...things will take at least 10 times longer to do than you expect
...some tradesmen are unreliable
...some tradesmen (not all) will try and rip you off or want to do more work than you wanted
...the good tradesmen take weeks/months to get a slot with
...when you start doing a little job you WILL uncover something that requires a lot of money and time to put right (case in point: I wanted a new light installed. The electrician came in for what I thought was a simple job, but then he found a load of really dodgy wiring that had melted, and found that our oven wasn't earthed. Cue a re-wire of the entire house).
...buying hardware is more difficult and time consuming than you think it will be. Think you're getting a radiator and all it's component parts? Think again sucker, you've got to buy all the valves separately.
...choosing decor can be a source of potential conflict between you and your other half.
...making a decision on paint colours can take months, and require you to paint a million samples on your wall.
...you will always run out of paint just as you are painting the last corner of a room.
...you will have to live with something that you hate for years. My artex palm tree in my hallway is still there after one year of us being here, but the hall is low on our list of priorities, so I expect to still be seeing it this time next year.
...your garden will look awful until you finish doing the inside of your house.
...the previous people who lived in your house will have been terrible at DIY. When removing two layers of wallpaper in our bathroom, I found that the previous people used filler to fill a hole in the wall, but didn't remove the wallpaper first. They then covered up their mess by wallpapering over the top. This is now impossible to remove. This is only one small item in a catalogue of disasters.
Anything you want to add to the list?
xx
Oh I have never renovated so I cant comment but just keep thinking about how amazing the end product will be.
ReplyDeleteyikes, perhaps you were right about renting for as long as I can...
ReplyDeleteI bet it will be worth it all in the end though!
they're all so true. I'm quite nervous now, now i'm thinking about moving out...! x
ReplyDeleteoh, it is terrible these things are true world-wide. It looks so easy on t.v., though.
ReplyDeletegoodness that is quite the list! We're about to totally renovate our kitchen and wood flooring in our home...I'm trying to gear up and be ready for any and all road blocks along the way. But here is a light at the end of the tunnel! :) And you said you wanted to put in a new light...is there a fun new chandelier or sconse you could share with us? :)
ReplyDeleteoh no!! i have some good friends who are remodeling their home and have similar stories of one disaster after another. i'm learning that it definitely takes a lot more time and money than you think it will. but a total re-wiring of your whole house?! ugh! although, i guess it's better than the wiring causing a fire, so maybe it's really good you caught it now. if we lived closer, i would take you out for a drink tonight and we could sing your remodeling blues away! :)
ReplyDeleteOh wow, sounds horrible!!! Is it all finished now? Even if you haven't, at least all of that the end must be near! xoxo
ReplyDeleteNothing to add other than agreement: my new windows took A YEAR AND A HALF from quote to installation; some previous owner or other had stuck the shower to the wall using sealant; who knew chimneys could leak so much?!
ReplyDeleteThat said, I love my flat - it's been worth all the stress, and I maybe even love it a little more because I've had to put so much into it.
Loved this post, I was checking it off in my head 'yup, yup, oh god yup, has the screaming started yet?' The bathroom was a complete and utter nightmare for us, we were without a hand basin for 3 weeks - could have been worse could have been the toilet/shower! We're about to start on the kitchen had the joiner round looking at the calendar and he is saying "well I could do it this week, I'm going to Spain straight after and I'll make sure it is finished before that" Erm no, I'm sorry but nothing ever goes to plan which means you'll be sunning yourself in Spain while I'm washing dishes in the bath for 2 weeks. We'll just wait until you're back from Spain.
ReplyDeleteIt will be worth it in the end.
all so, so, so true... especially the running out of paint bit! I did that when painting one of the floors grey so there's still a patch of 'nude' wood under a chest of drawers ;)
ReplyDeleteI can add... you will start off with extreme enthusiasm and then totally run out of energy when you realise how loooong everything is taking!
You are right: house renovation can create a lot of inconvenience. One can only hope that, after all the hard work involved in renovating the house, the end result would be something the homeowner would be proud of.
ReplyDelete