Doing It Yourself
by Edouard A. Szajna
Part 1 - Taking on the Job
“Opportunity is missed by most people because it
is dressed
in overalls
and looks like work”
– Thomas Edison
On the surface, any construction project can
seem
like
a daunting task. However, by following a
few
simple
rules and
using a structured, well
thought-out
approach to
understanding your
scope of work, the big picture can
be brought
more into focus and
building out your space
could
actually be satisfying
accomplishment (providing
you don’t bite off
more than you can
chew, of
course).
We understand that “Do It Yourself” is a
pretty
broad
statement and that only you can be the best
judge
of what you
can do on your own and what can’t. Do your
talents lie in
project management or in any of
the
trades? Are you
“home-owner handy”? How
are
your budgeting
skills? Can you be your
own general
contractor?
Or does the thought
of getting your hands
dirty
make you cringe?
We use two simple rules of thumb to
determine
if we
want to take on any job:
In our experience (acquired over a few lifetimes of construction projects and sometimes learning the hard way), we've found many times some things can be accomplished faster, cheaper and better by a hiring a qualified professional rather than trying to learn the process or making it up as you go (and thereby, recreating the wheel).
If you value your time at say, $100/hr; is it a good business decision whether to do it yourself or hire a specialist (someone well versed in this discipline to perform the specified task)? Which decision saves you time and money and in the end, accomplishes the goal?
If you consider yourself pretty handy and your new space requires some light renovation work, you may be able to take the job on yourself. If you’re a competent carpenter or electrician or plumber you may be able to increase your workload to include those improvements.
If however, you need to install commercial ceramic floor tile and have never set tile in your life, the decision to do it yourself may wind up costing you much more in lost time, poor quality of work and the overall aggravation! Always take a pragmatic look at the big picture and then decide where your talents lay. Be honest with yourself, sometimes nothing costs more than a bargain!
It all starts with an initial site inspection. From there, you can make the DIY determination and start developing your initial construction budget. If, after your initial walk-through you find the required work is beyond your skills and/or your time would be best served doing other tasks, chances are that you’ll be better off hiring a General Contractor or, at least, some sub- contractors to complete the task.
In that case, please refer to the “How to Choose a General Contractor” article.
NEXT in Doing It Yourself
Part 2 - Tools of the Trade
TM
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