Interest in home improvement and DIY boomed in the UK in the 1990s thanks to TV programmes such as Changing Rooms and a surging housing market. This, in turn, led to the opening of more DIY stores nationwide, giving millions of people the tools and knowledge they needed to undertake DIY home improvement projects.

According to a report published by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) in 2011, UK consumers spend around £27 billion a year on home improvements, maintenance and repairs, covering “a wide range of internal and external services such as plumbing, kitchens and bathrooms, decorating, roofing and guttering.

So it’s no secret that the Britain is a nation filled with DIY enthusiasts. The country is unique in its approach to home improvement and values it highly as a nation to not only add value to a property but to also enhance a look of a home or garden.

With 59% of people saying they were happy to take on DIY projects themselves, DIY is no longer the sole domain for men as 25% of women (ages between 25-22) said they would be happy to undertake a DIY project themselves and 49% of women would be happy to use power tools. 33% of Brits will/have spent more the an £500 on DIY this year alone, thus proving the love affair between home owner and home improvements.

With such a passion and sometimes love for DIY in the UK, projects don’t always go to plan, with more than 200,000 people ending up in hospital each year from DIY accidents – 80,000 of these injuries were reportedly open wound injuries!

There are many projects UK consumers undertake themselves instead of hiring a professional; painting, hanging new curtains and blinds, changing a door handle and putting up shelf’s are just some of the most commonly self-completed DIY projects.

Even though Brits do well to add value to their properties any way they can the top 10 ways to add value to their homes are not projects they could or even should consider even attempting themselves:

Infographic Source: http://www.polesdirect.com/blog/attitudes-values-a-visual-guide-to-diy/