Board Q&A - Home reno skills - ones you've mastered/lack?

[simpsongal]

Figured this might be fun for a board thread.  Feel free to chat about your progression over the years

Where do you excel in home reno DIY?

Where are you lacking/what are skills you haven't tried?

What do you tend to hire out?

If you could have a do-over in your house what would it be?

What do you LOVE above something you've done in your home?

Other musings?

[simpsongal]

Where do you excel in home reno DIY?
I've always been a good painter.  I've vastly improved at picking colors (that wasn't a strength until a few years ago, now I research colors and don't just stand in front of the paint aisle randomly picking chips.  I also take the time and $$ now to buy samples).  I'm pretty good at staining and refinishing furniture too.  My landscaping skills are improving but I'm still a B+ there.

Where are you lacking/what are skills you haven't tried?
Never did electrical (maybe interesting since my twin is an electrician?), not even hanging a fixture even though I've been told it's not too hard.  My carpentry skills are very rudimentary.  I wouldn't mind taking a shop class one day when my kids are grown.  I find getting started w/new tools intimidating (e.g., I've had a router sitting in my garage for a project for over a month....).  I still struggle w/picking curtains, I've been going basic and neutral lately for fear of more ugly window treatments in this house.  

Haven't done tiling either - we've only done new tile as part of big renos, so I just haven't had a opportunity.

What do you tend to hire out?
Ceiling painting and electrical.  Some major landscaping too, if it's a large enough area it could take me all summer.  I had help on our back bed (I bought and placed all the plants but had them plant and do some stuff).  No regrets there.

If you could have a do-over in your house what would it be?
My family room has a beige couch, beige chairs, and beige wall.  I didn't really mean to end up there (kept changing things at different times), but it's pretty blah.  And the tv stand was a $100 desperation buy.  I hate it, it's like particular board and took forever to assemble.  I would have been way better off just snagging something on craigslist.  Also the recessed lights in the space are the classic kind and I have the LED pancakes next to them (different reno timing).  I hate the LEDs, and the mix of lights is bad too.

If I could, I would go back and push for the electric vehicle hook up w/our garage reno.  I took it off the list b/c the contractor was behind and not super jazzed about it.  Now we're contemplating an electric vehicle and we need to put it back on the list.

What do you LOVE above something you've done in your home?
Our new bathroom, it's 100% beautiful and functional.  The whole family is enjoying it too - the kids love the tub and shower (maybe that's a mark against it since they don't use theirs now??).

Other musings?
We're at least a year from planning our next big reno, I think about it on occasion but I'm not sure what exactly we'll do....for now i'm keeping busy w/a punch list of projects I need to tackle.

[dove]

I am super lucky that H is pretty handy around the house. He can do tile, changing fixtures (plumbing and electrical) and can do minor other plumbing, electrical and handyman work.

We got really good at painting, both walls and crown moldings. We don’t like to and would typically contract out, but with contractors being in demand during our COVID Reno, we got really good at it. We also contract major tile work bc it’s time consuming, but we’ll do a backsplash or other minor projects

We haven’t tried refinishing hardwood floors, but have installed bamboo flooring ourselves.

I absolutely loved the house we finished Reno-ing last year, but sold it earlier this year bc H got transferred. We close on our new home in 2 weeks. And it is also a fixer upper so the madness starts all over. I guess that last one was just practice or we are just insane to do it again.

[bhnumbers]

Where do you excel in home reno DIY?
Overall, I'm fairly handy--I can do little things like install a simple light fixture, paint, or hang pictures. I have a good eye for color and pattern, so I am pretty good at knowing what works and doesn't for us for interior design. I definitely excel at shopping, lol. I'm usually good at being able to visualize something before it's built or completed. With the addition we did and the current kitchen project, it's become very apparent that DH cannot really do this, lol.

Where are you lacking/what are skills you haven't tried?
For real DIY-ing, like actually building something--I don't have the talent, know-how, or patience. 

What do you tend to hire out?
Almost everything. Lawn service, gutter cleaning, odd jobs around the house, house cleaning service. Other than general maintenance, there's not a ton to do outside of our kitchen renovation right now and the rest of the house is still fairly new from the addition we put on 3 years ago. 

If you could have a do-over in your house what would it be?
Oh goodness, that's tough. Part of me wishes we had done the kitchen when we did the big addition 3 years ago. But those contractors were so terrible, I can't even imagine how that would have gone. Plus, we really didn't have the money to add that to the project at the time, so if we'd tried, we probably wouldn't have ended up with something as nice and well-thought out as what we're getting now.

I do wish that our screened porch was higher up, though I'm not sure how we could have accomplished that. Because of the incline of our yard, it's kind of cut into the ground. It has a blue stone floor and last summer when I power washed it, it basically became a very shallow swimming pool. I had to go get the shop vac and then alternate power washing, then vacuuming up all the water because I couldn't see what I was doing.

Oh, I also would have installed infrared heaters and/or a gas fireplace on the porch. There wasn't an obvious need for it at the time, I just thought a fireplace would be nice. We just couldn't justify the cost at the time and didn't know how much we'd want to socialize outside in the winter  

What do you LOVE above something you've done in your home?
With the new kitchen, we were able to build in a foyer. The front door used to open right into what was the living room. But now that the living room is no longer and we expanded the kitchen into that space, we had room to build in a small foyer. My designer convinced me to have paneling installed and I just adore it. It turned out better than I ever could have hoped.

Other musings?
I'm looking forward to just living in the house, haha. We've been planning the kitchen since about this time last year. Between that and a bunch of the other interior design changes to other rooms in the house, I feel like we're always just a few steps away from various spaces being "done" but now we're really almost there.

And then I'll be able to spend more time on gardening and that an area where I want more DIY-ing. 

[definitelyO]

ummm… so not handy..... but able to admit it now.
I can change out electrical sockets and light switches and can paint but not a fan of it. I've tried other small repairs, but then pay more for different tools than it would have been to outsource it.

suck at picking colors

Can't get anything to stay when I hang them on the walls - nails fall out, command strips are laughable...

so - usually outsource most everything.

[libbygrl109]

Where do you excel in home reno DIY?


I guess I'm not afraid to tackle anything, if I feel I will kill myself in the process. My dad made sure to teach me how to all the DIY things when I was younger - how to use power tools, do minor electrical and plumbing, etc. He told me once he didn't want his daughter to be completely dependent upon someone else.

Where are you lacking/what are skills you haven't tried? 
Tiling. I had thought about it for a couple projects when we first moved in to our house, but other projects took precedence at the time. 


What do you tend to hire out?
Major things, anything structural vs. aesthetic- plumbing, electrical involving running new wires, dealing with odd configurations (our old house has many),  like putting up walls, drywall, etc. 


If you could have a do-over in your house what would it be?
I think I'd rather have a different shower set-up than we do now. We had to completely redo our bathroom on a tight budget because there were some structural things wrong with it, so we went for an acrylic tub and surround instead of tile. I would definitely go with tile and a better tub next time.

I also would have made the one section of cabinets in our kitchen deeper, had I known how shallow they were actually going to be. Not a deal-breaker, but was a little disappointing, and wish I had asked more questions during the design phase.


What do you LOVE above something you've done in your home?
I am definitely in love with our new kitchen. It has definitely been worth the 16 year wait. 

Also, the closet system I used has made a world of diffrerence in my teeny-tiny closet. 


Other musings?
I wish I was so much better at purging and organizing things. My basement is a disaster right now. 

[aspentosh]

Where do you excel in home reno DIY?
Painting, calculations (for things like building cabinets or stair angles), tiling, pretty much all the basic stuff that one would need as a single person, and demo. I love demo.

Where are you lacking/what are skills you haven't tried?
Electrical and plumbing, mainly because H is good at them and so I let him go with it because it makes my life easier. And drywall repair... I'm ok, but not great.

What do you tend to hire out?
Anything really big- our full bathroom renovation, basement ceiling re-drywalling, and we'll hire out our kitchen.

If you could have a do-over in your house what would it be?
Not doing a pedestal sink in our powder room (will change that to a narrow vanity with drawers eventually). And maybe adding a bathroom in our basement (even just a toilet) when we redid it. 

What do you LOVE above something you've done in your home?
Me, personally- our stairs, our closet build out, refinishing the fireplace and surrounding builtins, and our office shelving unit with dog bench. Something we've hired out- our bathroom.

Other musings?
I want to experiment more outside in the garden. I've stuck with perennials mostly (peonies, mums, hydrangea) because it's easy, but I want to make some planters with annuals be a thing.

[dr.girlfriend]

1.  Where do you excel in home reno DIY?

I am pretty good at putting furniture together!  Anyone in my family calls me when it's time to assemble some IKEA or outdoor furniture.  I have no idea why, my visuospatial skills are horrible in every other context.

2.  Where are you lacking/what are skills you haven't tried?

I will not go near anything with plumbing or electrical.  Even if I know it should be easy, no way.

3.  What do you tend to hire out?

Almost everything, TBH.  I probably tried to DIY more earlier but now we are older, wiser, and richer, and I'd rather save up and have stuff professionally done than do it myself and be unhappy with it.

4.  If you could have a do-over in your house what would it be?

Ugh, we replaced all of our windows in the original house (before we built the addition) and they were complete duds -- the seals all broke and they are growing weird stuff in between the panes.  I'm so angry about it I haven't done anything to try to replace them even though they drive me up the wall.  Window companies can be so scammy I hate it.  I will happily pay people what they are worth for a good product but as soon as someone tries that high-pressure or upselling crap I want to punch them.

5.  What do you LOVE above something you've done in your home?

We absolutely LOVE our new primary bedroom/bathroom addition.  It's totally self-indulgent, and built around our giant t.v., and we couldn't be happier with it.

[bhnumbers]

dr.girlfriend , I am also good at putting furniture together! Ikea furniture and the like are like a great, big lego sets to me (and yes, I do still like to build lego sets and was so very sad when my kids stopped needing my help!)

[ellipses84]

Where do you excel in home reno DIY?
I’m great at assembling things (expert level IKEA builder and hacker)! Interior design and planning is definitely in my wheelhouse.

Where are you lacking/what are skills you haven't tried? I’d love to take some more advanced wood shop type classes and DIY more tile. I’m lacking a handy DH 😆 Seriously, he’s the least handy person ever. A lot of projects require 2 people but I don’t even ask him to help because he inevitably messes something up or gets frustrated.

What do you tend to hire out?
Electrical which kind of terrifies me. I’ve always been afraid of a house fire and I got a bad shock as a kid. Plumbing in our current house because the plumbing was so messed up by a previous DIYer it was a frustrating and near impossible task to fix by myself.

If you could have a do-over in your house what would it be? I would have done some more stuff when we first moved in before it was filled with furniture and people and all our stuff.

What do you LOVE above something you've done in your home? It’s still a work in progress but in general every space is very cozy and functional with lots of storage solutions.

Other thoughts - I mainly lack time (and a some money) to DIY all the stuff I want to do!

[deadwing]

Where do you excel in home reno DIY?


I consider myself to be fairly handy.  My parents are big DIY-ers, so I learned alot growing up.  I enjoy painting, can patch/repair/replace drywall, do basic plumbing (like swapping out a faucet).  I'm good at putting things together.  I think I *could* do basic electrical work but I'm kind of afraid of messing it up.

Where are you lacking/what are skills you haven't tried?


I've never done any major renovations.  I don't have any wood working skills beyond the very basics.  I've never tiled, but I think I could.

What do you tend to hire out?


Big jobs or anything that would be expensive to hire someone to fix if I fuck it up badly enough.

If you could have a do-over in your house what would it be?

I love my home and was extremely fortunate to find something that was very close to my idea of perfection when I bought it.  If I had known my natural gas fire pit was going to make it a giant headache to add a whole home generator, I would have done the generator project first.  For now, the generator project is on indefinite hold.

What do you LOVE above something you've done in your home?

I LOVE my patio/pergola/fire pit that I added last year!  I spend a ton of time outside with my dogs.  The patio is just my little oasis to hang out and read.  The fire pit is plumbed in to the natural gas line in my house, which made it a big splurge, but worth it. 

Other musings?
I find the collective skillset of this board to be very impressive!  One small thing I hate about my house is the kitchen backsplash.  I've been putting off replacing it because I'm afraid of ruining the drywall during removal and I'm not sure I have the skills to cut new tile so it fits around electrical outlets/switch plates.  I should look into this more.

[trissie18]

Where do you excel in home reno DIY?



Between DH and I we are pretty well rounded in just about all areas (electrical, plumbing, sheet rocking, heating, door/window replacement/installation, roofing, siding, etc.) except the ones listed in the next question. We have completely gutted and renovated two houses over the last 17 years so our skills have improved tremendously. 

Where are you lacking/what are skills you haven't tried?


Tiling, countertops, and landscaping

What do you tend to hire out?


Our new house build 4 years ago. After so many years of always working on a renovation of some kind we chose to go brand new for our forever home.

If you could have a do-over in your house what would it be?

Just a handful of minor things that we didn't catch in the design phase after we modified the original plans and didn't think through things like placement of light switches or additional lights in a couple rooms/closets. Otherwise I absolutely LOVE our home more and more every day.

What do you LOVE above something you've done in your home?

I love everything about our home but the major ones are

• adding three feet onto the end of the house from the original plans making our laundry room bigger
• changes we made to the master bathroom/closet/basement access during the design phase made our master closet almost as big as a small bedroom
• moving the basement access to the mudroom gave us a dedicated "cleaning supply" closet where supplies plus the vacuum, mop, etc. are stored and the customized shelving/baskets we put in there make me smile every time I go in there
• building a separate 16 x 20 mudroom
• building a 32 x 32 attached garage with attic trusses so we have 16 x 32 open storage on the second story

Other musings?
I am really excited for our two front porches to be built this summer as that is the last piece to make the outside of the house complete.

[treedimensional]

I excel at the design layout, both indoors and outdoors. I've preferred my own design concepts better than any other professional submission. I am good at painting, but everything else is hired out.