Can I DIY?

I’ve had several people ask me if they can do a certain project, how I learned how to do it, etc. My goal for this site is to provide honest criteria behind every task I take on. Other how-tos tell you what tools you need, how much time it will take, and even a difficulty level. I want to take that a step further. I want you to know how much experience I had with something before tackling a project, how physically hard this project was, the variety/quality of tools needed, what the risk is if I messed it up.  Lastly, I will tell you how much working on the project sucked. Below is what my project ranking system looks like:

Time:

I work full time, and I will assume you also want to DIY in your spare time.

•  this project will take less than an hour
•  this project will take an afternoon
•  this project will take your weekend
•  this project will take your weekends for the foreseeable future

Money:

While expenses will vary based on where you live, when possible I will give a cost breakdown for supplies. Services vary in cost WILDLY, so I won’t include how much it will cost if you need to hire part out, and I won’t put a value on your time.

•  this project will cost less than $20
•  this project will cost less than $100
•  this project will cost less than $500
•  this project will cost less than $1000
• this project will cost more than $1000

Tools:

When I started to DIY, I was armed only with a basic toolkit me dad got me when I bought my house. My first major remodel the only tool I bought was a drill, everything else I borrowed or rented. Now 5 years later, I do own more tools, and the quality has improved for key tools, but you definitely don’t need every tool, nor do you need the highest quality of every tool!

•  cheap, bare bones toolkit will get you through this project (screw driver, crescent wrench, and needle nose pliers)
•  you’re going to need some power tools, but any ones you can get your hands on will work (borrowed from your cousin, the cheapest one at harbor freight, you found it in your garage when you moved in, you get the picture).
•  it will be worth it to invest in some slightly nicer tools, or rent higher quality ones or this project will be a PITA
•  this project will involve tools you probably don’t have in your garage. Most local home improvement stores will do equipment rentals!

Experience:

I will be perfectly honest, sometimes I’m flying by the seat of my pants. Some things I had done before starting to DIY, and others I had very minimal experience.

•  my only experience was watching YouTube videos
•  I’d used these tools before, but never done this particular project
•  I’d done this kind of project before
•  I’d done this exact same thing before

Strength:

I’m all of 5’7″ and my day job is a software engineer. I am by no means strong, and I still manage a lot of my projects entirely by myself. That being said, sometimes you’ll need to call in the big guns, and that’s totally okay.

•  a little old lady on crutches can handle this project solo
•  if you can carry a case of water from the car to the house you’ll be fine
•  you’re going to need to be smart about your leverage if you do this yourself
•  you’re going to need the big guns

Risk:

Every DIY has some inherent level of risk. That being said, a towel rack that sits slightly a kilter is very different than an improperly built sub-floor.

•  Nothing bad will happen if you mess this up.
•  Only minor things will happen if you mess this up
• If you mess up, you or a professional WILL need to fix it but it won’t be the end of the world.
•  If you mess this up your house will fall down, catch on fire, you’ll die, etc.

Suckage:

Some projects suck a lot more than others. Knowing what I know now, there are some projects I simply won’t do because I will hate every moment of them, even if I have the skill to do them.

•  “This is fun look how cool I am for being able to do this!”
•  “This is less fun but at least I’m saving a bunch of money doing this myself”
•  “Why on earth did I decide to do this myself?”
•  “!@#!& I’m never doing this again”
•  “I kicked it out of DIY land and had to outsource the thing before I burnt it to the ground and danced around the ashes”

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