Should I DIY?
If you are wondering if you should attempt to make your own concrete countertops, you have come to the right place! Initially, I had no idea that you could do your own concrete countertops. Just three years ago I didn’t know you could DIY countertops at all! So, I have looked back at the concrete projects, including the kitchen countertops, to help you decide if making your own concrete countertops is something you are ready to try. We are going to look at:
- The skills involved
- The tools involved
- The creative process
- Being a project manager
- The money you are going to save
The Skills Involved to Make Concrete Countertops
First, if you are wondering if this is a beginner DIY project, the answer is no. There are skill sets that are needed to do this project that a beginner DIYer may not have. For example, knowing how to level concrete, understanding what tools are involved and how to use them, and the labor intensiveness of the project are just some of the things you need to know. Before Andy and I began making our countertops we had done countless DIY projects working with concrete that helped us get the skills that would be required. If you have no prior DIY knowledge, maybe concrete countertops should not be your first attempt. However, there are plenty of smaller DIY concrete projects you could start with to gain the skills you need to eventually tackle doing your own concrete countertops.
The Tools Involved for the Project
Next, you need to think about the tools involved in this project. You will need quite a few tools to successfully make concrete countertops. In addition, you will need to know how to use them. You will need tools to cut the edging, piece the edging, mix the concrete, plus trowels and surface smoothers, just to name a few. It seems like a big expense to purchase tools that you don’t already own and may not use again. Weighing the cost of the tools in the price of making the countertops, we ultimately discovered that the cost of making our own countertops was still much less expensive than going with other countertop options.
The DIY Creative Process
There is a lot of creativity that goes into a project like this. You need a clear vision of what you want before you begin. You will need to research and design. In our course we go into detail to walk you through this part of the project. You can look at our Pinterest board to get ideas!
Being a Project Manager
Most importantly, in a project like this you need a project manager. Someone who will, from start to finish, go through and figure out the processes, materials, tools, skill sets and money required to complete the project. You don’t want to have to run out to buy a bag of concrete in the middle of mixing it or go way over budget because you didn’t plan well. While we didn’t know exactly what we were doing, having never done a concrete project this large, we are both organized and made a checklist based on the different projects and research that we had done. Then Andy and I divided the tasks based on our personal skills to successfully complete the project. We have developed many tools to help you with this step, which you can learn more about by signing up for our email list.
Make Own Concrete Countertops and Save Money
Finally, we will look at the question of how much money you will save doing your own concrete countertops. Countertops are expensive. When we were doing our kitchen, we wanted traditional looking countertops. We priced both quartz and granite. We found that, even including the tools, we saved three or four thousand dollars by doing our own concrete countertops. That is huge! In fact, had we used a professional to do our concrete countertops, it would have been more than both quartz and granite. Clearly, this project is great for getting beautiful countertops at a significant savings.
While making your own concrete countertops is not a beginner DIY project, it is certainly one that can be done. We have created numerous supply lists, check lists, videos and other information to get you from planning to finishing your own concrete countertops. We have combined them into one of our courses. You can learn more about our courses by getting onto our mailing list, located below. When you sign up for our mailing list you will get our Ultimate Home Improvement Checklist, information about our upcoming webinar and early bird specials for our courses.
Here’s to saving more so you can do more! Have an awesome day,
Sandy
