Don’t Believe Everything You See On The Tube…Here’s What Home Improvement TV Often Leaves Out Of The Show

unknownHome improvement shows make for great entertainment, but you shouldn’t base your view of remodeling on what you see on television. A project that may typically take about six to seven weeks for example, is done under a time crunch for the show.

Even painting alone can take a few days, as you have to follow certain steps like waiting for one coat to dry before applying another. What the shows don’t let you see are the 40 people they’ve got in the background trying to rush to get everything completed. In the episode, its only the interior desigunknown-1ner meeting with the contractor for a few minutes, and everything is all smiles. In reality, there’s a lot of stress and frustration behind the scenes that you don’t get to see.

You must understand that your budget is going to have to be higher than that of the TV shows. Networks partner with manufacturers and service providers that provide free materials to them, and some contractors that appear on these shows will work at discounted rates in exchange for the free publicity. So, for example, that budget doesn’t have to include $10,000 for kitchen cabinets, as the materials have been given to them in order for the show to advertise their name. unknown-2

Another thing these shows don’t tell you is that DIY projects are not so easy. They lay kitchen backsplash tile on in thirty minutes, like a breeze. Suddenly, when you are in your kitchen with caulk all over your hands and stuck to broken tiles, you feel a little betrayed by your television.

Home improvement shows are extremely entertaining to watch, and they can also help you learn a lot of valuable information as well as give you great inspirational ideas. However, just know that these shows are designed to make home renovation look fun, easy, and cheap. In reality, home renovations are quite the opposite of what TV depicts.

2 Comments

  1. Take it from me, a kitchen backsplash installation is not a joke. I wasn’t “inspired” to do it by watching a TV show, but we did remodel our kitchen at one point. Years later, I was watching a renovation on HGTV and I just laughed out loud. They installed the backsplash within a commercial break. It took weeks. You have to pick out the materials, find a contractor, among a MILLION other things. Those shows are a joke.

    • Hey Allan! Glad you don’t buy into those shows! Those shows should be watched for entertainment value only; as well as learning. They can teach you so much about projects, materials, and installations. But that doesn’t mean you should take the projects up yourself.

Leave a Reply to Allan Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published.


*