House renovation, which areas could I help chip in

2 years ago

Dear Folks,

As you may know, I got a three-bed house, which is in need of a complete refurbishment.

I am learning about refurbishment, mostly online and this form has been a huge help.

Just wondering, in which areas of home renovation could I be of help. I am free on weekends and my only DIY skills are in assembling flat-pack furniture. Which I seem to enjoy the most.

Maybe could do the curtains, rods, beds and furniture?

Is there any hard flooring, that is easy to install, especially in areas that might not mind taking a hit, such as the utility room!

Please do advise

regards

Mel

Featured Answer

sarh123

2 years ago

I think you’ll need the weekends to make sure your project is on track, check work done each week, make sure you’ve purchased/chosen everything your contractors will need etc. if you then find yourself with spare time perhaps do some cleaning up, painting, work on the garden?

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Comments (7)

Becky M
2 years ago
Click laminate flooring is easy to install and not a million miles away from flat pack furniture in terms of required skills! I'm not an expert diy-er by any means but I've also managed floor tiles with the help of those plastic spacer things. Also you'll be surprised how much you save by doing most of the painting once the walls are finished. Painter decorators are expensive if you're doing a whole house.
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can you put the dimensions on the whole plan? Is it a bungalow / dormer bungalow. What other rooms do you have or require? Also, I'm presuming that the main drain is to the right somewhere near the kitchen and bathroom, therefore, that will dictate the placement of anything you want to drain water in to. The closer you put the Kitchen / Utility to your main drain the easier and cheaper it is. If you have concrete floors for instance and you want a Utility over to the left, you would only be able to do so by digging up the floor and laying pipe underneath it........if you can get the right fall on it. Thus, it requires careful thought and planning. I ask what else you want as it's an odd layout with the bedroom where it is, so with the drainage in mind and keeping it all to the right, I would wonder if something more like this was possible?
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Many thanks for all your comments. Really good food for thoughts. I had a few “loft specialist” quotes and we almost went for it. But the reason we did not is that all those specialist lofts companies were not willing to do the rest of the house (eg electric and plaster/painting in living room/dining room, installation of wooden floor in ground floor, reroofing...) so we would have to employ a separate company for this; which obviously make the project more expensive and not streamlined. I think our project is “small” but maybe it is not :) And does deserve a proper architect /design to start with... I will keep you updated ;)
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sarh123
2 years ago
By the way, laminate is easy as long as you don’t have too many doors and architectural features to work round!
HU-768402840 thanked sarh123
Jonathan
2 years ago
Don’t put down any laminate before the heating and electrical are done.

I agree with the earlier post that you will likely spend the weekend getting everything on track which will likely mean sourcing materials, chasing builders for why they haven’t done as much during the week as you had hoped, and tidying up the garden.
HU-768402840 thanked Jonathan
sarh123
2 years ago
Going back to the laminate-they’ll lay that in no time whilst on site but as a novice it could take you several weekends. I’d think about what tasks are critical to completion (eg you can move in without a tidy garden but not with bare floors?) and what tasks could get in the way of your builders and cost you in delays.
HU-768402840
Original Author
2 years ago
Thanks, everyone( Sarah 123, Becky, Jonathan)

I always learn something new, with each post

So after hearing all the allergy issues and knowing how I sneeze my guts out in summer, I will go in for good quality flooring(laminate?) throughout. In some areas would add a rug

-

I also learnt that painting and laminate flooring are not very specialised skills. As you may know, getting hold of good quality tradesmen in Birmingham is like gold dust. Most of them are booked until April!!

So could I outsource painting and flooring to less reputable tradesmen? No offence to anyone, but there are areas in B'ham where you can hire them and they promise to start within 2-3 days.

Either this or I do it myself or wait 2-5 months for someone with excellent online reviews

Is this painting job very specialised, or could it be done by someone with average skills?

Decoration to newly plastered areas:

3 coats of Dulux standard range Emulsion to walls and ceilings

Prime, undercoat and gloss skirting boards and architrave.

Kind Regards

Mel
sarh123
2 years ago
last modified: 2 years ago
I don't want to sound negative but now you've got the house I'd suggest you stand back for a moment, work out all the tasks needed on the job, the order they happen and who would do them, as well as working out how much you can spend and all the decisions/actions you need to make (eg choosing bathroom equipment, establishing the asbestos situation...). Did you say you are in IT? If so, its the same as planning one of your projects. But most of all if you want to get done very quickly and painlessly, you need to find a builder who can cover as much of the work as possible and who you like, trust and can afford. If you can't afford the full renovation, then look to cut back tasks or postpone parts, and, as you say, do all the decorating yourself room by room once the builder is done. (Is this house to live in? If so, perhaps look at the work to be habitable and then schedule the work over a longer period). If you find a good builder they will answer all your questions, go through the quote and help you bring it back to budget or split it into phases. Remember a contingency as well.

You're unlikely to get a last minute quick bargain on tradesmen at the moment! If you are at home all week, it's feasible to dip in and out with different tradesmen, but if you're not on site who is going to check they're there and answer all the questions that arise during their work? I was tempted and got a cloakroom done by someone who happened to be available last year and it's soon to be redone by my regular plumber. Also, be aware that it might take you until April to source some of your equipment and supplies-I've ordered for a new bathroom and some of the items are already delayed to end February.

Anyway good luck!
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House renovation, which areas could I help chip in

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