Do it yourself repairs: Just how far should we go? |16 September 2011

So having decided that you are absolutely the best person for the job, the next step was probably to grab whatever tools was at hand, completely ignoring the rule of “using the right tools for the right job”.

Seychelles has not been spared from the global DIY fever and surely has a history of DIY repairs, the juicier of these stories being those that had gone wrong! From fixing the car, repairing electrical appliances, doing wiring jobs in the house, installing everything one can think of in the house to mending a leaking water pipe, some people will always be going for the cheap way out of getting things done. Others still have too much pride to ask for help or admit defeat.

What are some of the DIY that one should definitely avoid?
● Using tape or super glue as a one-fix-for-all solution: There is a variety of tapes, such as insulating, double-sided, carton sealing, duct, masking, electrical, each suited to a specific kind of job and advice should be sought before one goes to substitute one for another. Super glue does exactly what is says on the tube, so think carefully before applying it, if you decide you need to un-stick it at a later stage.

● Using a brick as a stand after you have jacked up your car to change a tyre should also join the list of a definite no-no, as bricks are known to crumble under the weight of a car, depending on the size of both. Apart from bricks, one should also be very careful about what else one uses to prop up a car, having seen cars being held up by barrels, pieces of wood, poles and even an old chair!

● Car bumpers being held up by a piece of rope, cracked windscreens held together by masking tape, using any piece of coloured wire to do a job that requires color-coded wires, why, just when you thought you had seen it all, something new comes along taking you completely by surprise!

But just how far should we go in DIYs, when there are perfectly qualified and capable people for the job? After all, we cannot do everything ourselves, or there would not be jobs for other people out there. A word of advice, either get the right tools for the right job, along with the appropriate knowledge of How-to, or else call the repairman before someone gets hurt, or worse, make the damage worse, inviting a hefty repair bill and an embarrassed moment of having to explain what went wrong!
For more examples of what one should not be doing as a DIY solution, readers are advised to visit the www.thereifixedit.com fail blog! 

By Ivan Hollanda