Tired decor, old wallpaper, outdated bathroom suites, a room layout that no longer suits your lifestyle or perhaps even just the urge for a simple change of scenery – there are many reasons why you might choose to take on a complete home renovation.
But how do you prepare for it? Here are some top tips for how to set up properly for that big home renovation project:
Set A Budget and Make a Plan
No matter how minor your renovation plans, if you don’t make a proper budget, your costs can easily spiral out of control. How much can you afford to spend on materials? How much on tradesmen? How long will the process take? Do you need to plan for costs of planning permission or building regulation approval?
These are all elements you should consider before starting out on your renovation. And even though you can’t plan for every eventuality, having something to aim for means you can see if costs or schedules are starting to go out of control, meaning you can make the necessary adjustments to keep everything on track.
Find The Right Contractors and Tradesmen
Another big challenge is finding the right people. Word of mouth is often a good way to get hold of reliable, expert tradesmen and contractors, but if you can’t get hold of workmen that way, a listings site with scores and reviews such as checkatrade is definitely your best bet.
Tradespeople sourced this way might not be the cheapest, but as long as they come up with a good score they should prove to be skilled and reliable for whatever you need them to do.
Find Somewhere to Keep All Your Things
Renovations, whether it’s a strip-it-to-the-bricks reconfiguration or a simple lick of paint, are the number one enemy of your furniture and other belongings. Dust, debris, paint and other staining materials can get everywhere, and workmen – or yourself – could easily damage belongings that aren’t safely stored away.
One option, if you have the space and time to do so, is to go room by room, and pile everything you can into the rooms you aren’t renovating. If you can’t move or safely store away furniture, then a liberal covering of dust sheets is also a reasonable precaution.
Store It Away from Home
Best of all, though, is to take all your stuff out of the equation. The most effective way to do this is to rent a self-storage unit. Companies like Safestore have facilities all over the country, so if you need temporary self-storage near Liverpool, for example, while you undertake your home renovation, you’ll find there’s plenty of affordable storage units of different sizes available to rent out.
