DIY kitchen remodel – what you should and shouldn’t do on your own
Has it ever happened to you that you walked into your kitchen and thought ”I wish I had more storage space” or “I wish the walls were a different color”?
Maybe your kitchen was ideal when you first moved into your home, but with time (and sometimes a growing family) your needs and tastes change; and with that, you may feel the urge to change things around a bit.
When this urge strikes, some brave homeowners decide to dive in and do smaller renovations on their own.
Now we will talk about what you need to consider if you want to take on a DIY kitchen renovation project, and when it is better to leave the job to professional contractors.
Before you jump into your DIY remodel
There are some questions you will need to ask yourself before enrolling on an exciting DIY journey:
- Did I realistically assess the scope of the project?
- Do I really have the skills for the tasks I want to complete?
- If I make a mistake, will I (or a professional) be able to correct it?
- Am I not risking my own and my family’s health and safety during this project?
We can’t deny that there are some serious pros to a DIY kitchen remodel.
The rewarding feeling you get when you successfully finish your own project is unmatched.
Other advantages of DIY renovations include flexibility (you can work at your own pace), cost-efficiency, and the fact that you won’t need to allow strangers to invade your kitchen for the duration of the project.
BUT
Lack of skill and professional tools can make your remodel quite lengthy – are you prepared for the scenario where you might not be able to use your kitchen for weeks?
Since you won’t be able to prepare food at home, you will be forced to eat out more which can impact your budget.
As we all know, time is money.
Maybe you are able to finish your kitchen renovation at a lower cost, but if you have to spend 3 weeks on a task that could be completed in 3 days by professionals, is it really worth it?
Not to mention, if you make a grave mistake during the renovation that can only be corrected by a professional, your overall costs might add up to the same as if you hired a contractor for the whole project.
What can you do on your own?
There are some smaller touch-ups you can easily manage on your own.
Tasks like painting kitchen walls, changing lighting fixtures, or hardware really bring out your creative side, and you don’t even need an entire helping crew to complete them.
If you have some experience with renovation, you may also refinish your existing cabinets, but installing new cabinets is a whole different story; which, requires quite a lot of skill and professional measuring tools.
Adding a peel and stick backsplash wallpaper is also a fun little task you can do yourself; but, if you want to work with ceramic tiles or rock slabs like granite, quartzite, or marble, you should call a professional.
When to hire a contractor?
If your kitchen renovation project includes any task that requires a permit or can be potentially dangerous, like changing electrical wires or being exposed to asbestos, you know what you should do.
It is not worth risking your own health just to save a couple hundred dollars on a kitchen remodel.
Installing custom kitchen cabinets, hardwood flooring and countertops all require special tools, and therefore should be done by experts to avoid any mistakes.
Structural changes like knocking walls down to create an open concept kitchen or changing the plumbing are always quite risky, so you shouldn’t attempt to do these on your own unless, you are a professional yourself.
If you accidentally demolish a load-bearing wall or beam, you can cause serious structural damage to your home that will be extremely costly to fix.
If you hire a licensed contractor, you don’t need to spend your free time scraping walls or fitting cabinets, and you can always expect high-quality work and get real value for your money.
Can’t finish your kitchen remodel on your own?
If you don’t have the time and skill to complete your kitchen remodel, or you are just not that much into DIY projects, you came to the perfect place.
We at Cabinet Country would be glad to help you with your home renovation project.
Get in touch with us by filling out our contact form below, or give us a call at (863) 272.7720!
