I'm a firm beleiver that ANYTHING can be completed by a complete novice...I was when I rendered mine. Second go was in my current house and walls are perfectly flat.
My brother and I built my father's workshop and when we measred the block work it was 5mm out from corner to corner, perfectly level and plumb. you'll be amazed at the tolerances many trades will accept then force onto the next trade who'll moan about the guy before whilst telling you that the jobs now harder and won;t be as good...
if you have time, you'll get as good a job as a pro can do or preferably better...will just take you a lot longer and have to ask a million questions (which this forum is for
)rendering like anything is easier when you know how...even if you've never done it before. Don't repare and it'll just fall off as fast as you put it on...as I found out i the first hour of trying
Dad came round and said wet the walls and in the second hour it stayed on (and never blew)...so must have been ok. didn't help it was in the height of a hot summer (if you remember what hose were)I screwed 10mm square bar vertically to the wall to rule off against as I found it really hard to get it flat by eye/hand. Unconventional but worked...then filled in the gap once I removed the bar. Left a faint line in the finish, but once painted hardly noticed...it was a workshop after all and only my second build, first by my self. Now I know how to make levels to work off, it's much easier
youtube is the master to self teaching!!if you work out what to do step by step, nothing is THAT difficult. When working with blocks it pays to keep them wet with a hose especially in summer or they suck the water out the mortar before it's dried and you don't get a decent strong joint.
When torching on felt it pays to wear trousers so you brother doesn't loose all his leg hair when the torch gets a bit close...these things you learn and remember.
remember...pros do this stuff all day, day in day out so know it like the back of their hand and yet still learn new tricks from time to time.
Nothing wrong with attempting anything for the first time...you'll just be doing lots of first time stuff...
with any project take a 'no faults forward' approach...it really works...i.e. if you build 3 levels of block and the 4th is a bit out, don't think 'oh that' ok, i'll cover that when I render or plaster it' as it'll just make the next step more difficult. fix the issue then move to the next step. this takes a little more time, but keeps life easier in the long run.
so make your base flat you'll find the walls go up easier...build plumb walls, with plumb and level 'holes' for the windows and doors, and you'll faff less getting he doors to fit (you know what...it's so much easier to make a square door frame for a square hole then to pack one out to fit a wonky door hole...easier to make a square door for a square door frame than one with a sloping side etc
) ...render it well, put a decent roof on it, and you'll have a building you can be proud of...and more than that, you'll pick up a LOAD of skills on the way as well...that way, when you come to fix something in your house, you'll have the confidence to do it yourself.
