Hello,
we would like to contribute a significant amount of DIY work and wanted to ask if this is realistic. We understand that it might not turn out perfect in the end, but the basic functionality should not be compromised. 🙂
The house will be a solid brick construction (monolithic). The plan is to build the complete shell including the foundation slab, exterior walls, windows, front door, etc. The staircase should also be included.
Electrical work: Either have it done completely by professionals or, how realistic is it to pull the cables ourselves if I am guided by an electrician in the family? The final connections will be done professionally in any case. I could also pull satellite & network cables, possibly even TV cables myself, again in coordination with an electrician in the family, but really do it myself. How is this with a solid brick house regarding chasing the walls etc.? (probably a T9 chaser)
Heating work: A gas condensing boiler with a solar thermal system is to be installed along with all the piping to the heating circuit manifolds of the underfloor heating. From the manifolds (one per floor, I assume?), I would lay the underfloor heating pipes myself.
Sanitary work: Complete rough installation. Supply and drain lines, etc. I would order the sanitary fixtures online (e.g., Villeroy & Boch Subway) and install them myself after tiling and so on. Is that realistic? Someone skilled in craftsmanship in my family gave me a clear yes. I imagine the bathtub installation and enclosing it in masonry will be the trickiest here.
Roof insulation & drywall work
The screed will be professionally done.
Tiling work (bathroom, kitchen, hallway, guest WC)
Interior doors and window sills ordered online and installed by ourselves.
Floor covering and painting walls (no wallpaper).
The plan is a standard single-family home with 120-130 sqm (1300-1400 sq ft) without dormers and 1.5 stories. The double burden of rent/mortgage is relatively low, and there is no time pressure. I am athletic and can follow through on long-term projects, but I am not a tradesperson. I have no problem working 4-6 hours in the evening after my 40-hour office job with time clock, plus working full weekends.
How do you estimate the time requirement, potential savings, etc.? Is it realistic, or can some tasks only be carried out with specialist knowledge that cannot be acquired in a short time? Do you see any risk of causing significant damage? (A slightly crooked tile or not 100% perfect paint are examples of manageable issues that don’t cause serious damage.)
Besides the electrician, we also have a tradesperson in the close family who could help out and stated that what I want to do is realistic — realistic in the sense that it doesn’t require special professional knowledge and, with enough time, it will work out.
we would like to contribute a significant amount of DIY work and wanted to ask if this is realistic. We understand that it might not turn out perfect in the end, but the basic functionality should not be compromised. 🙂
The house will be a solid brick construction (monolithic). The plan is to build the complete shell including the foundation slab, exterior walls, windows, front door, etc. The staircase should also be included.
Electrical work: Either have it done completely by professionals or, how realistic is it to pull the cables ourselves if I am guided by an electrician in the family? The final connections will be done professionally in any case. I could also pull satellite & network cables, possibly even TV cables myself, again in coordination with an electrician in the family, but really do it myself. How is this with a solid brick house regarding chasing the walls etc.? (probably a T9 chaser)
Heating work: A gas condensing boiler with a solar thermal system is to be installed along with all the piping to the heating circuit manifolds of the underfloor heating. From the manifolds (one per floor, I assume?), I would lay the underfloor heating pipes myself.
Sanitary work: Complete rough installation. Supply and drain lines, etc. I would order the sanitary fixtures online (e.g., Villeroy & Boch Subway) and install them myself after tiling and so on. Is that realistic? Someone skilled in craftsmanship in my family gave me a clear yes. I imagine the bathtub installation and enclosing it in masonry will be the trickiest here.
Roof insulation & drywall work
The screed will be professionally done.
Tiling work (bathroom, kitchen, hallway, guest WC)
Interior doors and window sills ordered online and installed by ourselves.
Floor covering and painting walls (no wallpaper).
The plan is a standard single-family home with 120-130 sqm (1300-1400 sq ft) without dormers and 1.5 stories. The double burden of rent/mortgage is relatively low, and there is no time pressure. I am athletic and can follow through on long-term projects, but I am not a tradesperson. I have no problem working 4-6 hours in the evening after my 40-hour office job with time clock, plus working full weekends.
How do you estimate the time requirement, potential savings, etc.? Is it realistic, or can some tasks only be carried out with specialist knowledge that cannot be acquired in a short time? Do you see any risk of causing significant damage? (A slightly crooked tile or not 100% perfect paint are examples of manageable issues that don’t cause serious damage.)
Besides the electrician, we also have a tradesperson in the close family who could help out and stated that what I want to do is realistic — realistic in the sense that it doesn’t require special professional knowledge and, with enough time, it will work out.
Since we are currently gutting and completely renovating a house built in 1976, and doing much of the work ourselves, I can say: it depends on how much patience you have!
Doing it yourself takes longer and is tiring. You have to be willing to take that on, ideally if you enjoy it and don’t see it as a necessary evil. Having friends who are tradespeople can help, but unfortunately we don’t have that.
I don’t necessarily see the problem that not everything will be 100% perfect. You put more effort into your own home, even if it takes longer, and work by professional tradespeople is rarely perfect either. On the contrary, you can sometimes be badly let down. In our case, it was the exterior insulation of the basement, which a company did, and it was a mess from start to finish. The damage still hasn’t been fixed. But you can also be lucky and find really good tradespeople. Unfortunately, you usually don’t know that in advance, especially if you’re not local and don’t know anyone who can recommend someone.
You have to be careful not to run out of energy along the way. And your partner has to cooperate. My husband works while I do the house. Luckily, he doesn’t pressure me and lets me carry on, even if some things take forever. For example, it took me a long time to carry 3 tons of screed into the skip (always up and down 66 steps). But I enjoy accomplishing something you can look at every day afterwards and say, “I did that all by myself.”
I wouldn’t do this if I had children, though.
So it’s not a question with a one-size-fits-all answer.
It’s good if you can hand over some tasks when you realize it’s not working out. For example, I planned from the beginning to stain and varnish the interior staircase myself, but I won’t install it — that will be done by a tradesperson.
You grow with your tasks 😉
Doing it yourself takes longer and is tiring. You have to be willing to take that on, ideally if you enjoy it and don’t see it as a necessary evil. Having friends who are tradespeople can help, but unfortunately we don’t have that.
I don’t necessarily see the problem that not everything will be 100% perfect. You put more effort into your own home, even if it takes longer, and work by professional tradespeople is rarely perfect either. On the contrary, you can sometimes be badly let down. In our case, it was the exterior insulation of the basement, which a company did, and it was a mess from start to finish. The damage still hasn’t been fixed. But you can also be lucky and find really good tradespeople. Unfortunately, you usually don’t know that in advance, especially if you’re not local and don’t know anyone who can recommend someone.
You have to be careful not to run out of energy along the way. And your partner has to cooperate. My husband works while I do the house. Luckily, he doesn’t pressure me and lets me carry on, even if some things take forever. For example, it took me a long time to carry 3 tons of screed into the skip (always up and down 66 steps). But I enjoy accomplishing something you can look at every day afterwards and say, “I did that all by myself.”
I wouldn’t do this if I had children, though.
So it’s not a question with a one-size-fits-all answer.
It’s good if you can hand over some tasks when you realize it’s not working out. For example, I planned from the beginning to stain and varnish the interior staircase myself, but I won’t install it — that will be done by a tradesperson.
You grow with your tasks 😉
B
bauherr3327 Aug 2014 10:13Hi,
I’m almost done and have done a lot myself. You just have to be careful not to take on too much, as it can backfire quickly. It also doesn’t help when follow-up trades have to wait and everything gets delayed because of the DIY work.
Here’s what I did myself:
Special concrete work (very elaborate formwork, casting special elements)
Electrical (pulling cables, core drilling, installing complex/non-standard lighting, terminating cables, PLC, network, satellite, etc.)
Underfloor heating and insulation
Tiling (partially, not in all rooms)
Floor coverings
Walls (sanding, filling, sanding, filling, sanding, priming, paste, non-woven wallpaper, filling joints, painting, painting)
Exterior work (leveling, installing gravel, etc.)
Staircase formwork and concrete pouring
Partial drywall construction
Decorative plaster in bathrooms and basement/garage
Exterior wall of 42m (138 feet) length
and so on...
For 15 months, this was everyday life:
Getting up at 5:00 a.m., commuting, work, commuting, then straight to the construction site until at least midnight. On weekends from 7:00 a.m. until late at night. Sometimes you really push your body hard. Once, after an 18-hour shift, I couldn’t get up from a squat, fell off a ladder due to exhaustion, and was more concerned about the piece of cake I still had in my hand.
I’m still relatively young and single, so it was okay for me. But you should consider that you often have to choose materials, run errands, talk to the tradespeople, and so on. I ordered materials during my lunch break at work, so it was never boring.
Unfortunately, friends do get neglected unless they come to help. I’m glad it’s over now and I can return to normal life. It was definitely a “just grit your teeth and push through” kind of project.
I’m almost done and have done a lot myself. You just have to be careful not to take on too much, as it can backfire quickly. It also doesn’t help when follow-up trades have to wait and everything gets delayed because of the DIY work.
Here’s what I did myself:
Special concrete work (very elaborate formwork, casting special elements)
Electrical (pulling cables, core drilling, installing complex/non-standard lighting, terminating cables, PLC, network, satellite, etc.)
Underfloor heating and insulation
Tiling (partially, not in all rooms)
Floor coverings
Walls (sanding, filling, sanding, filling, sanding, priming, paste, non-woven wallpaper, filling joints, painting, painting)
Exterior work (leveling, installing gravel, etc.)
Staircase formwork and concrete pouring
Partial drywall construction
Decorative plaster in bathrooms and basement/garage
Exterior wall of 42m (138 feet) length
and so on...
For 15 months, this was everyday life:
Getting up at 5:00 a.m., commuting, work, commuting, then straight to the construction site until at least midnight. On weekends from 7:00 a.m. until late at night. Sometimes you really push your body hard. Once, after an 18-hour shift, I couldn’t get up from a squat, fell off a ladder due to exhaustion, and was more concerned about the piece of cake I still had in my hand.
I’m still relatively young and single, so it was okay for me. But you should consider that you often have to choose materials, run errands, talk to the tradespeople, and so on. I ordered materials during my lunch break at work, so it was never boring.
Unfortunately, friends do get neglected unless they come to help. I’m glad it’s over now and I can return to normal life. It was definitely a “just grit your teeth and push through” kind of project.
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