DIY home improvement projects
- Thread starter Pope
- Start date
Fortunately, our kids are grown and out of the house now, so we don't have that problem, except for when our kid's kids come to stay with Grandma and Grandpa!
There are tons of excellent videos on YouTube you should check out which show how to patch drywall. It's easier than you think!
Just moved in January and our new home has shelves like the above for storage. Absolutely love them. Still got a few empty ones, but I’m sure that won’t last long.
Especially if it is a small patch that you can use a patch kit. Even larger patches are not too bad. Just did one in a bathroom ceiling back in December before we sold our old house.
I've done a few things over the years.
New Deck/Rails
Poured Patio
Finished Basement/Closet
Vanities
Flooring
Re-stoned fireplace
Every single light/switch/outlet
Electric garage heater
Wood privacy fence
Stone landscaping
Dug and poured basketball hoop
Workshop in the garage
Plus having three kids there is a lot of general upkeep on stuff
Basically the only thing I haven't done myself were the egress window rough install and replacing our AC unit.
It seems like lately that I tend to do more work for other people than myself. I'm doing some lattice work and an access door for the neighbors deck this weekend.
New Deck/Rails
Poured Patio
Finished Basement/Closet
Vanities
Flooring
Re-stoned fireplace
Every single light/switch/outlet
Electric garage heater
Wood privacy fence
Stone landscaping
Dug and poured basketball hoop
Workshop in the garage
Plus having three kids there is a lot of general upkeep on stuff
Basically the only thing I haven't done myself were the egress window rough install and replacing our AC unit.
It seems like lately that I tend to do more work for other people than myself. I'm doing some lattice work and an access door for the neighbors deck this weekend.
I'm not very handy but my previous house was move in ready for a single dude like me but wouldn't have bought it for a family. Tore out a small partially rotted deck and laid a concrete patio to replace it, replaced the garage door motors, tore out all of the carpet and installed laminate throughout other than tile in the bathroom. Tore out all the kitchen cabinets, could literally rip some of the doors off without any tools but had a contractor install the new ones. Re-treaded the stairs. Only other things I hired for was new windows and sliding glass door and some foundation work.
Looking back, I would have paid for someone to level the sub flooring before installing the laminate, it was sloped from the foundation issues.
Whenever I buy my next house I plan to start with an unfinished basement and slowly finish it myself.
Looking back, I would have paid for someone to level the sub flooring before installing the laminate, it was sloped from the foundation issues.
Whenever I buy my next house I plan to start with an unfinished basement and slowly finish it myself.
I haven't done any major projects, but over the years I've done a number of random things:
- built my wife a work desk during covid (functional, but not a thing of beauty)
- made a fountain in our backyard (it has since been replaced by a firepit which gets much more use)
- fixed our washer
- replaced drywall and patched holes
- installed outlets
- installed tons of shelves
- painted a lot
- numerous landscaping projects (trees, shrubs, pavers, lawn grading, etc)
- random plumbing jobs (new faucets, toilets, snaked the sewage, fixed the sump pump)
I wish I were better with woodworking. I get jealous with the skill I see by others. I hope to dabble in that after my daughter goes to college and I get some more free time.
- built my wife a work desk during covid (functional, but not a thing of beauty)
- made a fountain in our backyard (it has since been replaced by a firepit which gets much more use)
- fixed our washer
- replaced drywall and patched holes
- installed outlets
- installed tons of shelves
- painted a lot
- numerous landscaping projects (trees, shrubs, pavers, lawn grading, etc)
- random plumbing jobs (new faucets, toilets, snaked the sewage, fixed the sump pump)
I wish I were better with woodworking. I get jealous with the skill I see by others. I hope to dabble in that after my daughter goes to college and I get some more free time.
Yeah, I have built a LOT of shelves over the years, and it's really just not that hard to do. I am really good at rough carpentry. Now, nice stuff, like a cabinet for the living room or something... not so much.
I'll warn you - I've only got about 450 right now. Most are from local wineries including many from MN and WI. It's a fun little hobby that I've had to slow down on, cause, well, kids.
I am the handy one in my house, and that's perhaps overstating it.
The thing I'm proudest of is taht I have changed all the interior stuff in two toilets.
Coming up: Painting our two bathrooms. The person before us painted the entire house beige. I get that for sellability, however it's very blah. I'd also like to change the light fixture in one of the bathrooms, but anything with electricity makes me nervous.
The thing I'm proudest of is taht I have changed all the interior stuff in two toilets.
Coming up: Painting our two bathrooms. The person before us painted the entire house beige. I get that for sellability, however it's very blah. I'd also like to change the light fixture in one of the bathrooms, but anything with electricity makes me nervous.
Only 450? That either sounds like a helluva party, a future intervention, or a gateway to more of those kid things that you mentioned.
Seriously, there's something cool about a stocked wine cellar. I've been in a few that have blown me away.
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Couple questions- can you pull those drawer type things out of the cabinet to clean them and where did you get this at?
The drawers have retractable pins that hold them in place, so they can be pulled out but it's not super easy. I ordered the cabinet from the link at the bottom because they offered a very wide range of dimensions to select from. The bad news is that it comes from China, so it took a month to arrive. Unfortunately, I'm guessing it costs twice as much now because of the China tariff. Anyway, while I was waiting for it to be delivered, I went ahead and framed in the opening in wall.
Modernism Floating Metal Shoe Cabinet with Flip Down Shoe Rack - White 66 x 12 x 70 cm Shoe Storage
Modernism Floating Metal Shoe Cabinet with Flip Down Shoe Rack - White 66 x 12 x 70 cm Shoe Storage
I did one other major DIY project with our entryway a few years ago and I still love the results. Our entryway was kind of dark and drab, even though our front door had a large window. So I decided to replace the front door with a much larger one that included side windows and a window above. It was a little scary taking on something this large, but it all worked out well.
BEFORE
AFTER
BEFORE
AFTER
The first time I had to replace an entry door in our first house, I got stuck big time. The old door was not the standard 80" height of today's mass produced doors.
I did not realize this until I had a hole in my house. So my new door was about 2" too tall for the rough opening. And I'm sure that the jamb was pretty well destroyed as I removed the old crappy door.
I spent most of the rest of the day calling all around to either find a lower threshold (dumb idea) or getting a custom door ($$$+weeks). Finally I found someone who said it would be okay to just cut a couple inches out of the header. I think it was like a 2x12" header in a brick house. It wasn't going anywhere. Once I cleared that hurdle, the rest was pretty easy.
But there were a lot of nervous moments to get there.
I did not realize this until I had a hole in my house. So my new door was about 2" too tall for the rough opening. And I'm sure that the jamb was pretty well destroyed as I removed the old crappy door.
I spent most of the rest of the day calling all around to either find a lower threshold (dumb idea) or getting a custom door ($$$+weeks). Finally I found someone who said it would be okay to just cut a couple inches out of the header. I think it was like a 2x12" header in a brick house. It wasn't going anywhere. Once I cleared that hurdle, the rest was pretty easy.
But there were a lot of nervous moments to get there.
I did some lattice for a neighbor last weekend. Pictures don’t look great but I assure you it’s square. I had to do the framing to square up the deck/posts. The white dots are plugs that need painted. Complete with French cleat type access door.
Nice work, looks great!
I just finished building a very narrow cabinet to fit the end of a kitchen counter next to the dishwasher. Can be used for things like cookie sheets.
Looks interesting. Most of the time that amount of space would just be blocked off with a solid piece