Don't Let Your Man Turn DIY Into a DI-Don't! *

It's a Bank Holiday and many men will be going to their shed, dusting off their tools, and heading to their local DIY store to complete those must finish (about 6 months ago) projects that our fellas are famous for.

In our house, Elder loves DIY, he is actually a painter and decorator by trade. However, whilst he can happily and competently slap a few layers of paint on a wall, and bang up a few shelves, he's no good at plumbing. Or wiring. Or anything that doesn't involve a minor nail fixing to the wall.

That doesn't stop him though.



Like most men, he feels that his testosterone alone enables him to perform any "manly" task with ease, and without prior knowledge.

Take the time he decided to remove some particularly ugly corrugated iron fencing between our garden and the next door neighbours. He got out his claw hammer,  put on his trusty painted up workman chic jeans and he was all ready to bring that sucker down.

Except he'd never done anything like it before.

Inevitably, he proceeded to try and claw the huge old rusty nail out of the first piece of the fence. And promptly managed to hit himself in the face with the end of the hammer. Ouch. 

Or there was the time he managed to go through his sister's ceiling while helping his brother in law discuss the possibility of extending the house up into the attic. 

It seems that poor Elder though is not alone, as a recent poll by Wilko revealed that, as a nation, we cost ourselves the equivalent of £138 in wasted money each year! Deluded handymen everywhere are causing untold amounts of damage, simply by using the idea that they know better.

It's the same as when you go on a journey. The kids are over excited and bored, screaming for food, the loo or to ask if you're nearly there yet. You can hardly hear yourself think, let alone the sat nav. But your dearest hubby decides that, despite never having driven through the area you find yourself in, he knows the way without asking bemused bystanders for directions. Even though you've passed them four times and gone round the same roundabout 8 times without success.


 So, instead of wasting your hard earned cash, know your limits- suggest lightly that you may be better off calling in the professionals, just this once. Local Traders commented on this and said: "These figures show how important it is to know your limits where DIY is concerned and when it's time to call in a professional tradesman. Tasks such as plumbing work, rewiring and boiler or appliance installation in particular should always be done by a qualified tradesperson. It's always better to invest in a quality job rather than cut corners trying to reduce the price and end up with it costing you in more ways than you might initially expect.

If it's a simple job like painting a room, you can usually manage without the help of a tradesman, but anything which makes you gulp at the idea of having a go at- or the idea of your other half smiling at you while he ends up needing the services of the local A+E, that's the time to bring out the local phone book or set yourself the task of Googling a professional.

So, don't let your other half spend Bank Holiday weekend raiding his tool kit and ruining your holiday, think first, think safety and if in doubt, call in an expert. It could save you quite a bit!

*Article Collaboration
**Image: Image courtesy of imagerymajestic / FreeDigitalPhotos.net