I hate DIY with a passion !!

[TheHappyOne]

Hello Everyone

I am absolutely hopeless at household DIY !! Do you remember Frank Spencer in the comedy series Some Mothers Do ‘Ave ‘Em? If so, then I can guarantee you that my DIY skills are not much better than his. I try to mend one thing and end up breaking half a dozen other things!

Anyway, I am just curious to know if anybody else has any similar experiences in performing general DIY tasks around the home? Or am I the worst DIYer in the World !!

Please share your experiences of the most common DIY jobs that you have to perform, the most awkward or difficult hand tools that you have used, the tools that you use the most in order to perform general DIY maintenance.

Any comments greatly appreciated.

P.S I have started this thread on a few DIY forums in order to get the maximum response. So, if you see the same thread on other sites then please don’t shout at me !!

 

[Nigel_Cro]

Hmmm - strange!

Useless at DIY but posting on multiple DIY sites, I wonder why?

Market research maybe, student project perhaps...

Who knows?

 

[JohnD]

Would-be journo?

 

[REEMS]

Prob finding some new customers who need work doing.

 

[cjard]

Personally, no.. and I struggle to see how other people could be so either. If the buildi trade was a hard game, most of the people employed in it wouldn't be. There is, however, a basic set of skills (particularly in relation to tool use) that make everything much easier. There's also a way of thinking about things that makes tasks easier. I'm sure that both of these things can, to a sufficiently mediocre degree for DIY, be taught. The reason why people are crap at DIY is because they aren't taught even basic things, and they don't automatically seek to import knowledge from other areas of heir loves. I see no reason why a dippy beautician should be hopeless at woodworking, because she uses most of the base relevant tools and techniques in her day job..

Friend of mine was an excellent chiropodist. Packed it in to run a motorcycle repair business. Everyone who learns this initially hints that the two professions are miles apart, but he says he doesn't really see a difference. Perhaps that's a good indicator of the biggest barrier to becoming competent at anything; a state of mind..

 

[John D v2.0]

Indeed, my wife trained in fashion design and turns out she's excellent at cutting 100mm celotex to a perfect fit in our wonky joists! Same skill, different material. Same for the block paving - massive jigsaw. However being good at diy is more about enjoying it than having the right skill. You have to want to do it before you'll do something well.

 

[Doggit]

Now whilst there's a lot of sensible reasoning here, I suspect we've all come across someone that has no spatial skills whatsoever, and just can't see things the same way that we do, and yes, they're frustrating to deal with.

Lots of life skills are transferable, and a good set of tools can help overcome some DIY inadequacies, but there's always going to be the Frank Spencers in this world.

 

[REEMS]

I think it all depends on what your happy with in the finished result, some people are happy and satisfied with what they have done, i on the other hand are a nightmare i trained as an engineer when i left school which is a problem when it comes to doing anything even making a butty the bread has to line up.

 

[Seafarer1966]

Perhaps it's all down to upbringing, frame of mind and how wealthy you are or once were. If you're brought up in an environment where your parents paid to have things done around the house i.e. decorating. gardening you may be reticent at doing the job yourself.

I do know of one guy (not a bad bloke at all really) who came from an old money family where they had people running around after them. These days the old money has all gone and he lives a rather humble existence. He can't even change a flat tyre himself. Intelligent fella. He just can't be bothered.

Like many on here I came from a background where money was tight (but love wasn't). The boys were given gardening chores to do as well creosoting sheds and painting windows etc. and the girls were taught how to do housework properly. My sisters still iron laundry and fold hospital corners on beds the way our mam taught them.

When I went to uni some of the posher kids were amazed that I could sew a button on a shirt (cub scouts Home Help Proficiency Badge......Akala's mum was an old battleaxe but she taught us how to sew to get our badges).

 

[Seafarer1966]

I have to ask Happy One......are you doing a magazine or blog article or a school project on this or something?

 

[Ian H]

Every time I do something I think my house is going to fall down.

Next thing I need to do is cut my wall plate to fit a padstone. Surely the roof will collapse lol

 

[cjard]

Every time I do something I think my house is going to fall down.

That must make filling the dishwasher quite a stressful experience. Best leave it to the wife!

 

[Ian H]

You make a good point!! Dishwasher vibration could affect the foundations. I'll let her know she is taking over

 

[RigidRaider]

I maintain my own house to a high level or fussiness. We plan to retire to Scotland in a couple of years and I'm looking forward to telling the buyer's surveyor: "Go ahead.... there's no damp, no woodworm and everything works perfectly!"

 

[diry]

Contrary to my other halves belief I actually enjoy DIY, she would argue that I take too long to do things and we should have had people in to do it but she certainly doesn't mind the cost savings...

It takes time because
a) I'm not in the trade, I need time to research, think, try, think again, research more then commit... then double check... then commit for real this time
b) I have a 9-5 5 days a week job, fitting DIY in on evenings and weekends is tough... especially when it gets dark
c) I spend a lot of time going to and fro DIY stores for tools and materials I don't have 'in the vaaaannn'
d) I quite often get in the position when 2 hands is just not enough and need to wait for an extra pair to help out!