To ask if you do your own DIY and can you help me please?

[UncleBunclesHouse]

After a blazing row this morning with DH who has yet again said ‘yes’ to doing a DIY type task I’ve asked him to do and then doing absolutely nothing about it (then having the nerve to say I’m ‘going on at him’ for getting annoyed) I have decided I’m done, I’m not asking anymore and I’m going to learn to do it myself.

I’m really not naturally good at practical things in general and when I say DIY it’s probably not really - things like changing spotlight bulbs, changing inner tubes/tyres on the buggy etc etc.

If anyone does this stuff and is ok at it, could you give me some tips? What are the basic things I need and where can I learn ‘for dummies’ style? Have tried watching a few you tube videos before but they often seem to assume a basic level of knowledge which I don’t have...TIA

@Changi

Be careful when drilling walls, do not drill in any straight line above below or to the sides of any electrical socket.

Good luck with that if you live in an old house.

In ours, lines directly above, below and to the sides of the sockets are probably the safest places to drill.

Yes, it's not foolproof, but it is a useful tip. An electric and stud detector is worth purchasing too.

If drilling walls, as a novice DIYer make sure you have a modern electrical consumer unit

I go straight to youtube. There are usually multiple videos for anything you need to know. I've looked up tutorials on how to change the fan on the oven, how to remove and clean the oven door, how to remove my car radio and loads more.

Op. Do the outside gate first, to build up confidence. It won't matter so much if it's not perfect. The washing machine will probably need a professional. Mine did that before it started to flood the kitchen floor. And if your dh won't go up to the loft while you are heavily pregnant, you should put your Christmas decorations( and him) outside.

Another one for YouTube here! I managed to fix a tumble dryer myself with help from YouTube.

There's a guy on YT whose dad walked out when he was little and he now uploads videos of simple home DIY jobs his Dad never taught him for others, his channel is "Dad, How do I?"

Best of luck, you've got this! 💪🏻

Ahhh, never saw you post before posting @SchrodingersImmigrant!

While the genedered title annoys me (what would be wrong with DIY for beginners?) this Haynes book is a very good intro for things like what tools do what jobs

haynes.com/en-gb/womens-home-diy-manual-paperback?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIx4ir-fWx7gIVzdPtCh3msQO3EAQYASABEgKAjfD_BwE

YouTube but be sure to watch more than one clip, I watched one on how to fix my dryer (belt came off) and it seemed too hard, next video simple and easy.

As well as taking photos when you are taking something apart, draw some diagrams as it’s guaranteed the thing you want to check will be obscured on the pic. So for example the buggy wheels, take a note of how the nuts and washers that hold the wheel on are arranged. Have a box lid or piece of cardboard and lay them out in the order you take them off. If they’ve got inner tubes you might find you’ve got a thorn or something poking through the tyre and giving you punctures.

Sounds like the bearings are going on your washing machine. I'm not sure that's a diy job unless you have some experience of that sort repair.

You mentioned the buggy, is this the one?
m.youtube.com/watch?v=33g-BnwpG08

The washing machine could be bearings but if it is jumping around, it could be that the drum dampers need replacing.

My DH fixed ours recently. Apparently, "it wasn't straightforward", or words to that effect, and bearings are worse.

If your washing machine is integrated, the first simple check is if it has shifted slightly so it is now vibrating against the cabinet/door when it spins. That can sound like there is something loose.

We have renovated a number of properties and you tube is great.

As PP have said work out step by step what you are going to do. Make sure you have everything you need for the task to hand, then work through it methodically.

If you want to get a man to do DIY ask once, if he doesnt do it tell him you have asked your friend/dad/neighbour/DIY professional to do it. They usually get territorial and just do it themselves then.

Recommend you tube too OP - have done all sorts of little jobs (fizzing the dishwasher and hoover, replacing the seal on the washing machine etc.) also recommend getting your own toolkit - randomly ended up getting one like this: www.amazon.co.uk/WORKPRO-Repair-Compact-156-Piece-Household/dp/B07TJFF2LB/ref=sr_1_21?dchild=1&crid=3OE8JGKY3Y2I&keywords=basic+tool+kit&sprefix=Basic+tool%2Caps%2C153&tag=mumsnetforu03-21&qid=1611401899&sr=8-21 sent to me a few christmases ago - was a mix up by Amazon but they told me to keep it. Has come in soooo useful over the years!

Buy your own drill and toolkit. Look after it and keep it all together.
I do 90% of the DIY in our house because DH takes forever and then makes it into a job 100x the size of what needs doing. Say I ask him to put some blinds up so he sets off with how all the plaster needs to come off and be redone and all repainted, just put the blinds on for now and we'll take them down when we eventually replaster.
I do everything from online tutorials, watch what they do and do the same things, and learning from doing it wrong. Start small and work your way up.

For these jobs I’d just ask on my local face book for someone to fit a new gate. The washing machine make sure it’s not leaning against something and call a repair man out.

I can drill a hole, have recently hung blinds myself, I hang pictures, I sand and varnish, I change the bulbs etc, but I’d call someone in to repair my washing machine and I’d do the gate with my husband, who is an engineeer, who also hates diy but does have a knowledge base.

I don’t think you should be out there pregant hanging a new garden gate

@CrotchBurn

If you want to get a man to do DIY ask once, if he doesnt do it tell him you have asked your friend/dad/neighbour/DIY professional to do it. They usually get territorial and just do it themselves then.

I actually did that with an ex.

“Hey you know that tap that hasn’t been working for ages that you keep saying you’ll fix, well I was chatting to a guy at work about it and he said he’s a dab hand at plumbing so he’s going to come over at the weekend while you’re out at the football and sort it in exchange for a coffee”.

It was fixed by that evening.

Say I ask him to put some blinds up so he sets off with how all the plaster needs to come off and be redone and all repainted, just put the blinds on for now and we'll take them down when we eventually replaster

My husband is the same with blinds, it’s batshit. He goes on and on about how hard it is, then the second last time, he broke the drill bit and also drilled the holes in totally the wrong place. I’ve never seen anything like it and as said he’s an engineer. So the last ones I simply took the drill and went and did it myself without saying anything. He was a bit shocked when he walked in and found me doing it. But I just couldn’t be arsed with the drama. It’s like some form of mental block with blinds.

@Bluntness100
Definitely, no heavy work while pregnant, and as little exposure to glues and paints as is necessary.

It's surprising, but when hanging something like a gate, even if it feels light, you can get stuck holding it in position and it doesn't feel light for very long.

Always read/watch instructions through before you start. If you dont understand then read/watch them again, and if there's a bit that assumes existing knowledge then look up instructions for that bit.

Always make sure youve got everything you need to do the job to the end before you start. (If it's a flatpack then lay out all the parts and check).

Measure twice, cut (drill, screw, whatever) once...

Same goes with screws with flatpack - double check you're using the right ones (Ikea is king here because their instructions use lifesize illustrations of screws etc so you can literally lay it on the paper to check).

Honestly, taking things slowly and carefully, not cutting corners and trying to use a substitute for a tool (like a knife because you can't find the screwdriver dh) that wasnt intended for the job, will save so much time in the long run.

Baba, yes, I watched the workmen hang ours and it’s not quite as simple quick and easy as it looks.

I’d order it then just post on Facebook for someone to come hang it.

DH and I recently bought a fixer upper and ran out of money very early on because turns out we needed new electrics, plumbing and boiler etc. So everything else has been slowly done ourselves with the help of YouTube and Instagram story tutorials. Neither of us knew anything about DIY before but I have since wallpapered myself, loads of painting, put up blinds, shelves, pictures, tiling in the bathroom, installed a vent in the fireplace etc. There’s tutorials for every single tool in YouTube. And I highly recommend making a home account on insta and following some amazing ladies who do it all themselves. It’s really inspiring (happy to give you some recommendations) and my next task is to tile the fireplace once I finish wallpapering the nursery I forget things easily so I’ve made a little notebook with reference to which tools do what and which drill bits are for which surface etc so I don’t ruin anything. Good luck OP x

YouTube, ifixit, Google, and experience.

Get stuck in and give it a go, if you get stuck Google the exact bit you're stuck with then have another go until you fix it or need to buy a new one.

You'll be proficient before you know it.

Moving a washing machine is definitely not a good idea for someone who is pregnant.

It's surprising, but when hanging something like a gate, even if it feels light, you can get stuck holding it in position and it doesn't feel light for very long.

Make a couple of wooden wedges. Use them to take the weight and make fine adjustments to the height.