With the housing market continuing to increase, Vancouver real estate saw sales up 25.3 percent in the 10-year January average last month. The increase in competition for a limited amount of homes has driven up prices to record numbers.
The short supply causes older homes to be purchased above market value, which means they may need renovations. To save money, doing custom home renovations sounds like the best option. And with the help of the internet, it is now easy to learn how to do anything.
We all know there are a lot of good tutorial videos available. However, not all home renovation should be done by you. Especially if you do not have the tools and skillsets to properly and safely execute the tasks. Instead of making your home look better, you might end up doing more damage than good.
There are important things you need to remember with a home renovation. For example, the budget, your time, and how inconvenient it will be for you and your whole family. Especially if you are doing the renovation or updating yourself. It will take a LOT of time and effort on your part. Here are 5 things you need to avoid when doing custom home renovations.
1. Not planning enough time for your custom home renovations
Don’t believe everything you see on the internet. When a tutorial video says a certain home improvement will take only 2 – 3 days, you have to keep in mind that these people are experts or experienced enough to finish the project in that time frame.
You need to take into account your skills and capabilities. It might take you a whole week to finish a certain while on the videos, they finish it in 3 days.
Never assume you will finish just like the people you watched on the tutorial videos. Consider your skills and if you have other people to assist you with the project. In case of any unexpected situations in your DIY custom home renovations, add a couple of days to your expected completion date in case of unexpected situations.
2. Spending against your budget for your custom home renovations
When allocating your budget for your custom home renovations, it is best to take into consideration some expected circumstances. You should allocate a budget for going over budget. It’s always better to be prepared than surprised.
For example, when you are opening your walls. It can lead to structural, electrical, or plumbing issues. Needing structural, electrical, and plumbing repair leads to more spending. For renovating older homes, you might encounter mold, pipe leaks, and deteriorating wood.
Always be prepared for these unexpected events.
3. Ignoring building codes and regulations for your custom home renovations
Many Canadian homeowners think that any kind of remodeling, renovations, or construction in their home is their decision alone. However, that is not the case depending on your location and the type of home you live in.
There are certain building codes and regulations you need to check and get approval for before you start your custom home renovations. Especially if you are digging outside of your home to make a pool, installing electrical, mechanical, plumbing, or structural components.
In these cases, you might need a building inspector to check for your safety and your home. Always check your local building codes and regulations before starting your custom home renovations.
4. Not doing proper research for your custom home renovations
Before starting any kind of custom home renovation project, you need to do thorough research especially if you are doing it yourself. There are building codes, regulations, requirements, and laws you need to check before starting your project.
Thorough research and understanding of these will help you avoid further spending, problems, and lawsuits in the future.
If you are doing home renovations yourself, you will have to do quality research yourself. There are different laws, regulations, and codes for various provinces, it will be hard to keep up. There may be permits required to finish the project for your home.
However, if you work with MidCity Plumbers for your custom home renovation, electrical, and plumbing repair needs, we know the codes and regulations to easily guide you through the process.
5. Not leaving the custom home renovations to the professionals
You might have watched a couple of tutorial videos on the internet but it doesn’t mean you gain experience and knowledge with it. Watching videos doesn’t make you an expert in that field. Experience and doing them yourselves is very VERY different from watching them online.
Not all custom home renovations can be done in DIY style. Certain renovation projects need professionals and experts to finish them safely, quickly, and properly. Here are 5 of the custom home renovations you need to leave to professionals:
Asbestos removal
Asbestos is a carcinogen and can cause many health problems, such as lung cancer, asbestosis, and mesothelioma, when inhaled. This is a highly dangerous material for you.
Removing asbestos in your home without proper knowledge, equipment, and protective gear might cause health problems. We highly recommend leaving asbestos removal to experts.
Hire a professional before doing any renovations or remodeling in your home. They will check for any asbestos in your home. If they find any, an asbestos removal specialist will be able to safely remove the asbestos. Do not disturb the asbestos material or it will increase the health risks.
Electrical repairs
Electrical repairs can be very hazardous. Licensed and experienced electricians will know how dangerous it is and can take proper safety precautions to avoid any risks, injuries, and emergencies.
Dangerous situations such as electrocution may occur when an electrical repair or installation is done in a DIY style without proper hands-on experience and knowledge. It also increases the chances of sparking, short circuits, and other problems which can lead to a fire.
To avoid these serious and dangerous situations, we highly recommend contacting a licensed and professional electrician instead of DIY custom home renovations.
Pipe replacement
Watching tutorial videos about pipe replacement tends to make it seem simple and easy. But in reality, they are not. Improper pipe replacement can lead to flooding and water contamination. It is best to leave this a professional plumber Burnaby to make sure no leaks, blockages, or contamination will occur.
Window treatment replacement
When you are replacing window treatments for one to two rooms, you can DIY it. It will not consume that much time and money. However, if you are planning to replace all the window treatment or more than two rooms in your home, we highly recommend calling professionals.
Not only will you save a lot of money, time, and effort. You have peace of mind that window treatment installations are up to standard and done right. Custom home renovations can lead to spending more money if window treatments are done incorrectly.
If you are installing blinds and shades, you can do them yourself. They are not complicated to do even if you install them in all the windows in your home.
However, if you are planning to install specialty products like shutters and differently shaped window treatments, it is best to leave it to professionals.
Plumbing installation and repairs
For a more reliable plumbing installation and repairs, it is best to call a professional rather than do them yourself. Improper plumbing can lead to many problems and in extreme cases, flooding.
If you hire a professional for your plumbing Vancouver needs, they can identify problems and can efficiently and safely deal with them. There are times when a leaky pipe might not seem like a big deal. But, a simple inspection by a plumber will diagnose hidden issues immediately.
Contact a professional
It is nice to learn new things and do things yourself to save money. However, some renovations and remodeling should be left to professionals. Even if you spend hours watching tutorial videos. Some custom home renovations and remodeling may even cause your home to decrease its value or can lead to dangerous situations.
If you need heating, pipe replacement, or plumbing repair, it is best to call a professional with experience and a trustworthy reputation like MidCity Plumbers.
MidCity Plumbers offers excellent and reliable plumbing, heating, drainage, gas fitting, air conditioning repair, boiler repair, and hot water tank services for residential settings. If you encounter any problems or just want to check the safety of your home, give us a call at 📞 (778) 772-8676 or contact us.
The post 5 DIYs to Avoid in Custom Home Renovations in 2022 appeared first on MidCityPlumbers.
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