What is the secret to getting my lazy husband to do some household repairs?

Question

I made a job jar like Dagwood & Blondie has, but it hasn't helped. I want a working sink in my bathroom !! He won't let me hire anyone.

These are things that I am just not able to do.

Answer 1

I used to do repairs for a living so the last thing I wanted to do when I got home was to fix anything. I even would do things for neighbors, but let it go at home. Then my wife called a few "handyman" ads and had them come out one Saturday when she knew I'd be home to get bids. She had her best friend over and after each one of them would leave, the two "girls" discussed how cute their butts were, how cute they were, etc. making sure that I could hear them. Then she said that she was going to put a note up on the fridge when something needed my attention, give me one week, then call cute butt to come fix it. Sure did work for her.

Answer 2

Give him an ultimatum. Either he fixes it by next Tuesday, or you are hiring someone by Wednesday. Make sure he sees you researching plumbers in the phone book, have him "overhear" a pricing conversation over the phone. "It's going to cost how much? Wow? Okay, I'm gonna keep looking but you may be my only hope"! He will know you're serious then.
Then again, you can bribe or withhold some nookie until it's done too!

So many others are saying to just do it yourself...but this can backfire. If you do it yourself, you are letting him off the hook and that's not okay. It will cause him to just get lazier because he knows that you WILL take care of it yourself. The point is to get him up and to do the work himself. He needs to be taught a lesson and if you do it yourself, he will never learn. This is why most mothers and wives get stuck doing the everyday stuff because we have made ourselves the martyrs. When are WE going to learn?

Your choice! Good luck!

Answer 3

Here is my secret:

- I go get the suppllies that I need for the job. He asks me what I got at Lowe's, so I tell him what I bought.

- I start doing the repair job. He is curious. He comes in to see. He immediately thinks that I am doing it wrong and he takes over. Cool!

****** I just won Round 1! ******

Now I want to win Round 2, also. So now I do these things:

- I watch him work. I let him teach me anything he wants to teach me. This will stroke his ego and also make him feel important. And maybe I will learn something.

- I am sure to do something for him later. Yes, this probably is sex. I do not say I am giving this extra special treat because he fixed the sink. I just do it, have fun doing it, and am very nice to him. I think that is very disrespectful and manipulatitive to tell him you are rewarding him with sex, or to withhold sex to get him to do something. These behaviours can cause resentment that can be very damaging to a relationship.

Answer 4

If he is a plumber or some other kind of artisan then I don't blame him. I hate doing work around the house. that's what I do away from home, I need a place to relax away from any stress and definitely no Job Jar that we all know will always be refilled. I recommend you hire someone and keep him happy at home.

Answer 5

Drag him along to look at some apartments that cost more than you pay now. When he argues about the cost - tell him its cheaper to fix the sink. Tell him while holding a pen and a lease form at the new apartment.
Or - you could just tape the 50inch HD TV remote to the bottom of the broken sink at 6AM every morning until he figures it out.

Answer 6

The secret is to not ask him about hiring someone and to just go and do it. When he has to pay a few $100 repair bills, he will most likely get of his a*s and fix a few things.

Either that or figure out how to fix things yourself so you don't have to rely on him. Lowe's and Home Depot sell a whole line of "how to" books that walk you through step by step on how to do just about everything around the house i.e.-Plumbing, electrical, carpentry, masonry, etc.

Answer 7

First thing I do is ask one of his friends. It helps if it is an attractive friend. Ask right in front of your husband, and say something like, "I'm not sure he knows how to do it. Can you help?" If that doesn't work, do it yourself. I ended up buying a pipe snake and taking off the trap under my sink and unclogging it myself. Later, I told his friend that I was the man in the house. Since then, I've replaced the belt on the riding mower. His friend won't let him live it down! lol

Answer 8

Job jars and all that other stuff doesn't do it. The thing that will really motivate him to start doing things around the house is when you take an active role in doing the things that you can do around the house.
Paint something, do some gardening. Take a class at a local Home center, and build a birdhouse. Sooner or later you'll threaten his manhood enough by becoming "handy" yourself- and his pride will get the best of him.
He'll be a handyman in no time, and if not- you'll be better prepared for living on your own after the divorce!

Answer 9

I think he would definitely become much more willing to help out and do repairs if you casually bring home a really hot-looking construction guy-type fella one day and say, "Honey? I've gone ahead and hired Bruno here to do all the repairs you can't get to. He'll be working here all summer long!" Bonus points if he's shirtless, LOL. Suddenly, hubby will be more than willing to complete your honey-do list himself!

Answer 10

Give him a specific time to do ONE task. If it doesn't get done by that time, just HIRE someone (has nothing to do with "let" - YOU pick up the phone) - and present him with the bill. It may not happen again!