01/05/2026
Why hire a handyman instead of a certified plumber or electrician?..Seems like a dumb question upfront, but there are some considerations.
Most issues that arrive at a home don’t require a certified technician to take care of the issue.
For instance, you don’t need to be a certified plumber to clean a clogged drain line or replace a faucet. You don’t need to be a certified electrician to replace a kitchen appliance.
Of course, knowing the rules of electronics and plumbing are required for any homeowner to tackle these things, but for me this has always provided a couple of ground rules for approaching projects.
First of all - get a professional if there is a serious problem or if there is risk involved.
There are some things that need a professionally certified technician’s signature upon completion for one thing. For another, there is required level of experience that comes with these certifications.
You don’t want your neighbor who has replaced a few batteries to be wiring a master circuit breaker to your house.
You don’t want to hire someone to install a new gas range whose plumbing experience is plunging a toilet.
You want someone who knows the rules of plumbing and electrical when you’re working on something dangerous or potentially dangerous.
But on the other hand - if you have the master electrician over, don’t think about having them mount your TV, replace your dishwasher, patch your drywall (on an unrelated issue), etc.
On the majority of issues, an experienced handyman is the ideal person to have because having worked on all the parts of the house, they not only have a knowledge on rules in plumbing and electrical alongside their personal experience in all the connecting parts - but they can better see how the whole house fits together.
The plumber doesn’t know electrical, drywall, paint, framing, etc. and that is not a bad thing! They are needed and more experienced in their fields than an experienced handyman.
But when you have a project with a number of items on the list and variables to account for - in many project lists a GOOD handyman can replace a team of people with their silos of experience.
What's on your list this year?
