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    How "DIY" Are You?

    We're curious. How many of these things do you do yourself? Try to choose the things you've done or do on a regular basis. If there's something on the list you've never tried, don't select it. Naturally, if I've missed something, please add a post and mention it. thanks

    The goal here if to fine-tune our demographics. FYI

    Note: your username will NOT be be displayed with the results

    Results
    It's worth noting that these results do not necessarily represent the "average" HomeSeer user since the poll is limited to message board users. Message board users (MBUs) are (for the most part) home automation "enthusiasts".

    That said, there are no huge surprises with the results. 3/4 of MBUs install their own light switches, thermostats, security systems and networking hardware. I think it's particularly interesting that 97% of MBUs install their own wall switches, since that may be one of the biggest impediments for widespread home automation adoption.

    As DIY tasks get more mechanically specialized in nature, fewer MBUs participate. The big surprise to me is how comparatively low the oil change number is. I would have bet money that would be higher.

    As mentioned below, I neglected to include changing door locks. I'm going to guess that would have made it to the top 75% though.

    Anyway, thanks to all for playing along.
    Attached Files
    1,144
    I change the oil in my car(s)
    5.24%
    60
    I mow my own lawn
    7.52%
    86
    I take the trash to the dump (if applicable)
    4.98%
    57
    I replace my own wall switches
    8.48%
    97
    I install my own thermostat(s)
    8.04%
    92
    I repair or replace plumbing fixtures
    7.34%
    84
    I install copper or PVC plumbing pipe
    5.59%
    64
    I wall-mount and wire flat screen TVs
    7.52%
    86
    I install audio equipment
    8.22%
    94
    I install replacement windows
    2.97%
    34
    I install networking equipment (routers, switches, Ethernet cabling, etc)
    8.57%
    98
    I install(ed) my own security system
    6.64%
    76
    I paint or wallpaper
    7.34%
    84
    I install flooring
    5.42%
    62
    I work with wood
    6.12%
    70
    Last edited by macromark; October 5, 2015, 07:37 PM.
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    #2
    Oh come on! Give us a challenging question! Something like "when a bone is broken do you set it yourself?".

    In all seriousness, when I was coming to this thread I expected to answer No to a bunch of stuff because I'm neither electronics or code savvy. It seems like most of the really cool DIY stuff people do in HA involves coding. I don't do that. I'm lucky if I can open a web browser and navigate to this here forum on a good day. The stuff listed is the kind of thing I personally do in my sleep. Though I come from a long line of engineers and general can do it folks. Bavarian clock makers. We're all clock makes still. Though my clock is still in the planning stages. If HomeSeer sticks around long enough it will be incorporated. Stay tuned. Think 15 years. But if I were a programmer I would have a LOT more going on here than I currently do. As it stands I have to ride on the coattails of developers and meekly beg for morsels from them. The meanest rub of it all is that all you folks out there who so graciously help me by writing scripts, plugins, software and the like live all over the world so I can't just swing by and return the favor with my personal skill set. So you may want to add some entries to the poll about doing computer jazz. Even if it's something like "Do you build your own work stations?" or "Do you write code more than X amount per week?" or "do you ever build your own circuits?".
    Originally posted by rprade
    There is no rhyme or reason to the anarchy a defective Z-Wave device can cause

    Comment


      #3
      "I install replacement windows"

      Sounds like computer jazz to me

      Comment


        #4
        "I install door locks"... forgot that one.
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          #5
          Yeah here do not change the oil on my automobiles.

          That said I did get 5 year / 100K packages which did do everything including light bulbs / oil changes on the newer vehicles.

          I have always tinkered with the automobiles. Last winter here replaced two belts on a car which wasn't driven much and it was just that the belts were old (13 years old - 30K on car). It was only two belts but had to remove the air box, radiator (partially) and fan. That was time consuming. Once all done and testing a week later shattered the water pump pulley made out of plastic in to a bunch of little pieces. It could have been worse but I was driving only maybe 30 MPH on a little street. That said afterwards did catch some verbiage about the plastic water pulley cracking with time. I took apart the car again (during the winter) and put an aluminium pulley in its place. I took my time with the endeavor doing a bit at a time over a week or so as their were no dependencies on using the vehicle. I am amazed how plug n play the car pieces and build are on this auto mobile. Getting carried away sometimes like painting the brake disk holders such that they look nice via the wheels type of stuff. The hardware was really not expensive (IE: fan belts, pulley) rather it was just the labor and not forgetting to put in a bolt or two back in to place. Concurrently also have modded the base OS of the car with the introduction of a little carpc that does sit on the bus and is seen as just part of the automobile today.

          I did also learn the art of sweating copper pipes putting in a sink in to my garage. I went slow with it. I really didn't need a slop sink in the garage. That said went with a nice commercial style stainless steel one which probably was the most expensive piece of the endeavor.

          I have run in to WAF issues though doing stuff like this and also the hands are automated a bit and slowing down lately.

          IE: using the dishwasher to wash home HVAC air filters that I use in the air cleaner system for the HVAC. I do a hot swap of multiple spares and just wash them between uses. (well every month) or washing my rags in the washing machine or using the oven to bake a circuit board (smells a bunch).
          Last edited by Pete; October 3, 2015, 10:38 AM.
          - Pete

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          Comment


            #6
            I embraced DIY many years ago because I simply didn't have any money to pay others to do things for me. Even as a college student, I was so cash-poor that I passed up most of the college activities (like seeing Sting and the Police for just $5 during their "Roxanne" tour). In fact, during those years, I learned how to cut my own hair from a book I couldn't afford to buy... skimmed it at the bookstore. Fortunately, there are no photos from my first attempt!

            Today, I still change my own oil; not because I have to, but because I want to. If I do it myself, I know it'll be done right and I get a small kick out of doing a job well, or out of trying something new that I didn't know I could do before (like replacing the main bearing in my Neptune front loading washer - had to actually rent a tool for that one!)

            I do, however, pay one of my kids to cut the grass now. But, if I can talk my wife into letting me get a lawn tractor, well... we'll see!
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              #7
              In the old college apartment (3-4 of us) we had a cat and really no social life. I do recall one day holding the cat and lighting an old stove; turning on the gas; getting interrupted and then lighting the stove get blown up and over to the sink across from the stove. The cat and I were singed (all of the hair on my face and one side of the cat). We were in a saving mode of trying to cook in. IE: did orange duck one day pouring a quart of orange juice on a duck and cooking the duck. Well it didn't really come out right such that it was a waste of a duck.
              - Pete

              Auto mator
              Homeseer 3 Pro - 3.0.0.548 (Linux) - Ubuntu 18.04/W7e 64 bit Intel Haswell CPU 16Gb
              Homeseer Zee2 (Lite) - 3.0.0.548 (Linux) - Ubuntu 18.04/W7e - CherryTrail x5-Z8350 BeeLink 4Gb BT3 Pro
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              HS4 Pro - V4.1.18.1 - Ubuntu 22.04 / Lenova Tiny M900 / 32Gb Ram
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              X10, UPB, Zigbee, ZWave and Wifi MQTT automation-Tasmota-Espurna. OmniPro 2, Russound zoned audio, Alexa, Cheaper RFID, W800 and Home Assistant

              Comment


                #8
                Eh, I guess I DIY a lot.

                I tend to do my own plumbing repairs. Sweating copper is just like soldering wire for the most part and I have been tinkering with electronics for 30 years. I just fixed our water heater a few weeks ago. Also have replaced our furnace controller, and one blower motor. I have installed various things, and redone bathrooms. Replaced both garage door openers, changing them over to quiet belt driven models. To me, this is just part of owning a house and I don't consider it DIY, but I guess it is. I hate to pay someone to do something that I can do myself if I have the time to spare.

                What I consider DIY more are some of the electronic things I build or hack. I guess a few of them are in old threads here.

                Comment


                  #9
                  Originally posted by Pete View Post
                  In the old college apartment (3-4 of us) we had a cat and really no social life. I do recall one day holding the cat and lighting an old stove; turning on the gas; getting interrupted and then lighting the stove get blown up and over to the sink across from the stove. The cat and I were singed (all of the hair on my face and one side of the cat). We were in a saving mode of trying to cook in. IE: did orange duck one day pouring a quart of orange juice on a duck and cooking the duck. Well it didn't really come out right such that it was a waste of a duck.
                  LOL!!! Pls tell us you took some polaroids of the singed Pete n Cat

                  Btw, imho HomeSeer should do an annual HA-fest/camp where HS users are gathered to show off their projects and do a code-jam type of competition where they're provided with raw parts and materials and try to come up with new and interesting ways to combine and use them
                  HW: HS3 w/ Win8.1 on ASRock C2550d4i. Digi AnywhereUSB, Hubport, Edgeport, UZB, Z-trollers, PLCBUS, SONOS, GC-100, iTach IP2SL, WF2IR, IP2IR, RFXtrx433, Harmony Hubs, Hue, Ademco Vista 128BP, NetAtmo, NetAtmo Welcome

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                  Comment


                    #10
                    Never been much of a DIY'er in the past, but that's been slowly changing over the last several months and I've been enjoying it. I can thank my interest in home automation for changing that. And my interest in home automation only took off recently due moving into a newly built house 9 months ago. Previously, I had been renting and living in apartments my whole life and so was very limited in what things I could do.

                    One of the things that our builder was including in new construction was a Nexia Home Intelligence starter kit with a pre-installed Schlage z-wave dead bolt, a Trane z-wave thermostat, and a lamp module. I only had to setup the hub. I had a lot of fun with it, but knew I wouldn't want to stick to that platform knowing that it would come with a monthly subscription after the 1yr complimentary subscription expired. So that's what spurred my research into platforms and automation in general.

                    We have a small counter top in the mud room, combined with a couple power outlets, and designed as a 'device charging station'. One of my first DIY attempts was to replace on of those outlets with one that had USB ports built in. When I pulled out the original and saw what appeared to be a lot more wires then there were connections on the replacement, I got a bit nervous and backed out. Tossed the replacement in a drawer for a few months and decided to wait until I had some idea of what I was doing. A few months later, and after a lot of reading internet tutorials, watching youtube videos, and reading books on how circuits works, I ended up replacing about 45 light switches, 15 outlets, 4 dead bolts, a garage door opener, and a lot of other things that I would have hired an electrician or contractor to do in the past.

                    The one thing I still shy away from is anything that involves cutting into the house. Especially considering it's a bran new house which makes me even more worried about screwing something up. For example, I recently hired someone to run 4 ethernet cables from the basement to exterior locations for security cameras. I usually spend a lot of time reading articles and watching videos on how to do this stuff myself so that I at least know what the process is, but ultimately end up letting a professional handle it due to my lack of experience. However, I cut a couple holes in our deck recently, to install a couple grommets for an extension cord to get power on the other side of the deck without stringing an extension cord across the top. Baby steps...

                    Comment


                      #11
                      have done:
                      Car Brakes
                      Remove and reinstall a kitchen
                      Tile , hardwood , laminate flooring
                      Wood working
                      3d printing
                      laser cutting
                      sewing
                      plumbing
                      coding
                      diy electronics (arduino etc)
                      soldering
                      cooking
                      painting
                      security install
                      locks
                      5000+ ft of wiring
                      CCTV
                      Drywall

                      basically most jobs that don't require very specialized knowledge or expensive hardware todo.

                      project info here: https://www.facebook.com/RaptorsIrrationalInventions
                      Last edited by Raptor; October 5, 2015, 10:59 AM.
                      HS3 Pro on Windows 8 64bit
                      53 Z-wave nodes(46 devices, 7 remotes), 15 DS10a's, 10 ms16a's, 9 Oregon Sensors, W800, RFXCOMtrx433, Way2Call, 3 HSTouch Clients, 2xRussound CAS44, Global Cache GC100-12,10 Rollertrol blinds(+ zwave) ,3 Squeezebox Radios and 1 Squeezebox Boom,DMX Arduino via ethernet,Rain8Net,3x Echo Dot's


                      Check out my electronics blog here:
                      https://www.facebook.com/RaptorsIrrationalInventions

                      Comment


                        #12
                        I've done most of these, but generally just don't enjoy working on my car so don't do it. Anything to do with my house I have done. And If I haven't I try to learn how. I like doing a project where I can buy new tools. and I can justify it because the savings in doing it myself covers the costs of those tools. I may hire someone on a bigger project just because I need it done quickly, but if it is not an urgent matter, I will do it myself.

                        I haven done replacement windows, and wood floors, but not in my own house, so said no to those.

                        could add Security Cameras and Central Vac System.

                        Comment


                          #13
                          I don't expect the percentages to change but would be nice to get and even 100 respondents. Anyone else want to take a whack at it?
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                            #14
                            I do most on that list, dad taught me to try everything, but last month one of my water heaters ruptured and i called my plumber. the waterheater itself is a breeze but being in the attic on third floor gave my pause. That is hell to get it down and outside.
                            Mark, back in 82 (i think) my first concert was The Police, you missed out, a great old memory.

                            John

                            Comment


                              #15
                              Yup first concert here was Woodstock in 1969........it was free...just a little levity Mark...
                              - Pete

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                              Homeseer 3 Pro - 3.0.0.548 (Linux) - Ubuntu 18.04/W7e 64 bit Intel Haswell CPU 16Gb
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                              X10, UPB, Zigbee, ZWave and Wifi MQTT automation-Tasmota-Espurna. OmniPro 2, Russound zoned audio, Alexa, Cheaper RFID, W800 and Home Assistant

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