> with me Da when I was 14, how expert do ya think I was, and still not one complaint or problem, mpst of the stuff ya get nowadays is designed to be fitted by first year apprentices, surely yer not that thick!!!!

Mahatma coat

tiling is a 'black art' tho, either ya got it or ya dont, after about 10 minutes y'll know.

I've tiled a few bathrooms and I would consider meself reasonably proficent, my brother tho could do the same job twice as well in half the time.

JoeB-

Yes, hanging doors on modern mass produced CNC machined kitchen carcases is easy.. mainly because all the screw holes are pre drilled... it can be more difficult when you have made the doors and carcases yourself and you are hanging the door by offering it up and screwing the hinges on.. rather than calculating the exact distances and drilling using a CNC machine.

I regularly see damaged doors hanging off cabinets in customers houses and a few simple adjustments solve the problem, the customer then says it was damaged for years and yet they were never able to correct it.

blindman

There was a time I thought tiling wasn't rocket science. Try selling a house that hasn't been tiled properly.