DIY is a wonderful thing. By working on DIY projects, you can personalize your home to your ideal image, save money, and establish your independence and pride. There is nothing quite like looking at a new coat of paint, garden, or creative cabinets and fine finishes while knowing that you did this.
But there are some projects that you should never do. Some projects require a skilled hand, and an imperfect job will look disastrous. Some projects can cost thousands of dollars to redo if done improperly. And some DIY projects can be outright hazardous to your health and home. Here are a few projects that you should leave to the professionals and not yourself.
1. Demolition Work
How hard can removing a wall be? Take a sledgehammer and get to work. Destroying a wall to expand a living room or such may even sound cathartic.
But there are two main dangers with this project. First, there may be key pipes or wires within the wire and destroying the wall may thus mean destroying your plumbing and electrical systems. Second, that wall may be holding up part of your house. An expert can identify which walls are safe to remove and not and may be able to remove part of the wall without damaging essential items.
2. Plumbing
You probably understand that it is best not to overhaul your entire plumbing system by yourself. But even simple plumbing jobs like connecting loose pipes can have disastrous consequences if done incorrectly. Install the incorrect pipes, and you can get a small leak. Get a small leak, and you can find mold spreading throughout your basement or elsewhere. Try to fix the small leak, and you might end up just creating a bigger leak.
Plumbing is a skilled profession for a reason. While you might consider a minor tiling or drywall job yourself, leave even minor plumbing issues to said skilled professionals.
3. Roof Work
More construction workers die from falls than other injury according to the OHSA. Even a low roof can be dangerous if an accident happens. Furthermore, sliding off a roof can happen far more easily than you might think.
On top of the physical risks, roofing repair is difficult work where you can find yourself in contact with hazardous chemicals and tars. A shoddy job can hurt other parts of your roof as well as the ceiling, inviting leaks and other dangers.
4. Tree Removal
You should be able to cut down a small branch by yourself, and with not too much difficulty. But removing an entire tree or branch can be dangerous, as shown by the deaths in the lumber industry. In addition to the dangers of a falling tree or large branch, you may fall yourself or the tree could collide with wires or even your own house!
If you want to cut down a large tree or a branch larger than three inches, leave it to the professionals no matter how much you may want to play with a chainsaw. And if you do any job yourself, make sure that you know what you would do and where you would escape to if a branch or small tree falls in the wrong direction.
