The recent decline in consumer confidence, slower than expected home sales and the tightening of lending practices has left many homeowners in their old home waiting it out. Homeowners are deciding to hold on to their current home and fix it up which may be why many are now doing home improvements by alone. Why not? A little knowledge of the technical aspects, motivation and an eye for creativity is enough to do home improvements on your own.
Why are people turning to do-it-yourself home improvement projects?
In some cases, construction workers lacking the necessary experience, or expertise, for quality construction and home renovation are out there right now claiming to be experts and working on homes across the country. As a result, homeowners are finding that many jobs are not being completed to their contentment. Often, homeowners prepay for these services and end up losing money; some end up with more work than they started with. With no money and a need to finish their home project they get started alone.
You do not have to rely on non-professionals and pay someone to improve your own home. Why not try to do it yourself? You’ll save money and you may save time! You can improve your home’s existing concrete surfaces using acid stains, acrylic stains, epoxy paints, and scoring techniques. These techniques can make your driveway, garage, patio or home look incredible and leave you with a new looking home and some extra confidence.
Decorative concrete work can cost up to three times that of regular concrete. This is why many people cannot afford to have it done by a professional and opt to handle the chore alone. There are reasonably priced ways to beautify concrete after it has cured without having to pay skilled professionals.
Acid based concrete stains are becoming more popular for coloring concrete surfaces. They chemically react with the cementitious material to produce permanent color with a spotted or blotchy appearance like that of marble. The result is a natural, elegant looking surface for your patio, garage, carport etc..
Water based concrete stains are a substitute to acid stains and are more user friendly because they are less toxic. These stains do not chemically react with the concrete; they are immersed into the surface pores and act like a dye. The wide array of available colors in water based stains is the big advantage to using them.
If you have extra time and want to endeavor further than the basic staining of concrete, consider using scoring techniques to create patterns on the surface. As an example, you can make your concrete look like tile flooring or anything else you’d like to imagine. An angle grinder with a 4 inch grinding or cutting wheel is the ideal tool to get this job done. Scoring is irreversible so, be sure to draw the pattern on the concrete before scoring to ensure that you are satisfied with the way your concrete will look.
Epoxy paints are a superb coating for garage and basement floors. Most commercial floors have epoxy coatings because of their durability and resistance to chemical spills as well as their desirable appearance. Epoxy paints, because of the increasing amount of available colors, have become popular for residential use in recent years. Applying Epoxy paints is a relatively easy project, but the key to successful application is preparation…among other things, make sure your surface is clean. Epoxy paints are obtainable in a water based form making it safe for the do-it-yourselfer and ideal for interior applications. For a 400 sq. ft. garage, you may spend about $200 for the materials needed for your new Epoxy flooring.
You do not need to spend tons of money to improve the look and feel of your home. Assuming you have time and a little motivation, you have the capability to do any project yourself. With proper instruction and a little work, anyone can turn boring concrete into their own work of art and transform their home into a new home.
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great read. thanks for the info!
yes why pay too much for your home improvement when we can do it for our selves…
This is even more true today compared to when you wrote this over a year ago. I recently helped my friend install flooring in his basement. The contractor wanted $10,000 for the project but we were able to buy the same materials at Home Depot for $2,000 and it took us about 12 hours. The people at Home Depot walked us through the process and answered a couple questions along the way. I especially enjoyed it since my friend gave me his old flat screen as thanks!
Most jobs people can do home improvement themselves but have been using paid labour. There is nothing more satisfying then completing a challenging job on your own home.
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Unfortunately for me I was never taught how to do a lot of things around the house. Still it doesn’t stop me from trying. I really wish there were more programs for people to attend to teach you how to do these things. I had to learn the hard way about how to plaster a wall recently.
I agree Jason.. it is nice to sit back and admire something that you’ve built!
Well said, do it yourself home improvement is not only a money saver but can also be very fun and interesting. Once you change or fix one thing you’ll start to look for the next project you can work on.
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I like the most especially your words that Assuming you have time and a little motivation, you have the capability to do any project yourself.I think we can solve many of our problems by adopting this terminology in our daily life.
Really nice ideas for performing your tasks yourself..Thanks for providing a sense of motivation.
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Great post, do it yourself home improvement is not only a money saver but can also be very fun and interesting.
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If I did not do my own home improvement I couldn't afford to keep a home having 5 kids from 3 to 11
If your doing a home addition and you can't add central air to the new room you can always put in a portable air conditioner yourself.
A DIY option is certainly do-able, but one definitely needs to ensure that the surface has been well prepared before laying down the epoxy.
I think a lot of people are moving more and more into the DIY projects these days. With all of the information on the internet, and the T.V. shows, people are getting educated and moving forward with their own projects. Great article.
Perhaps more people will try do-it-yourself home improvement projects to save money! People need to make more than enough time to finish the do-it-yourself home improvement projects.
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The time and the motivation to do a job yourself is the hard part, but with everyone struggling to make money in this tough economic crisis we are in, I find that lots of people are finding that time. Me as a professional handyman have been struggling to find steady work this past year.
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I love doing it myself! I don’t know if it’s because I like learning new things or if it’s because I like to save money, but either way, it really is a win/win for me.
I’ve never painted concrete before. Where I live, I’ve got a gravel drive that’s covered by a carport, that leads up to to some concrete steps…that my wife has been wanting to paint for years. Perhaps I’ll send her to your post!
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Great post. I am a strong believer in doing it yourself. There are so many tutorials online that home owners can tap into to learn just about anything. There are hundreds of home improvement niche blogs that offer free do it yourself advice. If the internet is not your thing, try buying a book on the project to be done.