Spring's coming. DIY might be the cure for what ales your unused joints and/or brain. by 6IXSTRINGJACK

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Spring's coming. DIY might be the cure for what ales your unused joints and/or brain.

POSTED BY: 6IXSTRINGJACK
UPDATED: Thursday, February 27, 2014 09:59
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Wednesday, February 26, 2014 9:42 PM

I'd like to start a thread about helping people with fixing things around their home. I know you can Google DIY projects and subscribe to DIY sites, but simply reading the articles will likely leave you with more questions than you started with (that's actually a GOOD thing :)).

I'd advise anybody to join diyforums.com. I've gotten help and advice from other DIYers and licensed pros there that has been invaluable.

Without any prior knowledge about a furnace 3 days prior to asking my step-dad how to properly shut it down so I wouldn't blow myself up (no joke), I was 2/3rds of the way to getting my furnace running. I don't think I ever would have figured out that last part without the help of a licensed HVAC guy who was able to steer me right after some facts were presented.

If the unit wasn't purposely sabotaged, it was accidentally rewired horribly wrong when the A/C unit was removed. After finally fixing it, I asked him if I was cool and wouldn't blow up and he wisely told me to have a pro look at it to make sure. I never did, cheap as I am, but it was good advice. That was what will hopefully soon be 3 winters ago.

I actually have a wealth of information when it comes to maintaining your home if it's high maintenance like mine, or about the many home improvement projects I've already tackled. If you're looking to paint your room and have a little extra money in the budget, I can recommend the ABSOLUTE BEST paint. I also have struggled with a few emergency fixes, once in seriously dire situations. Nightmare situations that I'd never want to revisit, but I could if I had to, and on one occasion have had to. I have since also learned about mistakes you can make in necessary haste that should be tended to immediately after the crisis is resolved.

If I haven't had personal experience or if you would like a second opinion on your project, I can tell you places to go that have benefited me in the past.

Inside your own home there is not ONE SINGLE THING that you have to pay somebody to do.

Openly, honestly, I offer up my services to any of you. Even if we've argued at all in the past in the RWED. I'm not Bob Vila, and I've never spoken to Bob Vila, but I do have an Uncle Bob who is pretty handy with a wrench when he needs to be.

Hell, if I don't know the answer to a tough question I'd probably get just as much of a thrill helping you find the answer you need that you do when you fix the problem on your own.

I'm helping a friend make some money next week running a water line. He's helping me install my gutters when it finally gets warm.

LESSON 1: If you've got a friend you truly trust, don't ask how much it pays when they ask you to help them do some work for somebody else. Sure they're getting a payday, but you've got something more than money planned. When payment comes up, if you have a DIY project around your house you could use good help with, make a swap.

Even in the lowest tax bracket, between SSI and medicaid taxes and state/local taxes, you lose more than 10% of every dollar you make. Whenever you spend that pre-taxed money on goods or services, you spend around 7% more on sales tax on average. Don't forget to take out whatever percentage of your income that your property taxes/insurance cost, and your car insurance, and any interest you're paying on your credit.

When you can help a good friend with a project they can't do on their own and trade favors, you're saving much more than the labor costs. Outside of the sales tax on actual parts/materials/tools you need for the job, you get to avoid all of the other taxes altogether. This is easily a 20-25% savings on the job off the top when you consider how much taxes you ALREADY spent on your disposable income before you spend it.

If no money changes hands, you've automatically saved 20% on costs. If you managed to work your way into the 25% tax bracket, you're easily saving 35% off the top of anything when you DIY properly! :)

Please, let me know any questions you have about anything. I'm simply a Jack of many trades and a Master of none. I love learning new stuff, and would learn from helping you tackle problems I've never encountered before.

When I help install a flex waterline to a new fridge with an icemaker next week with a friend, I will have learned something new. I've had an icemaker in the fridge that came with the house since I bought it, although I've never had water to it. Since the kitchen is nice, it will be one of the last rooms to be remodeled after the bathroom. Does that mean I should spend the next few years manually making ice?

Hell no.

I've just never bothered to research it much. I'm sure after next week I'll know exactly everything to buy and I can just drill a few holes between cabinets to get a flexible line to the back of the fridge and nobody would ever know it wasn't a solid copper pipe in the wall.

Of course, when I remodel the kitchen I'll do it up right like the electricity, but until then, there's no reason this wouldn't work and remain reliable for years if it were done right.

I'm getting a FREE lesson from somebody who's done this before. The fact that I have somebody holding the end of the gutter while I put the brackets in place is just an AWESOME bonus. :)

Happy DIY'ing :)

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Thursday, February 27, 2014 9:59 AM

BYTEMITE

Oh no.

THE VERDANT INVASION.

Prepare yourselves

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