Stuck in your home during a lockdown? Worried about when things will ever go back to normal? You’re not the only one. Everyone around you is stressing out about having to spend so much time at home. You might even feel like you’re not as productive as you used to be, which are all normal ways of feeling when you’re in lockdown and can’t live life the way you used to.
However, being at home doesn’t always mean that you can’t do something constructive with your time. If you’re finding yourself lazing around after a whole day of working from home, you can always find something or the other that needs fixing or an upgrade.
Can’t find anything that catches your eye? Here are some DIY home improvement ideas that we have come up with that will help you pass the time and boost your productivity levels to where they were before.
1. Fix the Bath
The bathroom is one of those places where you’re always trying to put off repairs for as long as possible. We don’t blame you—working on the toilet, shower and bathtub repairs can be a hassle, but when you’re in lockdown, it’s become even more important.
Everyone’s at home, which means more people are using the bathroom and taking baths as well. The last thing you want is for a major issue to emerge from a smaller issue that you were procrastinating about. Get some self-adhesive caulk strip and start fixing the crack lining the edge of the tub. It not only makes the tub look neater; it prevents water from leaking through.
Self-adhesive caulk strip also works for other surfaces. If the shampoo and conditioner holders in your shower are starting to show signs of buildup at the edges, change them out for a new strip that’ll make your bathroom look much cleaner as well. If you’re noticing this buildup all over the bath and shower, consider replacing all the sealant.
2. Fix Cabinets and Sharp Edges
Have you been delaying childproofing and waterproofing your home for too long? These minor details take a little time but prevent major damage in the long run. It’s about time that you covered those sharp edges with edge trims. Some cabinets, especially storage cabinets, need waterproof edges to ensure that everything you’ve stored inside stays safe and dry. One way to prevent water from entering is to cover the edges with flexible vinyl edge trim.
Another use of flexible vinyl edge trim is to surround any glass or metal panes that you’re afraid may hurt a family member or a pet. Screen doors and animal cages sometimes have metal edges that could cause an injury that could be prevented. Cover them up with edge trims and they’ll be safer while still looking aesthetically appealing.
3. Clean Out Those CarpetsEveryone hates a smelly or stinky carpet that has been in the house for too long. However, no one likes going through the effort of cleaning it either. With a reliable carpet shampoo and a soft brush, you can get started on that long overdue task.
Since you’re at home all day, you might struggle with keeping everyone out of the room until the carpet dries up again, so you’ll want to do this at night when most of your family is asleep. You won’t regret having softer, pleasantly smelling carpets when you’re through.
4. Minor Paint Jobs
Have you ever been sitting in your room and noticed the tiny little blemishes on your wall that need touching up? Now is a better time than ever to get out the paintbrushes and a can of paint. A small touch up now can prevent you need more drastic painting later.
Sometimes the paint can start chipping from an accident or become discoloured because of a stain or spill. Slightly sandpaper the area and coat it with a new layer of paint. It’ll look much nicer when it’s dry, and the overall paint on your walls will last longer with regular touch-ups.
5. Oil the Door Hinges
Nobody really brings this up when talking about home improvements because it is such a subtle improvement. However, if you’ve ever been annoyed by the squeaky noises that your door makes whenever someone enters the room, you’ll know what a relief it is to not have to hear that noise anymore.
There might even be office chairs that need a little oiling, especially if you’re working in a home office. It requires a little effort and can get messy, but once you’ve properly oiled them, they won’t be bothering you for months onwards.
6. Do Some Gardening
If you’re already an avid gardener, you won’t need someone to tell this to you. However, if you’re not very fond of going out and getting dirty in the weeds, plants and grass, here is the sign that you’ve been avoiding. The longer you put off weeding your garden, the wilder and more out of hand it is going to get.
You can even go a step further. Once you’re done pulling all the weeds out of the garden, you can get some gravel and lay it out all over the area surrounding your plants. This looks attractive and also prevents more weeds from growing back anytime soon.
7. Fix the Furniture
It happens to the best of us—one day our sofas and beds are fine, and the next, they’re wobbling and uncomfortable to sit on. If you have any wobbly chairs in your kitchen, you’ll know how common it is to lose your balance and end up spilling a drink or food.
Get out the hammer, the screwdrivers and whatever else you’ll need, and fix the loose legs in all your furniture. You can even get your kids to help you out—make them test all the furniture in the house and point out which ones need a repair.
Final Words
It’s hard to get off your seat and finally get some work done around the house when you’ve become too used to lazing around. But your future self will thank you if you make these sacrifices now because when things start going back to normal, you’ll wish you had the time to make these improvements.
Author Bio
Greg Amundson is the founder and creator of InstaTrim & have been working in the home construction industry for 30+ years and have always had a passion to make DIYers’ life easier by developing products like white peel and stick caulk, black caulk tape, grey PVC corner trim, etc.
