Top Ten Do-it-yourself mistakes...

As posted on MSN today, here is a list of the top ten errors do it yourself-ers make, and I've made just about every one of them. My personal favorite? Number two, Starting a job without the necessary tools and supplies. This is clearly one of the most time consuming mistakes that I have made. Unfortunately, I tend to make this one a lot. When we put the bathroom in our office, my father suggested that we shouldn't worry about busting up all of that concrete to install the waste line, but that we should build a throne for the throne instead. It's a six inch diameter waste line, which meant we would have had to build up the floor with 2x8's. We mocked it up and sat the toilet on it, but it just looked absurd. The Jolly Green Giant would have needed a step ladder to use it. The point? I spent a few hours actually considering that ridiculous alternative. The problem and original aversion to breaking up the concrete stemmed from the fact that we had indeed drilled a few holes in it, whacked it a few times with the mini sledge and cold chisel, and finally decided that we would sooner chisel out of Alcatraz than chisel out a home for my drain. I broke down and went to the local rental shop. I explained what I was trying to do, and for thirty dollars and a refundable $100 credit card deposit, I got a mini jack hammer/drill. It took all of thirty minutes to trench out a path in the concrete for the new drain with the correct tool. Thirty minutes. Thirty dollars. Tool rental works well because most homeowners will never need a fifty gallon concrete mixer more than once. So don't hesitate to rent those specialty items that may just save you some serious time and help you to complete the task sooner. If you're planning on fencing your back yard, rent the auger for your post holes. (21 post by hand = 1.5 days, 21 post with auger = 2 hours with beer breaks in between). This is what separates weekend warriors from the Pros.