Maintain the Value of Your Home by Doing It Yourself
Thursday, May 6th, 2010The single most valuable item most of us will ever own is our home, whether in Spruce Grove, Stony Plain, Parkland County, the Edmonton area, or elsewhere. It makes sense – and money, when it comes time to sell our property – to keep it up to date and in good repair.
Every home repair and maintenance job could be hired out to a professional tradesman. Most of us don’t have the expertise or tools to tackle a job like replacing eavestroughs or reshingling the roof or repairing the springs on an automatic garage door opener.
But the average homeowner doesn’t always have to go to the trouble and expense of locating and employing a professional. A little instruction and practice make many home improvement and repair jobs fairly easy and even fun to do. One word of caution however: If you do decide to do the job yourself, the finished product must look as though it was done by a pro!
Where do you go to get the information and help you need so you can do it yourself?
- Check out your local public library. The do it yourself marketplace has exploded in recent years with a huge array of books, magazines and videos devoted to home improvement. The library is a good place to find the best and most recent of these, and all for the low price of a library card.
- Visit a large bookstore like Chapters for even more information. Flip through current issues of magazines such as
- Canadian Home Workshop
- Canadian Homes and Cottages
- Canadian House and Home
- Canadian Woodworking and Home Improvement Magazine
- The Family Handyman
- Remodeling Magazine
- Renovation Style Magazine (from Better Homes & Gardens)
- and many others
- See what cable television has to offer on networks like
- Attend home shows like the Edmonton Home and Garden Show, the Edmonton Renovation Show or the Home and Renovation Show where you can connect in person with home improvement experts, as well as local contractors and tradespeople.
- Stores like Home Depot (Home Improver Club) routinely offer workshops on topics such as installing bathroom faucets, planting a garden, replacing countertops and the like.
- And of course there’s the internet, with thousands of websites and forums devoted to every home improvement topic imaginable. Here are a few we like:
Did we miss anything? Do you know of a source of good information or website that we should include in this article?
Comments or questions are always welcome! Phone me at 780-910-9669, email me at barry@barryt.ca, or contact me here.
