What Types of Home Maintenance / Repair Can You Do Yourself?

Doing maintenance / repair for your home whenever possible is a good way to avoid paying the heavy cost of a home contractor. But there are certain jobs that you should not tackle by yourself, unless you are actually a professional.

In some instances the local building code may prohibit anyone but a licensed contractor from doing the work. In other cases, even though it may be legal, it isn't worth taking a chance on trying to fix something that might endanger your home, or even your life.

A good example of this would be fixing gas appliances. How many people know that most gas connections are threaded backwards to the usual direction? It isn't "righty-tighty", its "righty-loosey"! Little things like that make it a good idea for you to bite the bullet and call a skilled and licensed gas repairman.

Electrical repairs fall under two classes. Some are simple enough that most of us have performed them ourselves at least once - like replacing a defective plug in a lamp. There are electrical plugs that are made specifically for the do-it-yourselfer that don't even require a screwdriver to connect.

And there are tasks like changing the power supply for your television set that should be left to a TV technician, if you can locate one nowadays. And replacing faulty wiring in your walls is not a task that most people would like to try. An electrical contractor not only has the experience, he has tools that most of us don't want to buy for ourselves.

There are many types of home maintenance / repair tasks that can be easily done by the typical home owner. A couple of examples should be enough to get you thinking about what you can do in your own home.

1. Painting: I don't think there's anyone who has not used a paint brush or roller at least one time in their life. Even though it might not be what you like to do best, and is normally kind of a messy job, it's one way that you can easily save yourself the cost of a home contractor.

2. Cleaning: I'm not talking about dusting and mopping here. What I mean is more like a thorough "spring cleaning" of certain areas of your home that could deteriorate badly if left alone for too long. Your cabinets and shelves, for example, could undoubtedly benefit. Don't just wipe them off - take them down, and even take them apart, so the joints can have the grime thoroughly washed off. You'll be amazed at how new they'll look when you're finished!

Staying on top of what you are able to do for your own home maintenance / repair will not just keep you busy on the weekends, it will definitely be good for both your home and for your wallet. Check out the paragraph below for more great ideas about keeping your home in good shape.