Moving Home & DIY

As most of you will know, we have just recently moved house - it's not our own as we're still renting but we still have some things in and around the house that we want to change and make our own. Our landlord is pretty laidback with what we can do so we're just going to work out what we want and start in the new year! It's all been recently renovated anyway so there isn't a huge amount to do - the majority of things are in the garden including a very old, bodged workman's shed that needs to be demolished and cleared... but that's one for the boys!

 

A lot of people, especially parents who are expecting, like to whip out the paint brush and make things look new and clean, I guess it's just one of those things to do with the list of things to buy and prepare for when you're expecting a new baby?! When we had Millie, we tackled her 'nursery' just after she was born and this time, we'll probably do the same with the spare room as we want to keep it quite neutral still but lots of people who tackle DIY jobs in and around the house aren't aware of the risks that it can pose and it's important to take extra care when you've got little ones around too!

 

 

Slater and Gordon conducted a piece of research around the effects of DIY and home improvements and what issues people were and weren't aware of - we live in an old Victorian house which has quite clearly, had some issues over the years and during this survey, 52% of the people who were asked also live in an older home that is over 50 years old. The problem with these older houses is that the risk of things such as asbestos, is a lot higher and a lot of people are quite naïve to the risks of being exposed to asbestos. Along with numerous other parts of the survey, 48% of people asked were completely unconcerned with health risks when it come to redecorating or renovating their houses! Now, for me, I'm worried about drilling holes into things I didn't know were there and would always prefer someone to come in and install or check something for us rather than us doing it ourselves but I understand that for others, the costs of doing this can be out of budget...

 

If you were faced with the facts of the health and safety concerns surrounding DIY and were more clued up on it, would you perhaps look into this more and reconsider if you wanted to redecorate or renovate your home?! Would you want to expose your children to these risks?! Asbestos can be a cause of cancer especially in these sorts of environments but Slater and Gordon are mesothelioma solicitors that specialise in cases where people have been exposed, unknowingly, to asbestos and if you aren't sure of the risks that come with it you can read up on it over there!