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Major Home Repair: 7 Jobs You Should Leave to Professionals

Written by Posted On Friday, 24 March 2017 11:23

Home ownership can be a hard row to hoe. Repairs can quickly become overwhelming, and it's tempting to try and DIY your way out of expensive repair and home maintenance bills, but the fact is many major home repairs are better left to the professionals. Often when a homeowner attempts these major repairs, the costs can end up being greater than if a professional was hired. Electrical, plumbing and other highly specialized work are usually too complicated for the average homeowner. Here we'll discuss seven jobs you should always leave to the professionals.

1. Roofing

A leaky roof can cause damage to a home very quickly, but this doesn't mean you should take it upon yourself to try to fix the damage. Roofing work can be dangerous and difficult to complete alone. Heights, sloped surfaces, and dangerous power tools are all part of an efficient roofing project, but these are not something that you should take lightly. This is a time when you should call in the professionals.

2. HVAC

Heating and cooling systems for your home are incredibly complex. They can involve electric and gas systems, both of which are inherently dangerous and require proper training to set up properly. Attempting to install your heating or cooling systems could also result in a loss of efficiency in your systems, and end up wasting money on energy costs.

Proper maintenance is an important part of your HVAC systems. This is also something you should turn to a professional for. Hiring a professional to clean coils, change filters, drain lines, and check system diagnostics will keep your system running longer and save you money.

3. Plumbing

Plumbing errors are among the most difficult and expensive problems to fix. Many times a homeowner will attempt a DIY plumbing project and think that it's been completed in a satisfactory manner. It may take days, weeks, or months to realize that a leak is present. According to plumbers in Utah County at Highpoint Plumbing, water damage is insidious and slow but can cause damage to foundations, walls, and eventually, cause mold damage. All of these issues can turn into costly repair projects. Be sure to hire a reputable plumber from Utah County.

4. Foundation Issues

Any variety of foundation issues should be looked at by a professional. Again, these can be complicated and troublesome issues that can lead to expensive fixes when your work needs to be redone.

5. Fireplace and Chimney Maintenance

While you might be able to clean out your fireplace every winter you want to rely on certified chimney inspectors to ensure that your chimney is in proper condition. The worst-case scenario can be catastrophic that it's just not worth it to try and forgo the cost of an annual inspection.

6. Electrical

The risk of shock while performing electrical work on your home is quite high, even if you have done electrical work before. Remember, the whole reason you're working on it is that something is wrong with it! By hiring a certified electrician, you are lowering your personal risk of being hurt while attempting the work but you are also lowering the risk of a home electrical fire.

7. Clean-up

It might sound foolish to say that homeowners should hire a professional for certain cleaning tasks but when a very damaging event takes place that's just the time you need them. Water, fire, sewage or other major damages should be cleaned up by a professional team. This can be sure to eliminate any chance of mold or other contaminants remaining afterward.

It might be tempting to try to DIY your home repairs, but these are a few of the situations where it's just not worth the risk.

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Lizzie Weakley

 About the Author: Lizzie Weakley is a freelance writer from Columbus, Ohio. She went to college at The Ohio State University where she studied communications. In her free time, she enjoys the outdoors and long walks in the park with her 3-year-old husky Snowball.

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