ᐅ Self-performed work – Flooring, painting, tiling, and what else?

@nordanney:

Just casually: Vinyl flooring isn’t always meant to be cut with a utility knife. We have now chosen one with an HDF (high-density fiberboard) substrate.

What I’ve often read is that when you go for a turnkey build and remove certain services, it often doesn’t pay off. The construction company frequently still makes a profit from removing services...

We are building with solid construction methods, working with an architect and contracting individual trades ourselves. So if we don’t order a particular service (e.g., flooring), we save the full cost. Furthermore, it should be a combination of 1. a time-consuming task (labor) that 2. you are also able to handle yourself. I always like it when people later complain that it’s not 130% perfect and blame the helpers for it.

I prefer a middle ground here. In my opinion, the best price-performance ratio comes from having a skilled tradesperson do the fine work while helpers work under their supervision. You save a little less than if you do everything yourself, but the result is often better, and in tricky situations, this person also knows what to do...

Sebastian79 schrieb:
@nordanney:

Just casually: Vinyl flooring is not always cut with a utility knife. We have now chosen one with an HDF (high-density fiberboard) core.

Exactly, that’s the one I mean! Score it with a utility knife and then snap it; this gives very clean edges and even works at a 90-degree angle.

Oh? Cool – good to know!!!

PhiTh schrieb:


I prefer a middle ground here. In my opinion, the best value for money comes from having a skilled worker do the detailed work while the "helpers" work under their supervision. You save a bit less compared to doing everything yourself, but the result is often better, and in tricky spots, the specialist knows exactly what to do...

The tricky spots are always the reason why you need the professionals. Anyone can stack and glue large aerated concrete blocks after about 10 minutes of training. But not everyone can do the corners properly, etc. However, these difficult positions are the places where future defects or problems are likely to occur (such as mold, structural issues, leaks, etc.).
That’s why your idea is really the best decision: bring in the expert but have them handle only the special tasks, while you, friends, or relatives take care of the basic helper work.
Looking back at our build period, I can say that besides my job from 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily (except Fridays until 2 p.m.), I still spent about 15-20 hours per week on the construction—managing administration, paying invoices, choosing materials, and making specific decisions. There’s always something new to select and plan. Most Saturdays went entirely to visiting show homes, gathering quotes, and so on. There really wasn’t time for major DIY work. We did install speaker cables ourselves after the electrician cut the chases. I just connected the speaker cables alongside his wiring, and that was it. Now I have in-wall speakers with no visible cables (home cinema with a projector, very neat). But it took a lot of effort to plan it precisely so that everything would look good in the end.

With my best friend, for example, we plastered the entire interior of the house ourselves. In the basement, we did everything on our own. For the living areas, we mixed and applied the plaster with four "helpers," and a "professional" did the finishing work and handled the tricky spots.

This way, you save money and time, and the result still turns out well. If you do everything yourself, those particular areas take a lot of time, and the quality usually isn’t 100%. The same applies to electrical work. The electrician plans where everything should go. Routing channels, installing conduits, and pulling cables can also be done by yourself.

Just talk to the tradespeople; they usually don’t mind. Especially when their schedules are full, they’re happy to earn from the materials, have the homeowner do the work, and still take on another job…