[Misc] What do your DIY skills stretch to ?

[Muhammed - I’m hard - Bruce Lee]

I actually have this T shirt

 

[Hove Lagoonery]

I see a lot of recoil at tradesman charges you are also paying for years of experience and that gets forgotten.
What annoys me even more is no one blinks at paying a solicitor £200 to write a feckin letter those lot are never investigated way worse than tradesman in my book, biggest rip of merchants in the country.

Hardly comparable for most trades though.
The solicitor will have spent six or seven years studying full-time, without being able to earn a solicitor's salary. That has to be recompensed eventually, as do the university fees. Aren't most trades people time-served? I realise sparkies are different though as their coursework is complicated, and the responsibility is high (including for their own lives - haven't most sparkies been electrocuted at least once?) Personally I regard them as the solicitor's equal but that's because I could more easily get my head round litigency than electrical circuitry!

 

[Weststander]

During home ownership I’ve taught myself many DIY skills. But as I know reliable tradesmen who won’t rip me off, I leave them to electrics, plastering, plumbing and carpentry. We’ve never used decorators, but it’s so boring, that I’m tempted.

I do stubbornly refuse to allow anyone else but me to carry out landscaping of our garden, I love knowing it was all by my hands.

 

[Hove Lagoonery]

I see a lot of recoil at tradesman charges you are also paying for years of experience and that gets forgotten.
What annoys me even more is no one blinks at paying a solicitor £200 to write a feckin letter those lot are never investigated way worse than tradesman in my book, biggest rip of merchants in the country.

Hardly comparable for most trades though.
The solicitor will have spent six or seven years studying full-time, without being able to earn a solicitor's salary. That has to be recompensed eventually, as do the university fees. Aren't most trades people time-served? I realise sparkies are different though as their coursework is complicated. Also, more responsibility as regards keeping people alive (including themselves. Haven't most sparkies being electrocuted at least once in their careers?) Personally I regard them as the solicitor's equal but that's because I could more easily get my head round litigency than electrical circuitry!

 

[Shropshire Seagull]

During home ownership I’ve taught myself many DIY skills. But as I know reliable tradesmen who won’t rip me off, I leave them to electrics, plastering, plumbing and carpentry. We’ve never used decorators, but it’s so boring, that I’m tempted.

I do stubbornly refuse to allow anyone else but me to carry out landscaping of our garden, I love knowing it was all by my hands.

View attachment 159611

Well, that path ain't straight for starters.
Shoulda used a plumb-line

 

[Justice]

I hear ya brother.
Why waste all that time at college getting qualifications when all you had to do was spend 5 minutes watching a video on YouTube.
If only it was that easy, right?

Personally think all electrical help vids should be taken down having arrived at jobs seeing the CU cover off and some melon poking around in there with their fingers
You and I know without the appropriate test equipment and the knowledge to use it……..
Another thing that winds me up £2k worth of test equipment and some still want the job done for £40

 

[Justice]

Hardly comparable for most trades though.
The solicitor will have spent six or seven years studying full-time, without being able to earn a solicitor's salary. That has to be recompensed eventually, as do the university fees. Aren't most trades people time-served? I realise sparkies are different though as their coursework is complicated. Also, more responsibility as regards keeping people alive (including themselves. Haven't most sparkies being electrocuted at least once in their careers?) Personally I regard them as the solicitor's equal but that's because I could more easily get my head round litigency than electrical circuitry!

It’s more the point of comparison that annoys me. Stupid tv shows about probably what 5% of the trade or less are ‘cowboys’ is what sticks in peoples minds. You only have to read threads like these on here to realise it.
£80 for a plumber to change a tap what is he arriving in Porche

 

[Psychobilly freakout]

Carpet, vinyl, luxury vinyl tiles (amtico, karndean etc) laminate, wood, safety flooring, cap’n’cove, latex screed, that’s it, I am a firm believer in each trade to their own, and Jack of all trades master of non.

 

[pasty]

My job is usually limited to making tea for Mrs P while she is doing any diy. I have been let loose with a roller sometimes (cutting in is far too technical) but I usually end up with more paint on myself than I do the wall or ceiling I’m supposed to be painting.

In summary

f***ing useless do do be do

 

[Justice]

Last week the extractor fan in our bathroom started making a terrible squarking noise.
Mrs Mancgull told me I had to fix it.
So after my breakfast I went upstairs with my trusty screwdriver and hammer.
I turned the fan on and miraculously the noise had gone.
Rather than admit this, I picked up my phone to look at NorthStandChat for half an hour whilst also making the occasional banging sound with the hammer.
After a good perusal of threads and the occasional comment, downstairs I went. ‘Have you fixed it?’... ‘oh yes, it was a loose part of the fan that I needed to tighten up’
So in short, yes brilliant at DIY!

That will be the fan motor bearings it will come back to haunt you

 

[Justice]

Carpet, vinyl, luxury vinyl tiles (amtico, karndean etc) laminate, wood, safety flooring, cap’n’cove, latex screed, that’s it, I am a firm believer in each trade to their own, and Jack of all trades master of non.

What is the most popular colour of LVT at the moment? I like a costal grey.

 

[mikeyjh]

I hear ya brother.
Why waste all that time at college getting qualifications when all you had to do was spend 5 minutes watching a video on YouTube.
If only it was that easy, right?

Thing is some things are easy aren't they. The trick, as others have mentioned is to kow your limits. I'm happy working with timber, I've built 2 big raised decks in our garden, no issue at all (probably completely over engineered!) built my own 7m x 6m shed etc. Even about to rebuild my barn, with guidance. Once though, I decided one mild October SUNDAY morning to change a light fitting in my gym room, I happily change sockets, switches, simple fittings etc. Switched off the circuit, took out the old fitting, placed it to one side then was faced with the below.... Obviously it quickly dawned on me that the lights upstairs were now out of action . Fortunately the sparky talked me through what to do but yeah, know your limits.....

 

[WATFORD zero]

One Sunday morning this a lady rings me up it was her daughters 18th birthday party at the house that day, all the food was in the fridge etc and the power was tripping in the kitchen. I gave her the rate for first hr think it was like £160 can’t quite remember.
She booked it in and then cancelled as I was getting ready as she said her husband who knew nothing about electrical installations was going to fix it. Great I thought and went back to bed this was like 6.30am
Around 11.30am the wife calls back and yep problem still not fixed all the party food is going off. Long story short it took me 5mins or something to resolve the issue. The husband had ruined the day for sake of being tight and knowing F all about the job in hand and they weren’t poor by any means.
I see a lot of recoil at tradesman charges you are also paying for years of experience and that gets forgotten.
What annoys me even more is no one blinks at paying a solicitor £200 to write a feckin letter those lot are never investigated way worse than tradesman in my book, biggest rip of merchants in the country.

I see a lot of recoil at tradesman charges you are also paying for years of experience and that gets forgotten.
What annoys me even more is no one blinks at paying a solicitor £200 to write a feckin letter those lot are never investigated way worse than tradesman in my book, biggest rip of merchants in the country.

You've just given an excellent summary of how things can appear really simple and end up really expensive if you have no idea what you're doing and then type that

 

[Hove Lagoonery]

Watford 0 does have a point there, @Justice!
But I'm now wondering what the point is of somebody writing "one mild October SUNDAY morning" when the temperature, season, DAY (and part of) turns out to be completely irrelevant!

 

[Justice]

Watford 0 does have a point there, @Justice!
But I'm now wondering what the point is of somebody writing "one mild October SUNDAY morning" when the temperature, season, DAY (and part of) turns out to be completely irrelevant!

Watford 0 does have a point there, @Justice!
But I'm now wondering what the point is of somebody writing "one mild October SUNDAY morning" when the temperature, season, DAY (and part of) turns out to be completely irrelevant!

Thing is some things are easy aren't they. The trick, as others have mentioned is to kow your limits. I'm happy working with timber, I've built 2 big raised decks in our garden, no issue at all (probably completely over engineered!) built my own 7m x 6m shed etc. Even about to rebuild my barn, with guidance. Once though, I decided one mild October SUNDAY morning to change a light fitting in my gym room, I happily change sockets, switches, simple fittings etc. Switched off the circuit, took out the old fitting, placed it to one side then was faced with the below.... Obviously it quickly dawned on me that the lights upstairs were now out of action . Fortunately the sparky talked me through what to do but yeah, know your limits.....
View attachment 159618

Did he tell you to sleeve the switch line

 

[thedonkeycentrehalf]

My Dad always told me to make sure you respect tradespeople (he was a spark when he was younger) so I always make sure I offer them a cup of tea, coffee or soft drink while they are working. It can really change someone's mood when they have come to you from another job and you offer them a drink - a smile appears and they relax.

It will only cost you a few pence for the drink and five minutes of your time. However, you'd be surprised how often someone has done an added little "I spotted this so fixed it while I was here" for no cost having kept them suitably watered.

 

[BN9 BHA]

Once though, I decided one mild October SUNDAY morning to change a light fitting in my gym room, I happily change sockets, switches, simple fittings etc. Switched off the circuit, took out the old fitting, placed it to one side then was faced with the below.... Obviously it quickly dawned on me that the lights upstairs were now out of action . Fortunately the sparky talked me through what to do but yeah, know your limits.....
View attachment 159618

Fair play to your electrician for helping on a Sunday by talking you through it.

I’ve had people ring me up when they have had a go at basic plumbing jobs and come unstuck, not that I mind during a work day but not in the evening or on a weekend. I don’t like it when they get annoyed because I won’t come out on a Saturday afternoon.

 

[happypig]

I’m visiting Eastbourne on Saturday, I will be round for a pint of orange juice and lemonade

I don't think so, we don't let any old riff-raff in. I'm still barred for calling the landlord "fatso"

 

[Worried Man Blues]

I need a couple of days notice of the job then I'm ready to phone any workman at all.

 

[PILTDOWN MAN]

My latest creation. I made it for a member of my son-in-law's family.

This afternoon though I have a permanently damaged shoulder I cut down four trees. They even fell in the right direction which makes a huge change for me.