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

I’m going to set aside the fact that some people like to do work on their own houses themselves.

However, it makes more sense for you, as someone skilled in IT, to put your knowledge of computers and technology to use earning money, since you can do that faster and better. You can then use the extra income to pay a professional tradesperson.

In the end, you will get higher quality work on your house and possibly even save money.

I don’t know you, and I’m sure you know which end of the hammer to hold, but the saying "stick to what you know" still holds true.

If you have no clue and even emphasize it, it’s better to keep quiet.

And it’s always funny how some people think they can just work more "just like that" in their job and then the money magically appears in their account.

I know even less about you from the sparse user info, but after a post like this, I definitely don’t want to know any more.

Regarding the calculation of labor costs, I mostly agree. Overtime at my job doesn’t benefit me because it’s not compensated. So, that calculation is pointless.

But speaking more generally about doing work yourself: you really have to be realistic. We (or rather I) underestimated this, but for us it’s not a big deal because we planned for it. A delay of several months (currently 2) doesn’t bother us, as we don’t have double financial burdens. Doing the work yourself is actually enjoyable, but you have to like it; otherwise, it becomes frustrating and quality tends to suffer.

If we had a double financial burden, we would have hired out much of the work, because the risk of having to move in with just the screed floor done would have been too high—like some of our neighbors. You have to be able to manage that risk; otherwise, there’s no point.

So far, we have done the electrical and rough plumbing installations ourselves as well as the screed subflooring. A painter will handle the wooden ceilings, we will have interior drywall finishing and plastering done, and we’ll do the flooring ourselves again.

When I read some of the sugarcoating here...

- Of course, you HAVE to factor in lost income from unpaid leave (or even quitting your job). To what extent is something everyone has to decide for themselves.

- It is also true that as a well-paid office worker, you can easily exceed the calculated hourly rate for skilled tradespeople (keep in mind that as an unskilled DIYer, you will need about twice as much time as a professional, so assume half the hourly rate).

- It is also true that overtime can somehow help here (either because you take time off later to work on the house or get paid for it to cover the cost of the tradespeople).

- Spending your much-praised free time on construction work is nice and all, but there are people whose workday including commuting already takes about 11 hours. That only leaves the weekend. You can’t keep that up for long.

- DIY work without taking unpaid leave ALWAYS takes longer compared to professionals (simply because you cannot manage an additional 80 hours on top of a 40-hour job…remember, as an amateur you need about twice the time a professional does), which delays construction and increases interest on already disbursed funds. Due to the longer construction time, you also pay rent for longer and might have additional commutes to work or upfront interest charges, etc.

What has been completely overlooked here so far: warranty. For some trades, this might theoretically not matter (e.g., painting), while for others it can be really expensive (e.g., plumbing). Then there are the excuses from other trades claiming you caused the damage yourself and you have to prove all of it.

Furthermore, as an amateur, you can quickly make serious mistakes and cause huge costs. A classic example would be screwing lamps on the upper floor and damaging the vapor barrier wildly with the screws until it’s full of holes. Nobody notices until the attic suddenly turns white/black.

If you do DIY work, it must be done properly and relatively risk-free for the overall project. Whether the tiles end up crooked is your own visual problem; if the underfloor heating beneath the screed leaks, it will be very expensive. PS: DIY work can also cause costs if subsequent trades have extra work due to your poor workmanship.

Of course, you need to factor in your own labor, but there are huge differences here depending on your income and the contractual arrangements with your employer regarding what is possible.

For example, I have no option at my company to work overtime that I can either take off later or get paid for. Therefore, I cannot generate extra money this way to pay for contractors.

So I can only use my regular vacation days, weekends, and time after work to do the work on the house myself. This time doesn’t bring in any income but only represents the labor I can contribute.

It’s different, of course, if your employer allows you to be paid for overtime. If my wage for 2 hours of overtime (assuming it takes about twice as long) covers the hourly rate of the contractor, it obviously doesn’t make sense to do the work myself. If you actually earn more in those 2 hours than what you would pay the contractor, you definitely shouldn’t do it yourself.

It gets complicated if the new build involves trades where you still have to connect or coordinate work done by others. You need to be sure that it fits into the schedule.

You should also not rely on others (friends). You get let down faster than you think. Even with family, careful planning is necessary.

Since I’m planning to buy an existing property and do most of the renovations and refurbishments with my father, who is a skilled tradesman with years of experience and knows exactly what he is doing — and has already done this at his own house (sometimes multiple times) — I know I can rely on him 100%. For minor tasks like removing carpets and wall coverings, you can rely on friends, since you usually find one or two people willing to help for a day or two, and these things are generally done quickly.

However, that kind of work doesn’t come up with new builds.

P.S. So, I guess — or hope — no one wants to provide their own labor by taking unpaid leave or even quitting their job!

Payday, you should not present your personal experience as a general rule – no one here is sugarcoating things. However, there are people who manage to put in extra effort alongside their regular work.

I often stay on the construction site after work, especially on weekends – if I didn’t have children, it would be a lot more, but that’s something I can’t change.

You write as if it were only possible to work on weekends.

There are also cases where people don’t pay rent anymore and don’t care about warranty for certain trades...