After a wonderful bout with the flu, holiday traveling, house guests and clearance goodness to take away my attention from Dad on a Dime, I should be able to update more frequently and get back into the swing of frugality!

A couple of years ago Dadcenter ran a story from another do-it-yourselfer who spelled out eloquently when to do it yourself and when to pony up and have a professional do it. I have a great example of this choice.

The cold snap we had last month timed perfectly with one of the garage door springs snapping. I couldn’t get the garage door up to get the cars out without help. It took three of us to roll it up far enough to wedge a 2×4 in and get the cars out. After we lowered it back down, I was able to go price parts to fix this thing. The two springs came to around $80. Thankfully I didn’t have the exact weight for the door, and didn’t buy the springs then.

I called around after I returned home and received two quotes. The one I picked was straight forward, $180 for a two spring replacement. I said “sign me up for the next opening.”

The guy came out the next day and it took him less than an hour to get both springs replaced, tension added, the door lubed and bill paid. I watched him do the work and I was duly impressed. I know beyond a shadow of doubt that I would have spent hours cursing and bleeding trying to get the torque right on the springs. The temp right then was sixteen below zero, and it was chilly in the garage.

I made the right choice in hiring it out. Yes, I could have done it myself, but it would have taken a lot longer and been much more frustrating. For $100 or less someone who does it daily was able to get in and get my door working. That was money well spent.

Peace,
Tony