Partner Article

DIY that doesn’t you the Earth

We all know home improvements can take a while, sometimes months or even years. But when it comes to funding them, almost half of us are spending less than 15 minutes searching for finance options, according to new research from Swedish challenger Ikano Bank. And by not shopping around 1.5 million of us have wasted almost £400 in the last three years! That’s 25 pots of paint

Money Doctor, Fergus Muirhead says: “Making a success of your home improvements does take some planning and this also applies when figuring out how to pay for them all. DIY can be expensive and the cost of a few pots of paint here and some rollers and paintbrushes there soon adds up. Make sure you’ve done plenty of research into how much money you will need and where you’re going to get it from.”

Here are five more common costly DIY mistakes to avoid:

Doing it yourself, or destroying it yourself?

Straddled over two bannisters to paint your stairway ceilings? Some DIY jobs are better left to the experts if you want to avoid a trip to the hospital. So when planning your DIY jobs think realistically about where your strengths and weaknesses lie. Don’t take on any jobs yourself that would be better done by experts.

Quality over quantity

“Special deal. One day only. Ten pots of paint for £20.” Do some offers seem too good to be true? That’s probably because they are. When it comes to DIY sometimes going for the cheaper option can end up costing you more further down the line. For example cheap paint that scuffs easily or cheap paintbrushes that leave bristles all over your handy work. Do your research before making purchases and check out other customer reviews first – it’ll save you time and money in the long run. Remember ‘cheap’ is not always the same as good value.

Under budgeting

There’s no escaping it, DIY costs money. Make sure you plan in detail what you want to do, and get a range of quotes so you know you’re not paying over the odds for that new sofa or carpet.

Don’t forget the spirit level

Shelves to put up? Pictures to hang? Cupboards to build? Make sure you invest in a good spirit level; you don’t want to be drilling into a wall only to find you have a wonky shelf and need to start all over again - with the added hassle of filling in a hole.

Mind those pipes and wires

Planning on drilling into the wall? Make sure you won’t be drilling straight through a water pipe or a live wire. Don’t drill directly above or below light switches and plug sockets. If you can afford to, invest in a stud finder/metal detector to detect wires and pipes. If you do mistakenly drill into a water pipe, leave the drill bit in there, turn off the water and call a plumber.

To find out more about Ikano Bank’s simple low cost personal loans visit ikano.co.uk/loans

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ikano Bank .