Equal to the task: Women more likely to attempt to unblock the toilet than men

A survey has also found that women are more likely to undertake the unpleasant task of unblocking toilets.

But four in 10 Irish people would rather pay a professional to put flat-pack furniture together than to do the job themselves, a survey commissioned by Aviva Insurance reveals.

A similar number are prepared to hire a window cleaner rather than to roll up their sleeves and clean the windows themselves.

However, almost seven in 10 will unblock their toilet and paint the interior of their home, while just over six in ten will power wash their driveway.

The research conducted by iReach Insights found the DIY job which most Irish will leave completely in the hands of the professionals is the replacement of a faulty water pipe. Nine in 10 people are prepared to pay someone to complete this task.

Other big DIY no-nos are building small walls, tiling and rewiring plugs.

The survey of 1,000 adults nationwide also revealed varying levels of preparation and caution taken by homeowners when undertaking these tasks, with seven in 10 homeowners saying they exercise caution when using ladders.

However, 8pc of those surveyed admitted to not taking any safety precautions when undertaking DIY tasks in their homes.

The jobs people are most likely to undertake before hiring a professional are unblocking a toilet, painting the interior of a home, and power washing the driveway.

A majority will also clean exterior windows, and build flat-pack furniture, and bleed radiators.

Personal lines product manager at Aviva Alan Behan said every homeowner will know that the list of “jobs” to be done around a home is endless.

He said some people might enjoy getting stuck in, others will absolutely steer clear of anything that could be termed a DIY task.

Mr Behan said there was a definite trend evident from the research that the older people are, the more DIY savvy they appear to be, with those under 35 much less willing to tackle these tasks.

The research findings debunk any myths around men being more inclined than women to tackle DIY jobs.

The Aviva research found that women are more likely to take on the stomach-turning job of unblocking toilets.

Some 68pc of women are prepared to do this tough job compared with 66pc of men, the iReach Insights survey found.

And women are much more up for trying their hand at assembling flat-pack furniture, painting the interior of a home, bleeding radiators and putting up shelves.

The willingness to tackle DIY tasks appears to increase with age.

Less than half of 18 to 24 year olds said they would be willing to unblock a toilet compared to eight in 10 of 45 to 54 year olds.

Only one in four of younger people know how to bleed a radiator, but three in four of the over 55s could do the same.

Mr Behan said recent European research has found that about 45pc of injuries treated in accident and emergency departments are related to accidents in the home.

“Not only can people end up injuring themselves and damaging their property when a DIY job goes wrong, but they could well find themselves uninsured.”

The Aviva boss said accidental damage cover is what is needed in these events, but this is often an insurance add-on in a home insurance policy and so many households simply won’t be covered – and they may not realise this until after the fact.