Why buy it when you can DIY it?
Well, if you want it done right, or if you don’t know what you’re doing, you may need to buy it. Reddit users in a thread all chimed in with things they think is a bad idea to DIY, and I have to say: I agree with them completely.
Let’s dig in.
Electrical work.
“My older brother was trying to put in a new radio into my dad’s car. He says he followed the diagram to a T. When we turned on the car, it didn’t work. […] Turned on the car’s headlights and the radio started to work! Turned off the headlights and the radio stopped working!” okaysian said .
Piercing.
Yeah, it looked pretty cut-and-dry in Parent Trap. But Lindsay Lohan can’t fix it if you give yourself an infection.
Or, as a Reddit user put it : “I’ve had enough complications from piercings received from /professionals/ to know that this isn’t something you [expletive] around with.”
Building a deck.
Oh my god, don’t do it.
“On one hand it’s not really that hard, but there’s a ton of things that need to be exactly to code or the whole thing starts looking shaky after a year or two, if you don’t know building code, don’t touch it,” puz23 said .
Any duct work.
One Reddit user owns a house that had DIY duct work done, and it was a nightmare.
“Now that the thing is old and I’m looking at replacing, every company that has looked at his has just shaken their heads. I can add that air flow is in all the wrong places (like 50% of it on one floor coming out in a bathroom).”
DENTISTRY?
Sorry, I just can’t believe people do this .
“I cut a tooth out of my mouth once using a steak knife. I had a terrible infection, and I couldnt stand it. I took a knife and chipped away at the tooth and gum til it was gone. I had to go to the dentist anyway cause I just made the infection worse.”
Garage door springs.
“I was told by a garage door installer that he once saw someone almost cut off their own arm trying to put one of those spring on.” murderboxsocial said .
Since the springs are so powerful, they NEED to be installed by a professional.
Gas work. Don’t do it.
“Any gas work such as water boiler,” firefoxwhyyounowork said .
Zool_Robocod added: “Even If you fix the problem, you’ll probably never realise you’ve broken the vent and carbon monoxide is slowly leaking out. Leave it well alone, kids!”
Minor surgical things, like ingrown toenail.
“I lived in three months of agony with really bad ingrown toenails on both my big toes. I managed to get one out, but the left one was so bad that I gave in and went to the doctor.”
Save yourself the pain and see a professional as soon as you feel pain.
Take a tree down.
After her husband refused to hire a professional, one Reddit user watched him DIY it.
“I, meanwhile, was lucky to somehow have ninja reactions and move my head just in time before the rope snapped. That rope came right back at me and cut the clothes on my shoulder. If I hadn’t moved my head, I honestly could have lost an eye.”
On the tree topic: don’t try to cut down the branches yourself, either.
“I’m told he was around 40 feet up when he was trying to cut a branch and lost his balance falling to the ground. […] He completely shattered every bone in both his legs and is still undergoing surgeries to correct everything.” peter_the_pan said .
Tuning an instrument.
“Don’t let anyone but a professional technician touch your piano or organ.
Strings, tuning pins (and organ pipes – especially reeds) are sensitive to even the slightest alterations. Excessive tuning adjustments can cause significant – perhaps irreparable – damage to the instrument.” Back2Bach said .
As a former band nerd, I can confirm this.
Foundation repairs on your home.
“And yes people think that they can DIY that s*** from the inside just because they bought some quicrete. Thanks for making the problem harder to diagnose, and causing me more work. Here’s your higher bill!” BricksFourDaze said .
Photography for really important events.
“Just don’t worry about it, or leave it up to chance. You’re going to want those memories, and you’ll want them to be beautiful like they were in person and/or are in your mind,” one Reddit user said .
Plumbing. Oh my god, plumbing.
“If you screw up with plumbing, you run the risk of a lot of significant damage to floors, drywall, insulation, etc. If you flood your house, the damage escalates into the thousands of dollars very quickly.”
