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30 - The Oakville Beaver, Friday February 15, 2008 www.oakvillebeaver.com Artscene Oakville Beaver · FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2008 Is your DIY rec room a wrecked room? By Krissie Rutherford OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF I f you botched your basement, ruined your rec room or butchered your bathroom in an attempt to take renovations into your own hands, let's face it, your do-it-yourself skills aren't as good as you thought they were. In that case, Oakville's Brian Baeumler wants to hear from you. The host of HGTV's Disaster DIY and his crew start filming the third season of the show highlighting doit-yourself disasters in April, and they're looking for big renovation screw ups to feature. "We're looking for the opposite of bigger and better," said Baeumler, smiling. "I like to see the sites where it's just a nightmare. Where somebody thinks they've done a great job, and it's just a disaster." That's when the 33-year-old president and CEO of Baeumler Quality Construction and Renovations and his crew come in, along with TV cameras, to assist and teach the homeowner how to do the job properly. "There's a little bit of tough love at first," said Baeumler. "You're going to get dirty, but we'll help you out. It's a bit of construction and therapy at the same time. "This show is not a vacation," he added. "It's not, `Come back in three weeks, we'll have a great surprise for you.' It's `Buddy, strap on your tool belt, here's your hammer, kneel down and get to work.'" The handyman-turned-TV-host's tactics have been effective. Baeumler earned himself a Gemini nomination for his hosting skills after season one, and is often recognized as the TV construction guy in town. "I get molested at the hardware store," Baeumler said, smiling. "It's unbelievable." RON KUZYK / OAKVILLE BEAVER THE BIGGER THE MESS, THE BETTER: Oakville resident Brian Baeumler hosts Disaster DIY, a home improvement show to fix home improvement disasters by do-it-yourselfers who shouldn't have tried. He's looking for Oakville disasters to feature on the show this season. A father of two whose wife, Sarah, who runs a local ballet studio called Balletomane, Baeumler applied for the hosting job three years ago "on a whim," he says. He landed the spot, along with his crew at Baeumler Quality Construction to help him. In the last two seasons, the crew has seen every disaster imaginable. The cause? Do-it-yourselfers who shouldn't have. "We've seen basements finished, and people just didn't insulate them. One lady took out all the support walls in her house, so her house was ready to fall down," says Baeumler. "We see a lot of dangerous electrical stuff, basements with live wires, other structural disasters. We've seen too many to count." And often, the people causing the disasters aren't aware that their work just won't cut it. "This year, we had a lot of people who couldn't put a screw in properly," Baeumler said. "You know, if you can't put a screw or a nail in, maybe you don't want to try to frame your house by yourself. "Start small and master one skill. There's no shame in bringing someone in if you need help." The host gives advice like this throughout the show, and has actually seen some evidence that the work he and his crew are putting in is benefiting those former disastrous do-it-yourselfers. "We've seen some guys that have gone literally from thinking they knew everything, but they didn't, and they actually become pretty good. We also see people that, maybe they should call someone in," Baeumler said. "Just maybe." He finds most families meet problems when it comes to planning their projects, whether it's budgeting or even coming up with how they'd like their renovation to turn out. Teaching them how to plan and do the work is what Baeumler and his crew are there for. "The show is more about me teaching the homeowner. The homeowner is involved in every step," he said. "It's a teaching process, but there's a lot of humour involved along the way. I'm having a blast. It's a lot of fun." Some Oakville residents have already had their unfinished projects finished thanks to the help of the Disaster DIY crew. "We had a fireman in Oakville who had started an addition on his house 16 years ago," said Baeumler. "This was unique because it was actually really beautiful, bigger than his house, and well done. He got it framed, and he just stopped." With the help of other firemen on his squad and the HGTV crew, the job was finished. Another recent job was at a trailer park in Flamborough. "We helped out the event director for the park. Nobody would go to his place because theirs were all nicer," said Baeumler. "He had this brutal deck, he just botched the job. Now he's got the best deck in the park. It's two levels." Season three of Disaster DIY is slated for 26 episodes, and filming begins in April. To apply to be on the show along with your home reno disaster, visit www.hgtv.ca and click on casting call, or visit www.baeumler.ca. Disaster DIY airs Thursdays at 9 p.m. on HGTV.