{"id":8629,"date":"2026-02-19T10:17:40","date_gmt":"2026-02-19T10:17:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.mrlender.com\/blog\/?p=8629"},"modified":"2026-02-19T10:19:46","modified_gmt":"2026-02-19T10:19:46","slug":"save-money-easy-diy-jobs-home","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mrlender.com\/blog\/save-money-easy-diy-jobs-home\/","title":{"rendered":"Save Money by Doing Easy DIY Jobs at Home"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-8641 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.mrlender.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/DIY-Blog-Image-3.png\" alt=\"A lady is getting her paint ready to start redecorating her kitchen.\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\" style=\"text-align: center;\">Because the weather has been so bad lately, we\u2019re all spending more time indoors. When you\u2019re at home more, you start to notice little problems that you may have ignored before, the scuffed walls in the hallway, the tap that keeps dripping, or the cupboard door that never shuts properly.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\" style=\"text-align: center;\">Instead of ignoring them, this could be the perfect time to fix them. Doing small DIY jobs now can help save money later. Here are some simple ideas from Mr Lender to help you be smart with money at home.<\/p>\n<table class=\"tg\" style=\"border-collapse: collapse; border-spacing: 0;\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"font-size: 16px; padding: 10px 5px; overflow: hidden; word-break: normal; background-color: #ffffff; color: #000000; vertical-align: middle; border: 1px solid white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif !important; text-align: center;\" colspan=\"2\">\n<h3 style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #d72329;\">STOP DRAUGHTS AND SAVE ON <\/span><span style=\"color: #d72329;\">HEATING<br \/>\n<\/span><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-8643 \" src=\"https:\/\/www.mrlender.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Door-Breeze-2.png\" alt=\"Door with a breeze coming through it\" width=\"304\" height=\"244\" \/><\/h3>\n<p class=\"p1\">If you can feel cold air coming in around doors or windows, warm air is escaping. That means your heating has to work harder, which costs more money.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><b>Cheap fixes:<br \/>\n<\/b>\u2022 Sticky draught excluder strips<br \/>\n\u2022 Door brushes<br \/>\n\u2022 Keyhole covers<br \/>\n\u2022 Letterbox brushes<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Most of these cost less than \u00a320 and are easy to fit.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><b>Why this saves money &#8211; <\/b>Blocking small gaps keeps warm air inside. This means lower energy bills, especially in winter.<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"font-size: 16px; padding: 10px 5px; overflow: hidden; word-break: normal; background-color: #d72329; color: #000000; vertical-align: middle; border: 1px solid white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif !important; text-align: center;\" colspan=\"2\">\n<h3 style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">FIX A DRIPPING TAP<br \/>\n<\/span><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\"><br \/>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-8631 \" src=\"https:\/\/www.mrlender.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Dripping-Tap.png\" alt=\"Dripping Tap\" width=\"187\" height=\"187\" \/><\/span><\/h3>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">A dripping tap might not seem like a big deal, but it can waste a lot of water every year.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\"><b>You might need:<br \/>\n<\/b><b><\/b>\u2022 A new washer or cartridge<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">\u2022 An adjustable spanner<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">\u2022 About 30\u201360 minutes<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">There are lots of simple video guides online to show you how this can be fixed<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\"><b>Why this saves money &#8211; <\/b>You won\u2019t need to pay a plumber, which could cost \u00a360\u2013\u00a3100 just to fix something small. You will also use less water which could save you money on your bills.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"font-size: 16px; padding: 10px 5px; overflow: hidden; word-break: normal; background-color: #ffffff; color: #000000; vertical-align: middle; border: 1px solid white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif !important; text-align: center;\" colspan=\"2\">\n<h3 style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #d72329;\">RESEAL THE BATH OR SINK<br \/>\n<\/span><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-8645 \" src=\"https:\/\/www.mrlender.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Reseal-a-Bath-2.png\" alt=\"A leaking bath tub\" width=\"297\" height=\"202\" \/><\/h3>\n<p class=\"p1\">If the seal around your bath or sink is cracked or mouldy, water can leak into gaps. This can damage walls and floors.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><b>Budget fix:<br \/>\n<\/b>\u2022 Scrape off the old sealant<br \/>\n\u2022 Add new bathroom sealant (usually under \u00a310)<\/p>\n<p><b>Why this saves money &#8211;<\/b> Fixing water damage can cost hundreds, or even thousands of pounds. Spending \u00a310 now could stop a much bigger problem later.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"font-size: 16px; padding: 10px 5px; overflow: hidden; word-break: normal; background-color: #d72329; color: #000000; vertical-align: middle; border: 1px solid white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif !important; text-align: center;\" colspan=\"2\">\n<h3 style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">REFRESH INSTEAD OF REPLACE<br \/>\n<\/span><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-8635 \" src=\"https:\/\/www.mrlender.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Sander-1.png\" alt=\"Hand held sander \" width=\"259\" height=\"221\" \/><\/span><\/h3>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">Before you buy something new, ask yourself if the old one just needs fixing up.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\"><b>Cheap updates:<br \/>\n<\/b>\u2022 Paint the kitchen cupboard doors<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">\u2022 Change handles and knobs<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">\u2022 Sand and stain wooden furniture<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">\u2022 Touch up skirting boards<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">New handles can make a kitchen look brand new for under \u00a330.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\"><b>Why this saves money &#8211; <\/b>Buying brand new furniture or cupboards is expensive. A small update can make things look fresh without spending loads.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"font-size: 16px; padding: 10px 5px; overflow: hidden; word-break: normal; background-color: #ffffff; color: #000000; vertical-align: middle; border: 1px solid white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif !important; text-align: center;\" colspan=\"2\">\n<h3 style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #d72329;\">FIX AND PAINT MARKED WALLS<br \/>\n<\/span><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-8647 \" src=\"https:\/\/www.mrlender.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Painting-2.png\" alt=\"A tin of red paint with a roller\" width=\"211\" height=\"229\" \/><\/h3>\n<p class=\"p1\">Hallways and bedrooms often get messy and scuffed.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><b>If you have leftover paint, you can:<br \/>\n<\/b>\u2022 Fill in small holes<br \/>\n\u2022 Sand rough areas<br \/>\n\u2022 Paint over marks<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">If you don\u2019t have paint, check local reuse centres or community groups, people often give away spare tins for free.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><b>Why this saves money &#8211; <\/b>Keeping walls tidy stops bigger decorating jobs later.<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"font-size: 16px; padding: 10px 5px; overflow: hidden; word-break: normal; background-color: #d72329; color: #000000; vertical-align: middle; border: 1px solid white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif !important; text-align: center;\" colspan=\"2\">\n<h3 style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">CLEAN APPLIANCES TO HELP<br \/>\n<\/span><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">THEM WORK BETTER<br \/>\n<\/span><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-8648 \" src=\"https:\/\/www.mrlender.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Cleaning-2.png\" alt=\"Red rubber gloves cleaning a washing machine\" width=\"218\" height=\"235\" \/><\/span><\/h3>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">This isn\u2019t proper DIY, but it still saves money.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">\u2022 Clean the washing machine filter<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">\u2022 Descale the kettle<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">\u2022 Vacuum behind the fridge<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">\u2022 Clear fluff from the tumble dryer<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">When appliances are dirty, they use more energy.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\"><b>Why this saves money &#8211;<\/b> Clean appliances work better, use less electricity and last longer.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"font-size: 16px; padding: 10px 5px; overflow: hidden; word-break: normal; background-color: #ffffff; color: #000000; vertical-align: middle; border: 1px solid white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif !important; text-align: center;\" colspan=\"2\">\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><b>Smart Ways to Save Money on DIY Supplies<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n<p>Before you rush to a DIY shop, try these tips:<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><b>Plan first \u2013<\/b> Make a list and measure properly.<br \/>\n<b>Borrow tools \u2013<\/b> Ask family or neighbours before buying something you\u2019ll only use once.<br \/>\n<b>Compare prices online \u2013<\/b> Prices can be very different between shops.<br \/>\n<b>Check clearance sections \u2013<\/b> You can find big discounts.<br \/>\n<b>Look on community marketplaces \u2013<\/b> People often sell or give away spare materials.<br \/>\n<b>Use loyalty points or cashback \u2013<\/b> Get something back when you spend.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\"><b>Small Jobs Now = Bigger Savings Later<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">It\u2019s easy to think DIY costs money. But in the long run it could actually save money.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Fixing small problems could:<br \/>\nStop bigger damage<br \/>\nSave energy<br \/>\nAvoid paying professionals<br \/>\nKeep your home in good shape<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Even though the bad weather may have kept you indoors, you can use your time wisely. A few hours of work now could save you hundreds of pounds.<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"font-size: 16px; padding: 10px 5px; overflow: hidden; word-break: normal; background-color: #ffffff; color: #000000; vertical-align: middle; border: 1px solid white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif !important; text-align: center;\" colspan=\"2\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-8603 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.mrlender.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/NYR-Footer.png\" alt=\"Mr Lender footer\" width=\"657\" height=\"106\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Mr Lender is a multi-award winning lender and is rated five stars on Trustpilot by customer reviews. So why would you choose anyone else for your short term loans?<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.mrlender.com\/?aff=blgbn\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-6645 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.mrlender.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/FindOutMoreButton_v3.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"200\" height=\"54\" \/><\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Because the weather has been so bad lately, we\u2019re all spending more time indoors. When you\u2019re at home more, you start to notice little problems that you may have ignored before, the scuffed walls in [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":8641,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[248,246],"tags":[96,142],"yst_prominent_words":[1496,2036,1494,1928,2142,2455,2406],"class_list":["post-8629","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-general","category-top-tips","tag-diy","tag-home"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.mrlender.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/DIY-Blog-Image-3.png","amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mrlender.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8629","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mrlender.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mrlender.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mrlender.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mrlender.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8629"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/www.mrlender.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8629\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8653,"href":"https:\/\/www.mrlender.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8629\/revisions\/8653"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mrlender.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8641"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mrlender.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8629"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mrlender.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8629"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mrlender.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8629"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mrlender.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=8629"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}