Tips for keeping your Sydney renovation project safe
Few things in a home owner’s life are as exciting as embarking on a renovation project. With a renovation, you get to improve a certain part of a house’s anatomy any way you want it. What could be more exciting than that?
However, we should all bear in mind that a renovation project is not all roses. There are always situations that you have to deal with, and that could bring a lot of stress. You can go beyond your budget, but that isn’t the worse situation you could face. The worst would be you or someone else getting hurt while renovation work is being done.
It’s a good thing that saving money and taking safety precautions for renovations can be done. Here are some tips on doing just that.
1. Never do electrical or plumbing work
In Australia, doing electrical work that go beyond replacing light bulbs without the proper qualifications and licenses is not allowed. The restriction is for the safety of home owners, many of whom have already suffered accidents while attempting electrical work. As for plumbing, you can actually do work on your own, but without the necessary expertise, you could just end up making a mess of things, and that will make things even more costly because you have to hire a professional plumber to make things right with your plumbing. If your renovation work requires electrical or plumbing work, always get the services of licensed electricians and plumbers.
2. Take care of the paint job
If your renovation involves some painting, you can save a lot of money if you do it yourself. Get any of your loved ones to do the paint job with you, and it will even become a really fun task. Then again, this isn’t really the way to go if you want the job done faster and more professionally. For that, hiring a professional Sydney painter would be the best choice.
3. DIY minor demolition
It doesn’t take an expert or a professional to remove wallpaper and floor coverings, does it? This is something you can actually do yourself, as doing minor demolition work does not require skills, experience or training. You just rip them off your house and that’s it. However, you need to be a bit more careful if your house was constructed in the 1980s or earlier. It is typical of homes from that era to have used asbestos during construction, and asbestos is not really something you want to be exposed to. To be on the safe side, hire asbestos removal/disposal experts.
4. Hire professional floor sanders
Sure, you can rent a specialised sanding machine for your floor so you can do it yourself. However, can you guarantee that your floor will get the professional finish that it deserves? If you can’t, you are better off hiring professional floor sanders for the job. That is the only way to make sure your wooden floor gets properly sanded.
5. Laminate paint can refresh tired-looking surfaces
To refresh surfaces that appear old and tired, you don’t really have to replace them entirely. Just use laminate paint and tile paint to make tired looking surfaces look brand new and save a lot of money in the process.
6. Get the services of a professional tile-setter
So many things can go wrong with tile work, so if you are going the DIY route on this, make sure you have enough confidence—and the skills to back it up—to do the job. If not, leave the tiling of your new kitchen or bathroom to professional tile-setters.
7. Only a licensed builder should make structural changes
If your Sydney renovation project calls for certain structural changes, then your only option is to get a licensed builder for the job. It takes a certain amount of skill, experience and specialised equipment to tear down walls, install beams and perform other structural changes that a renovation calls for. You don’t want to be doing this on your own, as you could put your entire place in danger of collapse. Only a licensed builders should tinker with key structures of your home.
If you do have a renovation project in mind, and require the help of tradesmen like builders, kitchen, bathroom renovators and more, the free Tradebusters tradesmen concierge service can assist you in with recommended trades businesses. Visit www.tradebusters.com.au
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