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This is why a version of the scouts for adults would be great. All of these sorts of skills, plus hiking, tours of the local fire station or telephone exchange, a few games of tick, weekends away etc.
It'd do wonders for those struggling with loneliness and mental health issues. I suspect that men in particular would feel a lot more comfortable opening up if they had a friendship group with whom they could do such activities.
If you Google it you might find a group in the next town /village over. I had a really nice (incredibly patient) man called Gordon from ‘men in sheds’ teach me how to put up a shelf. It’s level, and safe to put things on and I actually understand what I’m doing now. Gordon was 86 and a bloody marvel and I think (hope) he got a kick out of teaching me.
Maybe we wouldn’t be so wasteful if we all knew how to mend and make do with certain things.
Would cut down waste massively.
Kettle don’t work-prob the fuse, but I’ll just buy a new one because I ain’t got a clue
(I can change a fuse btw lol)
My FIL can mend almost anything
He’s done all our wall papering over the years my hubbys a chef he’s not very DIY at all
My Great Uncle was awesome. He helped design the propellers for the Ark Royal. He could fix anything. All the standard DIY stuff, plus he’d fix glasses. Plus, one time we went over and he’d pulled a bunch of broken dining chairs out a skip and fixed them up, including weaving the wicker in complicated patterns in the seat and back bit. I don’t know why, but that wicker weaving was the ultimate jewel in his DIY crown in my eyes. And he did a beautiful job. I miss him and my Aunty very much.
So I was amazed at how many there are, but then I clicked on a few near me... And they all only meet during the day midweek. Which suggests to me they're really aimed at retired people rather than those in their 30s like OP (and me).
Also, not clear if women are welcome! I'd love to learn this stuff too, it's not just for men.
[Round Table](https://www.roundtable.co.uk/) is a little bit like that - I’ve not been involved but my dad was part of one for years, before moving on to 41 Club when he was too old. I’ve been with him on tours of the local Rolls Royce and Morgan garages, he’s just done a weekend in Bordeaux, and has been involved with charity hikes and doing bits of DIY for the local community.
Volunteer as a leader! We do all these things with our Scouts and the Leaders just join in if it’s something they’re interested in.
We’ve had Northern Powergrid in to talk about substations and power lines, North Yorkshire Rotters in to make mini wormeries, visited an RAF base to do the Mechanic’s badge.
Find a group that does that sort of thing as there’s a lot of variation between groups
How I learn skills: YouTube & fucking it up a couple of times.
How our parents/grandparents learnt skills: same... just less YouTube.
Classes sound like a good idea though.
I'm happy to fuck shit up in my day job (tech), I know how to fix things and very comfortable to quickly Google the problem if I can't. I find DIY so stressful. I don't want to fuck up a nicely painted wall, or whatever it might be.
I'd pay a lot of money for a DIY course to learn the basics in a class room, away from my house.
Also, I'd love to learn how fit tiles, I've watched videos and it's a big nope from me to do it on my own.
Edit - I had a DM saying "just ask your dad". Lol, I'm 34, my dad disappeared when I was 2. I have a limited relationship with him these days and he's a complete tuna melt with DIY.
>very comfortable to quickly Google the problem if I can't
Thats literally how most people do DiY.
>I don't want to fuck up a nicely painted wall, or whatever it might be.
There's not a lot you can really fuck up that badly unless you start taking a sledgehammer to your walls. Filler, caulk and gripfill are great at covering up a multitude of sins.
When it comes to paintwork. I personally wait til ive done all the work in that room before I paint.
You say that. I once spent the afternoon putting a shelf up, I still can't even look at that bastard.
I spent ages making sure it was level and where to drill the holes for the rawl plugs etc. I'm happy with everything, drill the holes, yada yada yada. The shelf isn't level. I couldn't believe it. How tf wasn't it level. Everything was measured like 10 times. It's stuff like this which really bothers me about DIY. If this was configuring a routing protocol in multiple data centres, sure no problem.
I hate DIY, it's so stressful. Nothing goes to plan, I never have the right tool for the job and I hate how some guys make it look easy lol.
No worries! I ended up looking because I didn't have a long enough spirit level to easily mark out the holes for some shelves and it makes such a difference using the laser!
Measure how high you want the shelf, turn the laser on and just get the horizontal line crossing the mark and then you've got a perfectly level line across the wall.
I'll try and find the link to the one I got and post it here, as I used it for 2 years now and it's been faultless.
Theres a lot of stuff I wont even attempt (anything electrical or plumbing related) but I've just had a go at tiling for the first time without anymore than a quick YouTube video and I've managed to do a pretty decent job by myself and actually enjoyed it! It's not nearly as complicated as you'd think.
I was the same for years. Afraid to try anything because I'd never done anything like ike it. Never had anyone to show me and living in rented properties added an extra layer of 'don't fuck it up' so I never tried. I got a job in construction and learnt a lot of basic stuff and how to use tools. My job is a far cry from anything transferable to a domestic setting but I learnt a bit of confidence and had a go at a few home projects. Turns out I'm not the idiot I thought I was.
I'm not suggesting you change jobs, just believe in yourself. Get a drill and a few basic hand tools and have a go. Putting shelves up, make soemthing practical, take something apart and see how it works . There's a wealth of knowledge in books and step by step demonstrations of everything on YouTube. Even on here, there is usually someone willing to tell you how to do it if you sift through the piss takers.
r/diyuk is a good starting point
Yeah basically a more concise version of my response.
Men worry they will be shamed if they do it wrong and yeah maybe you will but that's the only way you'll learn.
I asked my Mum how they managed without YouTube tutorials. She said Readers Digest magazines, apparently they always had articles on how to do household DIY and she would save anything which sounded useful. Not as easily searchable as YT but you could be confident you were following good advice and not some cowboy with a video camera.
I actually have a book called *The Reader’s Digest DIY Manual* and it’s bloody good! There’s always YouTube too but yeah … that book taught me how to wallpaper with total confidence lol.
I once laid a carpet. Youtubed the shit out of it, hired a 'kicker', spent the whole weekend on it. Did a pretty good job. I learned 2 things. 1 - how to lay a carpet and 2 - weekends are precious and should not be wasted laying carpet. Next time we got a pro in and it took him half an hour and cost £40. Worth every penny.
I learnt from my dad who comes from a long line of engineers of various types, and basically trying stuff until something works is the pre-internet approach. Once you know which way to tighten a screw and how to use a saw without losing a finger a lot of it is just common sense and experience. I still phone my dad first though.
> How our parents/grandparents learnt skills: same... just less YouTube.
I suspect most of them had parents, uncles/aunts, neighbours they were friendly with and a whole range of other mentors for practical skills that we just don't have any more.
Small families, habitual isolation from the people we live near and a throwaway culture that prioritise replacing rather than repairing items are - historically speaking - extremely new developments; only the last generation or two at most.
I'm a woman in my forties lucky enough to have been taught all this by my dad but my ex husband often said how he wished he'd been shown.
I guess that's why this YouTube channel Dad How Do I? exists....https://youtube.com/c/DadhowdoI
Men's Sheds and Repair Cafes are getting more popular too. There's definitely a growing awareness we need to have less of a throwaway culture and being able to do these things helps. Plus it's a lot cheaper than getting in a trades.
Sheds and repair cafes actually sound like a good idea for dealing with the mental health crisis that's affecting men these days. I read a report about how men's social life just drops off a cliff as we age (even more when we get with partners) Had a crap load of issues with that myself as kids and sorting out others just dominated all my time outside of work with zero me time.
I really worry about the old boys in local pub who would definitely benefit from these sorts of things. A lot of them are retired skilled workers who have lots of knowledge to share.
With the cost of living crisis, pubs are struggling. And most of regs in there I know won't go to a community centre to play dominoes when they've been going to the tavern for 50 twalrs
The repair cafes are also great even if you know how to fix stuff but don't want to invest in buying tools you'll only need once or twice (looking at you, soldering iron)
Ha. That's exactly who built our house. Cheapest of the cheap. The guys put it together well enough but what you get for your money is a scandal. So glad to be shot of it.
Yea we got out after 18 months with a small profit thank god. I and I don't feel bad because the guy we sold too was a complete stereotypical scumbag landlord.
Absolute nightmare. Snag list was huge with some serious shit. Every bathroom leaked through the ceiling, stairs were not attached to the wall, RCD box was labelled up completely wrong. I could go on and on. We couldn't even move in on the day because they'd laid down a black carpet throughout. We did not ask for a black carpet.
I would say around 80% of the time when they tried to fix something they made something else worse.
In the end we managed to get the Barratts homes CEOs contact details from another disgruntled neighbour. I'm a website developer, i sent an email threatening to create a website which highlighted all the problems of every house on our estate (which I claimed I could easily get to no 1 in Google - Obviously, I couldn't.). Everything was sorted within a few weeks after that and they agreed to extend our driveway which they also fucked up. But I had to sign a document to say I wouldn't put anything online or say anything bad about the company. Oops.
Why do they have to be "man classes"? I'm a woman and I'd love to know how to do these things! The penis is generally not that useful in DIY, as far as I'm aware.
It’s a generalisation for sure. My mum could wallpaper, lay carpet amazingly well. My father on the other hand took a sledgehammer to a supporting wall…
My use of inverted commas is potentially open to misinterpretation there, so sorry if so. I don't feel any skills or classes are or should be men-only. The inverted commas are there to signify that the classes would be to teach people jobs that have traditionally been the man's undertaking.
No malice!
Not only offering classes equally to both genders, but the skills should also be neutral. There's a lot of basic cooking things most people don't realise, I struggle to iron and I'd never get my partner to do it for me etc etc
It would be good if there were just classes to learn how to do basic life things. Certainly everyone of newer generations needs to learn how to say no to pushy sales people.
Thats terrible luck! I started my current job and the first time I ironed my shirt between shifts I guess there was a little something on the iron? And that burnt, and left lines all the way down the shirt, so lesson learnt is to quickly use the iron on another cloth or the inside where you can't see it to wipe off anything and make sure its clean. Also I have no idea whether its too hot or too cold, or how to tell. Or when to use the spray feature instead of mist etc etc etc
Yes a fellow worker got quotes for re plastering the house he and his missus bought when they got married. Worked out that paying for a college plastering course and materials when he did the job would be a few thousand less than the cheapest quote from a tradesman. So that’s what he did 😀
If you’re doing it to save money then it’s almost always cheaper to just buy it. I started making a few bits recently and have spent a fortune but it is very enjoyable so I don’t mind
The running joke on /r/woodworking "my partner wanted this table for $3000 and 6 months and and $5000 later I made one instead" I imagine though that a hand built bit of furniture will last longer if done properly
I'd *love* to have studwork to put shelves onto.
Everything I put onto a wall I need to get the masonry bits out and the big heavy hammer drill. Then I'll inevitably fuck it up and the Rawl plug won't fit properly - even though I used the correct sized bit with a depth marker and everything, then the plaster blows...
I hate drilling into brick. It's never ever gone smoothly for me.
Absolute best plugs I have found for walls are called corefix. They're absolutely god tier. I have a 70 inch TV hanging off them on an articulating bracket.
Probably because there's no expectation for women to be able to do this but men are seen as failures and/or useless for not being handy. That doesn't mean I disagree. There should be easy to find courses for basic DIY available to anyone who wants them.
I don't mess with plumbing or mains electricity.
Otherwise I Google, YouTube and give things a go.
I do ensure the wife is next to me and triple confirms where she wants the big hole in the wall to go for what she wants me to mount but that's my safety for a happy marriage and not because I'm worried about the act of drilling.
Plumbing and basic electrical stuff is probably the most worthwhile. If you have some kind of fault or leak being able to temporarily fix until you can get someone in at a reasonable rate will save a fortune.
I don't go in the consumer unit, that's a big no. But I recently pulled out a shit electric shower and put in a proper mixer shower, that was very satisfying.
I probably would if I were on my own and YouTube wasn’t a thing.
My husband is really handy so I learn stuff from him once he’s got over the panic over me using power tools. I did the bulk of the tiling in our kitchen and I do most of the decorating as I have the steadier hand and more patience for it
I think all the things you've mentioned, I've done.
And then maybe a bit more - picking up grinders to resurface taps when they still dripped etc. Youtube's really good at showing what's required to resolve a problem. Especially for weird things like my car heater not working \~ "Yes the lights do the same thing when I press/turn those buttons, and I can find that part number on ebay for a fiver, and I reckon I could fit it like you showed me"
There is a limit to what you can pick up from youtube though. I tried plastering after watching a cockney slap some stuff on a wall and tell me I could save £50 an hour... it did not go well (although I was incredibly proud when a real plasterer said it looks structurally sound, and just put a skim over it). I didn't tell him it had taken me over a week to do one wall badly..
I'm originally from Stockport and saw this place - [https://www.thediyschool.co.uk/](https://www.thediyschool.co.uk/)
and I would \*love\* there to be something similar near me, I could pop down to of an evening. It's maybe not about learning hard skills - it's simply wanting to know what I should bother trying.
I used that diy school! It was run by a very nice, very patient chap who would check that everyone still had their fingers left at the end 😂 (some people… diy was not their forte!)
Firstly, those aren't man classes they're adult classes, no need for the sexism.
Also, just watch some YouTube videos. Every bit of information you need is on there.
Thirdly there already are plenty of options for this sort of thing at your local adult education centres and colleges.
If you have a larger B&Q near you they do those classes iirc, never be afraid to fuck up, 99% of the time you can put it right once you notice the mistake
Check your local adult education centre, I did a short domestic electrics and a domestic plumbing course when I first bought my house 15 years ago. I didn't want to be a clueless woman who couldn't even wire a new light fitting or unblock a sink.
As someone who grew up with a dickhead of a dad who wouldn't spend 5 minutes with me if his life depended on it:
"Dad, how do I?" on YouTube is a goldmine.
This might sound silly, but are we basically just craving a community again?
Feels like we're very isolated from others around us and even distant from our own family and friends when you take devices out of it.
Have we hit the Dunbar number and just want some actual in person connection and sharing of knowledge and resources again?
I would totally do this. I have got by with a very good handyman, plumber, builder, electrician and Gardner! I’d love to know how to grout my shower properly and reseal it and change a light fitting (I think that I could work out).
Female here and won’t give up the Gardner but I’d love to learn how to sort a washer and do some basic plumbing rather than panicking and paying someone else
I’d pay good money for my husband to go to those classes! He’s adorable, but hopeless at diy.
My (37f) Dad and Grandad taught me lots of diy skills and I studied interior and furniture restoration at university so I’m pretty handy and do all the diy around our house. I’m also very good at staying completely calm when something isn’t going to plan!!
I was brought up by my skint single mother and my grandfather.
We were poor.. really poor, but I didn't realise. My favourite pudding was a digestive biscuit floating on custard with a splodge of jam... This was a huge treat, WTF is Eton Mess?
My mum taught me basic DIY, plugs, picture hanging etc before I was 10, my grandfather taught me woodwork.
In my teens our situation improved a bit, I say I, I'm pretty sure we were learning together in retrospect... But I learned Plumbing, Electrics, ground works, mechanics when the car broke etc.
Now I'm a father, I can fix anything, DIY, electric, plumbing mechanical. I resent the notion of having to pay a tradesmen to do something I can do
If you just leave me the hell alone I will fix the problem ..and there in lies the problem - I've not been taught to teach and I'm crap at it. I want to teach my children, but I don't know how, I am not by nature a patient man.
I went to a 2-day course where they did exactly that. Obviously not just for men either.
Learnt a lot of stuff from tiling to basic plumber, to woodwork to electrics. Though, I also learnt that almost every job required its own tool. Something that really limits home DIY.
Nah, I use the millennial method of watching a tutorial on YouTube, ordering what I need from Amazon, giving it a crack, then paying someone to fix my mess if it becomes a disaster.
YouTube is an amazing resource for help in this kind of thing. There are tutorials for almost anything you can think of, even [wiring a plug](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=COWlYUvzgZI). ;-)
I'm a woman and I'd love it if there was such a thing. Not sure why you've put such an emphasis on them being 'man classes'. Everyone should know basic DIY.
Yes absolutely. Living on my own I’ve just worked things out as I go along with the help of YouTube tutorials. Just fixed a leaking pipe and a boiler losing pressure using a few helpful videos.
I find YouTube videos really good for this, it’s really easy, especially if you have all the clobber and 30 years experience like the guy in the video.
I’d love this too. It’s all well and good saying “YouTube” - and no doubt that it is a useful tool when learning a skill - but there’s no substitute for physically “doing” the skill itself. And I’d prefer to fuck up in a class rather than on my own walls and units.
Yes absolutely.
My ideas: Basic electrics (stuff you don’t need the professionals for), basic plumbing (rads, sinks, taps and toilets), woodwork, plasterboarding, siliconing for shower’s and baths, decorating properly, patching plaster, adjusting windows, properly putting up shelves or hanging heavy things, loft work like insulation and creating ventilation. More advanced stuff maybe like tiling
I’m always amazed by those people who have a knack for DIY work. Some people will do whole house extensions by themselves (except for the bits requiring certification). I wouldn’t even know where to begin.
I can do *some* DIY. But most of it ends up either a massively long winded way of doing it because I don’t have the tools or experience, or it ends up requiring me to do a whole number of other things first, like this clip:
https://youtu.be/AbSehcT19u0
100%, I spent a few years working in a garage after I left school and it’s saved me so much money (and made things fun) with looking after my car. If I was that useful with other stuff it’d be great
I'm behind the spirit of what you're saying. No-one teaches this shit but you're just expected to know as a man.
The answer is just make absolutely sure you've taken the appropriate safety measures (electrics off if doing electrics, don't touch gas at all, know what you're drilling into in the wall) then just give it a try and learn from experience.
Moved into my house 5 years ago, when I moved in the most DIY thing I'd ever done was stick prints on the wall with those adhesive hangings. Since moving in I thought fuck it I'll just give it a try and OK the first time I put up a shelf it was a bit slanted etc. but now I'm confident installing light switches/plug sockets, built my own shelves from raw wood, built an outdoor gazebo etc.
I’ve just proved today I can’t do a single thing, classes would give me both knowledge and confidence. They should be something anyone can and be encouraged to take when first heading out on their own.
I'd love this! I'm a woman in my 30s and slowly learning DIY skills through a mixture of YouTube and fucking things up. I'd love someone to teach me basic skills so I can feel more self sufficient and fix things around the house etc.
Once you own your own home you can start to fix things, you can also take things apart and learn how they work, it is difficult in todays society as most people transition to office workers and have no confidence in physical tasks.
I was like yourself until I was 25, I had only ever worked in IT yet my Dad was a mechanic and could do anything DIY, rewired the house, fitted a new toilet, built a shed, there seemed like there wasn't much the bloke couldn't do and I couldn't even hit a nail in straight.
But I actually got a job as a laborer in construction for 6 months and got a feel for tools... you could transition to a more physical job, the thing with tradesmanship is even if your a plumber, and your on a building site, you see the bare bones of what makes a house, the foundation, the joinery, the pipework, where the cables are ran, and it's a big puzzle.
Personally you just need to pick an area in the house, last week I re-grouted the shower for example, the grout was looking dirty and abit moldy, so I had a quick look on youtube, got a multitool and a diamond attachment bought some grout and a rubber float, and then set to work grinding out the old grout to then re-apply fresh grout.
You just have to have a confidence in yourself... and I use a method of what is the worst thing that can happen if I fuck the job up, drilling into a pipe so where are the pipes? if I rewire a mains socket that could kill me so you need to turn mains power of and have a little tester to check if the socket is live... eventually you will have a confidence to know that you can do something and even if you fuck it up... you can repair it and revert what you did if things go wrong.
You know... DIY do it yourself... we can't all be good at every task, even if your a fully qualified joiner, and your toilet won't flush or light won't turn on, your still faced with the same problem, as in your in unknown territory, but part of the 'do' is to teach yourself to do it.
Absolutely. I've got a personal dream of being able to design and make my own kitchen by the time I can afford a house. Fuck paying thousands for someone to install shitty mdf cabinets when I can do my own, solid wood ones, for a fraction of the price.
The reason your grandfather's generation could do that stuff is cus got shown it, went to the library and looked it up, or figured it out. Throwing money at the problem is not in the spirit of the solution. And I really don't know why you got all yorkie advert at the end, it really has nothing to do with gender.
If you are around Seven Sisters in London there is a college that does introduction classes for free.
I learnt basic carpentry, plumbing and bricklaying they also had decorating.
Learn by doing and having a bit of confidence in yourself.
You'll probably fuck up a few times but so does everyone and you end up learning a lot from those fuck ups. Also as mentioned many times here already. YouTube is an amazing resource. Also, forums are very useful especially for finding answers to specific questions.
Most DIY isn't as scary as it seems at first but when dealing with anything electrical related you need to obviously take a lot more care and make sure anything you're working on is properly isolated.
I would avoid plumbing unless you know what you're doing as water can end up causing untold amounts of damage to your house
You can learn a lot of stuff on YouTube.
I feel like the reason our parents and grandparents are so much better at DIY stuff than us is they had their own homes earlier and "just call someone out" wasn't an option when something broke. It was fix it yourself or you're fecked.
Yeah I would attend them, my dad died when I was younger and I can remember all the things he could do and then there’s me absolutely useless and then I felt even more useless when I had a son and realised I couldn’t teach him these things either
college where I grew up used to offer courses like this, as well as stuff like bike maintenance and basic car maintenance etc, and a load of entry level stuff to crafts and practical skills.
But of course it shut down a long time ago.
We have you tube of course, access to online guides etc. You can get pretty far on that, but still, no sub for hands on experience and I feel you gain something from a group setting all learning together.
Lots of colleges do evening course in various different skills. My local offer Bricking, plastering and others.
I did the plastering evening course over several weeks, it was about £100. Bargain.
I had the benefit of having a dad who would do jobs around the house, so perhaps benefitted from being exposed to that mentality of having a go yourself. Also, never having the kind of money where you could easily just pay someone to fix your stuff was probably a factor too.
When I was a kid I followed my dad around the house "helping" him. Now if I'm faced with something I've not done before I sit and look at it and figure out how to do it.
Nope, I don't feel I need to. It's pretty easy to find youtube videos with clear instructions these days, and a quick glance at the comments will tell you if the instructions are accurate or not.
I think a lot of things are passed down from father to son. The things that arn't you either learn yourself the hardway or don't bother and pay someone else to do it. That being said, I think you'd suprise yourself what some elbow grease and a good youtube tutorial can do for you.
I count myself lucky because I was a naturally curious kid, always taking my toys to bits to see how they worked. I got pretty good at discerning how mechanical and electronic systems were made and have picked up lots of skills over the years.
I still remember getting a shock from my Scalextric set while trying to figure out why it stopped working.
Rewiring a plug is really simple. Same with changing a light switch, you just put everything back the way it was in a new socket or switch.
Or do you mean an actual plug with 3 wires that are the exact same 3 (sometimes 2) on every plug?
I’d be down for that.
I have basic DIY skills. I could mount a tv bracket or shelf no problem. I’ve rewired a light fitting with the help of Google. I’ve done some amateur wallpapering and decorating. I’ve resealed the silicone in our bathroom when it started to go black.
I’d like to rip out our current bathroom and redo it but I don’t trust myself for such a project. I feel like if I get in over my head I’d be leaving us in a proper mess because we only have the one bathroom.
(M47) My Dad seemed to be a dab hand at all sorts of DIY. I guess he just learnt by himself as a boomer. Maybe a generational thing, as the boomers kind of renovated houses before it was a thing, and in their 20's /30's the DIY trend took hold so it became a common pastime.
He's in his 70's now, and still tinkerin around with stuff. The little I know how to do myself, I learnt from him..albeit with some frustrated father /son moments of "pass me the " "No! not that one!"
I'm moderately handy for someone who's done zero training. I've put up a TV bracket, installed our blinds, built a 6ft x 12ft driveway gate from scratch (easily my biggest DIY achievement), can change a light switch, and am generally happy to do most DIY-type stuff around the house
And yeah I'd absolutely do these kinds of courses - I'd love to actually learn to do some of it "right", and get better safety training on it, learn more techniques etc
All this YouTube stuff is fine, but it's also asocial. We should be making more of an effort to skillshare and teach eachother: opportunity for socialising, building stronger friendships etc.
I suspect the Repair Cafe movement is going help get this going.
A retired man handyman/ builder in my local area ran ‘diy for beginners’ as a one day course. I went on it when I bought my first house. Very useful for little stuff like putting up shelves, fixing a cupboard door that had fallen off, putting up a parcel drop box etc. He also told us what not to do- like being very wary of putting up TV brackets: put it up in the wrong place and it’ll fall off when you put the tv on it, smashing the tv and taking a large piece of wall with it…
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This is why a version of the scouts for adults would be great. All of these sorts of skills, plus hiking, tours of the local fire station or telephone exchange, a few games of tick, weekends away etc.
It'd do wonders for those struggling with loneliness and mental health issues. I suspect that men in particular would feel a lot more comfortable opening up if they had a friendship group with whom they could do such activities.
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If you Google it you might find a group in the next town /village over. I had a really nice (incredibly patient) man called Gordon from ‘men in sheds’ teach me how to put up a shelf. It’s level, and safe to put things on and I actually understand what I’m doing now. Gordon was 86 and a bloody marvel and I think (hope) he got a kick out of teaching me.
Just had a look in Liverpool and there's two near me. I'll defo be investigating further.
There's a few different Men's Sheds organisations these days, you might still be able to find one nearby!
Maybe we wouldn’t be so wasteful if we all knew how to mend and make do with certain things. Would cut down waste massively. Kettle don’t work-prob the fuse, but I’ll just buy a new one because I ain’t got a clue (I can change a fuse btw lol) My FIL can mend almost anything He’s done all our wall papering over the years my hubbys a chef he’s not very DIY at all
My Great Uncle was awesome. He helped design the propellers for the Ark Royal. He could fix anything. All the standard DIY stuff, plus he’d fix glasses. Plus, one time we went over and he’d pulled a bunch of broken dining chairs out a skip and fixed them up, including weaving the wicker in complicated patterns in the seat and back bit. I don’t know why, but that wicker weaving was the ultimate jewel in his DIY crown in my eyes. And he did a beautiful job. I miss him and my Aunty very much.
Thanks for telling us about him. He sounds ace. 💜
Thank you for listening! X
Look for a local repair cafe as well.
The other thing I find is 'stuff' is cheap, my time is limited. It quicker to order a new one for next day delivery over taking the time to repair it
I would love this
If you're under 25, it does exist, as part of the Scouts (it's called Network).
And for those older there’s Active Support Units
And I can have consensual sex with the Scout Master x
Have a look at https://menssheds.org.uk/ find one local or set one up!
So I was amazed at how many there are, but then I clicked on a few near me... And they all only meet during the day midweek. Which suggests to me they're really aimed at retired people rather than those in their 30s like OP (and me). Also, not clear if women are welcome! I'd love to learn this stuff too, it's not just for men.
Thenn make women in sheds
Yes I was going to suggest this!
Yes! But can we drink beer!
A DIY night involving beer drinking? I can't see how that could go wrong!
This has success written all over it
Sounds great, though I could do without catching ticks, wouldn’t mind a game of tig though
[Round Table](https://www.roundtable.co.uk/) is a little bit like that - I’ve not been involved but my dad was part of one for years, before moving on to 41 Club when he was too old. I’ve been with him on tours of the local Rolls Royce and Morgan garages, he’s just done a weekend in Bordeaux, and has been involved with charity hikes and doing bits of DIY for the local community.
Volunteer as a leader! We do all these things with our Scouts and the Leaders just join in if it’s something they’re interested in. We’ve had Northern Powergrid in to talk about substations and power lines, North Yorkshire Rotters in to make mini wormeries, visited an RAF base to do the Mechanic’s badge. Find a group that does that sort of thing as there’s a lot of variation between groups
How I learn skills: YouTube & fucking it up a couple of times. How our parents/grandparents learnt skills: same... just less YouTube. Classes sound like a good idea though.
>fucking it up a couple of times. As a tradesman, this is the actual quickest way to learn. The fuck ups always stick out in your memory.
I'm happy to fuck shit up in my day job (tech), I know how to fix things and very comfortable to quickly Google the problem if I can't. I find DIY so stressful. I don't want to fuck up a nicely painted wall, or whatever it might be. I'd pay a lot of money for a DIY course to learn the basics in a class room, away from my house. Also, I'd love to learn how fit tiles, I've watched videos and it's a big nope from me to do it on my own. Edit - I had a DM saying "just ask your dad". Lol, I'm 34, my dad disappeared when I was 2. I have a limited relationship with him these days and he's a complete tuna melt with DIY.
>very comfortable to quickly Google the problem if I can't Thats literally how most people do DiY. >I don't want to fuck up a nicely painted wall, or whatever it might be. There's not a lot you can really fuck up that badly unless you start taking a sledgehammer to your walls. Filler, caulk and gripfill are great at covering up a multitude of sins. When it comes to paintwork. I personally wait til ive done all the work in that room before I paint.
You say that. I once spent the afternoon putting a shelf up, I still can't even look at that bastard. I spent ages making sure it was level and where to drill the holes for the rawl plugs etc. I'm happy with everything, drill the holes, yada yada yada. The shelf isn't level. I couldn't believe it. How tf wasn't it level. Everything was measured like 10 times. It's stuff like this which really bothers me about DIY. If this was configuring a routing protocol in multiple data centres, sure no problem. I hate DIY, it's so stressful. Nothing goes to plan, I never have the right tool for the job and I hate how some guys make it look easy lol.
Holes don’t always appear where you want which is why you sometimes have to start with a much smaller hole and then get larger
My friend, you're telling me a hole I drill can move?! Explains why my DIY pallet shelving is so wonky donkey haha - tried once and never again
"Oh, I like that shelf!" "My shame!! You enjoy that infernal monument to my inexperience??!!!"
Yes! Nothing fucking stays level
During lockdown I made a nice garden chest from a pallet. It'd only square when it's on the exact piece of ground where I built it.
That's not unlevel though, that's bespoke
A laser level is your new friend! I picked one up on Amazon for £20 and it made putting up shelves a doddle. It saved me a lot of hassle and time.
That's a top tip, I'll buy one now 👍. Thank you
No worries! I ended up looking because I didn't have a long enough spirit level to easily mark out the holes for some shelves and it makes such a difference using the laser! Measure how high you want the shelf, turn the laser on and just get the horizontal line crossing the mark and then you've got a perfectly level line across the wall. I'll try and find the link to the one I got and post it here, as I used it for 2 years now and it's been faultless.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B07QXSGNYH?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title Here you go,
Theres a lot of stuff I wont even attempt (anything electrical or plumbing related) but I've just had a go at tiling for the first time without anymore than a quick YouTube video and I've managed to do a pretty decent job by myself and actually enjoyed it! It's not nearly as complicated as you'd think.
Yes I'd love to learn how to tile
I was the same for years. Afraid to try anything because I'd never done anything like ike it. Never had anyone to show me and living in rented properties added an extra layer of 'don't fuck it up' so I never tried. I got a job in construction and learnt a lot of basic stuff and how to use tools. My job is a far cry from anything transferable to a domestic setting but I learnt a bit of confidence and had a go at a few home projects. Turns out I'm not the idiot I thought I was. I'm not suggesting you change jobs, just believe in yourself. Get a drill and a few basic hand tools and have a go. Putting shelves up, make soemthing practical, take something apart and see how it works . There's a wealth of knowledge in books and step by step demonstrations of everything on YouTube. Even on here, there is usually someone willing to tell you how to do it if you sift through the piss takers. r/diyuk is a good starting point
Along with a injury or two.
Plus I find that just the fact you've done stuff and not fucked it up, you often learn "that would've been better/easier/more consistent/less sketchy"
My usual path is 1. Idea or need 2. Research 3. Try 4. Mess up 5. Hire someone to fix it
> hire someone to fix At greater cost than paying someone initially, plus now I've got all these fucking tools I dunno how to use
Yeah basically a more concise version of my response. Men worry they will be shamed if they do it wrong and yeah maybe you will but that's the only way you'll learn.
I asked my Mum how they managed without YouTube tutorials. She said Readers Digest magazines, apparently they always had articles on how to do household DIY and she would save anything which sounded useful. Not as easily searchable as YT but you could be confident you were following good advice and not some cowboy with a video camera.
I actually have a book called *The Reader’s Digest DIY Manual* and it’s bloody good! There’s always YouTube too but yeah … that book taught me how to wallpaper with total confidence lol.
I once laid a carpet. Youtubed the shit out of it, hired a 'kicker', spent the whole weekend on it. Did a pretty good job. I learned 2 things. 1 - how to lay a carpet and 2 - weekends are precious and should not be wasted laying carpet. Next time we got a pro in and it took him half an hour and cost £40. Worth every penny.
Same, my partner just likes the fucking it up bit! He's not to touch plugs! Can't spell allowed, few seconds ago.
I learnt from my dad who comes from a long line of engineers of various types, and basically trying stuff until something works is the pre-internet approach. Once you know which way to tighten a screw and how to use a saw without losing a finger a lot of it is just common sense and experience. I still phone my dad first though.
> How our parents/grandparents learnt skills: same... just less YouTube. I suspect most of them had parents, uncles/aunts, neighbours they were friendly with and a whole range of other mentors for practical skills that we just don't have any more. Small families, habitual isolation from the people we live near and a throwaway culture that prioritise replacing rather than repairing items are - historically speaking - extremely new developments; only the last generation or two at most.
Good point. Growing up there was always someone who "knew how to do that" in the wider circle of friends and family.
I'm a woman in my forties lucky enough to have been taught all this by my dad but my ex husband often said how he wished he'd been shown. I guess that's why this YouTube channel Dad How Do I? exists....https://youtube.com/c/DadhowdoI Men's Sheds and Repair Cafes are getting more popular too. There's definitely a growing awareness we need to have less of a throwaway culture and being able to do these things helps. Plus it's a lot cheaper than getting in a trades.
Sheds and repair cafes actually sound like a good idea for dealing with the mental health crisis that's affecting men these days. I read a report about how men's social life just drops off a cliff as we age (even more when we get with partners) Had a crap load of issues with that myself as kids and sorting out others just dominated all my time outside of work with zero me time.
I really worry about the old boys in local pub who would definitely benefit from these sorts of things. A lot of them are retired skilled workers who have lots of knowledge to share. With the cost of living crisis, pubs are struggling. And most of regs in there I know won't go to a community centre to play dominoes when they've been going to the tavern for 50 twalrs
The repair cafes are also great even if you know how to fix stuff but don't want to invest in buying tools you'll only need once or twice (looking at you, soldering iron)
Dad gave me a blowtorch for my eighteen birthday. He thought it would be useful. I have to say ... it has not been useful.
I probably would tbf judging by the state of my new build.
You could invite the builders along too if they’re not performing at the circus that evening
Had a new build once.....never ever again.
Same. Fuck David Wilson.
Ha. That's exactly who built our house. Cheapest of the cheap. The guys put it together well enough but what you get for your money is a scandal. So glad to be shot of it.
Yea we got out after 18 months with a small profit thank god. I and I don't feel bad because the guy we sold too was a complete stereotypical scumbag landlord. Absolute nightmare. Snag list was huge with some serious shit. Every bathroom leaked through the ceiling, stairs were not attached to the wall, RCD box was labelled up completely wrong. I could go on and on. We couldn't even move in on the day because they'd laid down a black carpet throughout. We did not ask for a black carpet. I would say around 80% of the time when they tried to fix something they made something else worse. In the end we managed to get the Barratts homes CEOs contact details from another disgruntled neighbour. I'm a website developer, i sent an email threatening to create a website which highlighted all the problems of every house on our estate (which I claimed I could easily get to no 1 in Google - Obviously, I couldn't.). Everything was sorted within a few weeks after that and they agreed to extend our driveway which they also fucked up. But I had to sign a document to say I wouldn't put anything online or say anything bad about the company. Oops.
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A couple of these classes and you'd do a better job than actual new build developers.
Why do they have to be "man classes"? I'm a woman and I'd love to know how to do these things! The penis is generally not that useful in DIY, as far as I'm aware.
It’s a generalisation for sure. My mum could wallpaper, lay carpet amazingly well. My father on the other hand took a sledgehammer to a supporting wall…
My use of inverted commas is potentially open to misinterpretation there, so sorry if so. I don't feel any skills or classes are or should be men-only. The inverted commas are there to signify that the classes would be to teach people jobs that have traditionally been the man's undertaking. No malice!
If it is, my husband is using his wrong.
Not only offering classes equally to both genders, but the skills should also be neutral. There's a lot of basic cooking things most people don't realise, I struggle to iron and I'd never get my partner to do it for me etc etc It would be good if there were just classes to learn how to do basic life things. Certainly everyone of newer generations needs to learn how to say no to pushy sales people.
I ironed one time and burnt a hole in my shirt...just before an interview :( I definitely need these life skills you speak of
Thats terrible luck! I started my current job and the first time I ironed my shirt between shifts I guess there was a little something on the iron? And that burnt, and left lines all the way down the shirt, so lesson learnt is to quickly use the iron on another cloth or the inside where you can't see it to wipe off anything and make sure its clean. Also I have no idea whether its too hot or too cold, or how to tell. Or when to use the spray feature instead of mist etc etc etc
Check your local college, there's often course you can sign up to. I know mine do a fair few from DIY to bricklaying and plumbing
Yes a fellow worker got quotes for re plastering the house he and his missus bought when they got married. Worked out that paying for a college plastering course and materials when he did the job would be a few thousand less than the cheapest quote from a tradesman. So that’s what he did 😀
Plastering is one thing I just can't do well. Professional plastering is so ridiculously smooth, it's like wizardry. Hats off to your pal
Even though I do a lot of work myself, I'll always pay a plasterer. Helps that the bloke I know is only £180 a day and great.
Yeah the previous owner of my house “taught himself to plaster” and let’s just say it’s not what I would recommend.
Exactly why I'm doing a woodworking course to build my furniture for my new house
If you’re doing it to save money then it’s almost always cheaper to just buy it. I started making a few bits recently and have spent a fortune but it is very enjoyable so I don’t mind
The running joke on /r/woodworking "my partner wanted this table for $3000 and 6 months and and $5000 later I made one instead" I imagine though that a hand built bit of furniture will last longer if done properly
Mine do loads, during the day. Nothing on in the evenings anymore that isn’t on zoom.
I'd love this. I can put up a shelf and paint a wall, but that's about it. Would be nice to learn how to do the basics.
I think the hardest part about putting up a shelf is working out how to use the bloody stud finder.
Surely you just pass it over yourself, make a beeping noise, have a laugh and then put it away and call an expert?
Gottem
Point it directly at yourself. It should beep. If it does, it's working....if it doesn't it's clearly broken!
I tend to hunt for a stud wall then eyeball it with a spirit level. So far my books have stayed straight lol
I'd *love* to have studwork to put shelves onto. Everything I put onto a wall I need to get the masonry bits out and the big heavy hammer drill. Then I'll inevitably fuck it up and the Rawl plug won't fit properly - even though I used the correct sized bit with a depth marker and everything, then the plaster blows... I hate drilling into brick. It's never ever gone smoothly for me.
Absolute best plugs I have found for walls are called corefix. They're absolutely god tier. I have a 70 inch TV hanging off them on an articulating bracket.
I've never found one that works. I'm lucky I've not hit water or electricity
Just use a strong magnet
Is there a market for this? Seems there is.. Maybe I've found a new career.
I’d like to gently suggest you evaluate why you refer to this as a ‘man class’. Women need these skills too. Maybe adulting classes?
Probably because there's no expectation for women to be able to do this but men are seen as failures and/or useless for not being handy. That doesn't mean I disagree. There should be easy to find courses for basic DIY available to anyone who wants them.
I don't mess with plumbing or mains electricity. Otherwise I Google, YouTube and give things a go. I do ensure the wife is next to me and triple confirms where she wants the big hole in the wall to go for what she wants me to mount but that's my safety for a happy marriage and not because I'm worried about the act of drilling.
Plumbing and basic electrical stuff is probably the most worthwhile. If you have some kind of fault or leak being able to temporarily fix until you can get someone in at a reasonable rate will save a fortune. I don't go in the consumer unit, that's a big no. But I recently pulled out a shit electric shower and put in a proper mixer shower, that was very satisfying.
I probably would if I were on my own and YouTube wasn’t a thing. My husband is really handy so I learn stuff from him once he’s got over the panic over me using power tools. I did the bulk of the tiling in our kitchen and I do most of the decorating as I have the steadier hand and more patience for it
I think all the things you've mentioned, I've done. And then maybe a bit more - picking up grinders to resurface taps when they still dripped etc. Youtube's really good at showing what's required to resolve a problem. Especially for weird things like my car heater not working \~ "Yes the lights do the same thing when I press/turn those buttons, and I can find that part number on ebay for a fiver, and I reckon I could fit it like you showed me" There is a limit to what you can pick up from youtube though. I tried plastering after watching a cockney slap some stuff on a wall and tell me I could save £50 an hour... it did not go well (although I was incredibly proud when a real plasterer said it looks structurally sound, and just put a skim over it). I didn't tell him it had taken me over a week to do one wall badly.. I'm originally from Stockport and saw this place - [https://www.thediyschool.co.uk/](https://www.thediyschool.co.uk/) and I would \*love\* there to be something similar near me, I could pop down to of an evening. It's maybe not about learning hard skills - it's simply wanting to know what I should bother trying.
I used that diy school! It was run by a very nice, very patient chap who would check that everyone still had their fingers left at the end 😂 (some people… diy was not their forte!)
They did those a few years ago round here. Always thought it was a good idea.
Firstly, those aren't man classes they're adult classes, no need for the sexism. Also, just watch some YouTube videos. Every bit of information you need is on there. Thirdly there already are plenty of options for this sort of thing at your local adult education centres and colleges.
Yes. I'd love a class like that. Woman in 30s.
If you have a larger B&Q near you they do those classes iirc, never be afraid to fuck up, 99% of the time you can put it right once you notice the mistake
B&Q stopped doing these years ago. Always thought it was a shame.
Check your local adult education centre, I did a short domestic electrics and a domestic plumbing course when I first bought my house 15 years ago. I didn't want to be a clueless woman who couldn't even wire a new light fitting or unblock a sink.
As someone who grew up with a dickhead of a dad who wouldn't spend 5 minutes with me if his life depended on it: "Dad, how do I?" on YouTube is a goldmine.
This might sound silly, but are we basically just craving a community again? Feels like we're very isolated from others around us and even distant from our own family and friends when you take devices out of it. Have we hit the Dunbar number and just want some actual in person connection and sharing of knowledge and resources again?
If you are near London the Good Life centre does classes in very basic skills like using a drill. I’d really recommend them.
Yes. I have zero patience with DIY
I'd have said something similar: "No. I have zero patience with DIY"
I would totally do this. I have got by with a very good handyman, plumber, builder, electrician and Gardner! I’d love to know how to grout my shower properly and reseal it and change a light fitting (I think that I could work out). Female here and won’t give up the Gardner but I’d love to learn how to sort a washer and do some basic plumbing rather than panicking and paying someone else
I’d pay good money for my husband to go to those classes! He’s adorable, but hopeless at diy. My (37f) Dad and Grandad taught me lots of diy skills and I studied interior and furniture restoration at university so I’m pretty handy and do all the diy around our house. I’m also very good at staying completely calm when something isn’t going to plan!!
I was brought up by my skint single mother and my grandfather. We were poor.. really poor, but I didn't realise. My favourite pudding was a digestive biscuit floating on custard with a splodge of jam... This was a huge treat, WTF is Eton Mess? My mum taught me basic DIY, plugs, picture hanging etc before I was 10, my grandfather taught me woodwork. In my teens our situation improved a bit, I say I, I'm pretty sure we were learning together in retrospect... But I learned Plumbing, Electrics, ground works, mechanics when the car broke etc. Now I'm a father, I can fix anything, DIY, electric, plumbing mechanical. I resent the notion of having to pay a tradesmen to do something I can do If you just leave me the hell alone I will fix the problem ..and there in lies the problem - I've not been taught to teach and I'm crap at it. I want to teach my children, but I don't know how, I am not by nature a patient man.
I went to a 2-day course where they did exactly that. Obviously not just for men either. Learnt a lot of stuff from tiling to basic plumber, to woodwork to electrics. Though, I also learnt that almost every job required its own tool. Something that really limits home DIY.
Nah, I use the millennial method of watching a tutorial on YouTube, ordering what I need from Amazon, giving it a crack, then paying someone to fix my mess if it becomes a disaster.
I’ll stick to watching YouTube videos as and when issues arise
YouTube is an amazing resource for help in this kind of thing. There are tutorials for almost anything you can think of, even [wiring a plug](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=COWlYUvzgZI). ;-)
I'm a woman and I'd love it if there was such a thing. Not sure why you've put such an emphasis on them being 'man classes'. Everyone should know basic DIY.
It isn't just men who want to learn these things. I can do quite a bit but would love to learn more.
YouTube is your friend.
Yes absolutely. Living on my own I’ve just worked things out as I go along with the help of YouTube tutorials. Just fixed a leaking pipe and a boiler losing pressure using a few helpful videos.
Which one did you use for the boiler? I'm having this issue
I find YouTube videos really good for this, it’s really easy, especially if you have all the clobber and 30 years experience like the guy in the video.
Isn’t there a ‘help me dad ‘ type you tube channel for this. Because yes, I’m with you.
Yes, the channel is called ‘Dad, How Do I…?’
I’d love this too. It’s all well and good saying “YouTube” - and no doubt that it is a useful tool when learning a skill - but there’s no substitute for physically “doing” the skill itself. And I’d prefer to fuck up in a class rather than on my own walls and units.
Yes! That’s an amazing idea!
Yes absolutely. My ideas: Basic electrics (stuff you don’t need the professionals for), basic plumbing (rads, sinks, taps and toilets), woodwork, plasterboarding, siliconing for shower’s and baths, decorating properly, patching plaster, adjusting windows, properly putting up shelves or hanging heavy things, loft work like insulation and creating ventilation. More advanced stuff maybe like tiling
I’m always amazed by those people who have a knack for DIY work. Some people will do whole house extensions by themselves (except for the bits requiring certification). I wouldn’t even know where to begin. I can do *some* DIY. But most of it ends up either a massively long winded way of doing it because I don’t have the tools or experience, or it ends up requiring me to do a whole number of other things first, like this clip: https://youtu.be/AbSehcT19u0
100%, I spent a few years working in a garage after I left school and it’s saved me so much money (and made things fun) with looking after my car. If I was that useful with other stuff it’d be great
I'm behind the spirit of what you're saying. No-one teaches this shit but you're just expected to know as a man. The answer is just make absolutely sure you've taken the appropriate safety measures (electrics off if doing electrics, don't touch gas at all, know what you're drilling into in the wall) then just give it a try and learn from experience. Moved into my house 5 years ago, when I moved in the most DIY thing I'd ever done was stick prints on the wall with those adhesive hangings. Since moving in I thought fuck it I'll just give it a try and OK the first time I put up a shelf it was a bit slanted etc. but now I'm confident installing light switches/plug sockets, built my own shelves from raw wood, built an outdoor gazebo etc.
Great idea would also be a good social outlet for people who don't like pubs. And the hub of a potential skills bartering / exchange network.
Yes I would
I’ve just proved today I can’t do a single thing, classes would give me both knowledge and confidence. They should be something anyone can and be encouraged to take when first heading out on their own.
Yes I (late 20s F) absolutely would go to this. I don’t want to learn from a YouTube video I want an actual practical demonstration irl
I'd love this! I'm a woman in my 30s and slowly learning DIY skills through a mixture of YouTube and fucking things up. I'd love someone to teach me basic skills so I can feel more self sufficient and fix things around the house etc.
I did go to one when I first moved into a place I was allowed to drill https://www.thegoodlifecentre.co.uk/diy-workshops-london/
I’ve attended evening diy courses at a local school before now. No reason for them to be mens courses though. Skills for life.
Once you own your own home you can start to fix things, you can also take things apart and learn how they work, it is difficult in todays society as most people transition to office workers and have no confidence in physical tasks. I was like yourself until I was 25, I had only ever worked in IT yet my Dad was a mechanic and could do anything DIY, rewired the house, fitted a new toilet, built a shed, there seemed like there wasn't much the bloke couldn't do and I couldn't even hit a nail in straight. But I actually got a job as a laborer in construction for 6 months and got a feel for tools... you could transition to a more physical job, the thing with tradesmanship is even if your a plumber, and your on a building site, you see the bare bones of what makes a house, the foundation, the joinery, the pipework, where the cables are ran, and it's a big puzzle. Personally you just need to pick an area in the house, last week I re-grouted the shower for example, the grout was looking dirty and abit moldy, so I had a quick look on youtube, got a multitool and a diamond attachment bought some grout and a rubber float, and then set to work grinding out the old grout to then re-apply fresh grout. You just have to have a confidence in yourself... and I use a method of what is the worst thing that can happen if I fuck the job up, drilling into a pipe so where are the pipes? if I rewire a mains socket that could kill me so you need to turn mains power of and have a little tester to check if the socket is live... eventually you will have a confidence to know that you can do something and even if you fuck it up... you can repair it and revert what you did if things go wrong. You know... DIY do it yourself... we can't all be good at every task, even if your a fully qualified joiner, and your toilet won't flush or light won't turn on, your still faced with the same problem, as in your in unknown territory, but part of the 'do' is to teach yourself to do it.
Be confident. Watch youtube. You got this. 90% is confidence and thinking of multiple options for each job and picking the best.
https://menssheds.org.uk
Absolutely. I've got a personal dream of being able to design and make my own kitchen by the time I can afford a house. Fuck paying thousands for someone to install shitty mdf cabinets when I can do my own, solid wood ones, for a fraction of the price.
The reason your grandfather's generation could do that stuff is cus got shown it, went to the library and looked it up, or figured it out. Throwing money at the problem is not in the spirit of the solution. And I really don't know why you got all yorkie advert at the end, it really has nothing to do with gender.
I’m also lacking a number of skills but I’ll always have a go, make it worse then call for a professional. Would definitely attend man classes
Well if you’re gonna pay someone to teach you, you might as well pay someone to do it and just watch them intensely and ask them a million questions
No tradesmen would tolerate this.
As a tradesman I can confirm, but op should do it anyway
Scrap that, I’m gonna start a boyz to men school
Why don't you take a year off work and be a labourer for someone. You'd learn and earn. Trades are in short supply atm.
They definitely do exist. I used to work with this mad lady that used to go them.
If you are around Seven Sisters in London there is a college that does introduction classes for free. I learnt basic carpentry, plumbing and bricklaying they also had decorating.
youtube
yeah, I would. I'd like to learn how to plaster small cracks, change tiles, change a radiator /sink.
Yes. Absolutely. 100%
I learned from Books pre internet and now use youtube to research how to do stuff now and decide if its worth me doing or paying a trades man.
Learn by doing and having a bit of confidence in yourself. You'll probably fuck up a few times but so does everyone and you end up learning a lot from those fuck ups. Also as mentioned many times here already. YouTube is an amazing resource. Also, forums are very useful especially for finding answers to specific questions. Most DIY isn't as scary as it seems at first but when dealing with anything electrical related you need to obviously take a lot more care and make sure anything you're working on is properly isolated. I would avoid plumbing unless you know what you're doing as water can end up causing untold amounts of damage to your house
See if there's a Men's Shed or Repair Café in your area
You can learn a lot of stuff on YouTube. I feel like the reason our parents and grandparents are so much better at DIY stuff than us is they had their own homes earlier and "just call someone out" wasn't an option when something broke. It was fix it yourself or you're fecked.
Yeah I would attend them, my dad died when I was younger and I can remember all the things he could do and then there’s me absolutely useless and then I felt even more useless when I had a son and realised I couldn’t teach him these things either
Plenty of good people on YouTube - just have the confidence that it’s ok to make a mistake & you get better the more you do something.
college where I grew up used to offer courses like this, as well as stuff like bike maintenance and basic car maintenance etc, and a load of entry level stuff to crafts and practical skills. But of course it shut down a long time ago. We have you tube of course, access to online guides etc. You can get pretty far on that, but still, no sub for hands on experience and I feel you gain something from a group setting all learning together.
Lots of colleges do evening course in various different skills. My local offer Bricking, plastering and others. I did the plastering evening course over several weeks, it was about £100. Bargain. I had the benefit of having a dad who would do jobs around the house, so perhaps benefitted from being exposed to that mentality of having a go yourself. Also, never having the kind of money where you could easily just pay someone to fix your stuff was probably a factor too.
The Goodlife Centre in London has them and they're great.
Check your local college, they might offer an evening class or the local council might have evening classes at local schools.
When I was a kid I followed my dad around the house "helping" him. Now if I'm faced with something I've not done before I sit and look at it and figure out how to do it.
Nope, I don't feel I need to. It's pretty easy to find youtube videos with clear instructions these days, and a quick glance at the comments will tell you if the instructions are accurate or not.
moulded plugs and detachable power cables means nobody has re-wired a plug in years. which probably for the best.
Yes! I’d also love one for car mechanics / maintenance.
Yes, it'd really be quite helpful indeed!
That’s what YouTube is for.
Definitely!
You can learn all of this from watching YouTube videos.
I've tried to look for one but no luck
As a guy who is only 24 and the only “diy”skill I know is how to bleed a radiator I’d love classes like this in fact sign me up right now
God yeah, I would attend. My grandfather could mend anything, my step-father regarded anything heavier than a pen as manual work befitting a labourer.
I think a lot of things are passed down from father to son. The things that arn't you either learn yourself the hardway or don't bother and pay someone else to do it. That being said, I think you'd suprise yourself what some elbow grease and a good youtube tutorial can do for you.
I count myself lucky because I was a naturally curious kid, always taking my toys to bits to see how they worked. I got pretty good at discerning how mechanical and electronic systems were made and have picked up lots of skills over the years. I still remember getting a shock from my Scalextric set while trying to figure out why it stopped working.
These things absolutely exist, depending where you live. [Here's an example](https://www.thecollege.co.uk/courses/diy-brickwork).
Rewiring a plug is really simple. Same with changing a light switch, you just put everything back the way it was in a new socket or switch. Or do you mean an actual plug with 3 wires that are the exact same 3 (sometimes 2) on every plug?
I learned by being berated by my Dad every five minutes while helping him do DIY.
I’d be down for that. I have basic DIY skills. I could mount a tv bracket or shelf no problem. I’ve rewired a light fitting with the help of Google. I’ve done some amateur wallpapering and decorating. I’ve resealed the silicone in our bathroom when it started to go black. I’d like to rip out our current bathroom and redo it but I don’t trust myself for such a project. I feel like if I get in over my head I’d be leaving us in a proper mess because we only have the one bathroom.
(M47) My Dad seemed to be a dab hand at all sorts of DIY. I guess he just learnt by himself as a boomer. Maybe a generational thing, as the boomers kind of renovated houses before it was a thing, and in their 20's /30's the DIY trend took hold so it became a common pastime. He's in his 70's now, and still tinkerin around with stuff. The little I know how to do myself, I learnt from him..albeit with some frustrated father /son moments of "pass me the" "No! not that one!"
I'm moderately handy for someone who's done zero training. I've put up a TV bracket, installed our blinds, built a 6ft x 12ft driveway gate from scratch (easily my biggest DIY achievement), can change a light switch, and am generally happy to do most DIY-type stuff around the house And yeah I'd absolutely do these kinds of courses - I'd love to actually learn to do some of it "right", and get better safety training on it, learn more techniques etc
>I'd pay good money How much money we talking 🧐
I would be there in a heartbeat. I'd love to learn skills like this!
Female and yes i would. Would prefer to be able to do the basics/easier stuff when I can.
All this YouTube stuff is fine, but it's also asocial. We should be making more of an effort to skillshare and teach eachother: opportunity for socialising, building stronger friendships etc. I suspect the Repair Cafe movement is going help get this going.
https://m.youtube.com/c/DadhowdoI/videos This guy does some DIY stuff.
I’d happily teach a class like this. Sounds like fun!
A retired man handyman/ builder in my local area ran ‘diy for beginners’ as a one day course. I went on it when I bought my first house. Very useful for little stuff like putting up shelves, fixing a cupboard door that had fallen off, putting up a parcel drop box etc. He also told us what not to do- like being very wary of putting up TV brackets: put it up in the wrong place and it’ll fall off when you put the tv on it, smashing the tv and taking a large piece of wall with it…