![]() ![]() ![]() You don't need to buy spackle until you've got a hole in the wall that needs filling, like when you're moving out or rearranging wall decor. Have an eraser and a carpenter's pencil for $5 handy-those are the flat pencils that won't roll away if you put them down. Its grittiness helps scrub anything off your paws. Dish soap works wonders, but the heavy-duty option is Fast Orange for $8, a powerful hand cleaner that goes on dry hands and washes off with water. ![]() Grime and grease have a way of defeating common hand soaps and can leave you looking like you just rode into town on the Exxon Valdez. Once it dries, you can touch up the filling with paint, wood stain, or a furniture marker. For larger cracks, dents, and missing chunks of wood furniture, use Elmer's Wood Filler for $4. For hairline cracks, use Elmer's Carpenter's Wood Glue for $2 and use your clamps to hold the piece together while the glue dries. Left unaddressed, these cracks can widen and spread. Wood cracks as indoor humidity fluctuates with the weather. The Westscott KleenEarth Recycled Scissors for $5 have lasted me through years of tough jobs, and the plastic handles are made of 70 percent recycled plastic. If you don't have a pair already, get yourself some household scissors. Scotch tape for $5 is good to have in your tool kit too. But hey, that's what wall putty is for.Ī $6 roll of duct tape will fix everything that can be fixed with tape, and super glue will fix everything else. The downside is that you have to drill a half-inch hole in your wall, which is rather large. ![]() They're extremely strong, and I've used them in dozens of applications over the years. For extraordinarily hard wallboard, or if you have to go into a wooden stud, use the metal E-Z Ancors for $19.įor the heaviest items, such as televisions, indoor bike racks, and shelves used to hold books, break out the big guns and use toggle bolts. For heavier jobs, use the 75-pound version for $15, although the holes are a little bigger. You just need a screwdriver to mount them. These plastic bolts mount into wallboard, and then a metal screw inserted into them splits the end deepest inside the wall, holding it into the wallboard like a fish hook. Buildings built or renovated in the past 30 years may have metal studs, too, which also removes that option.Į-Z Ancors have excellent holding power and can be used for a wide variety of jobs. Screwing brackets directly into wall studs is the most secure method, but due to positioning it may not be an option. Updated July 2023: We've updated pricing and availability and also replaced a few old picks with new ones, such as the yardstick, adjustable wrench, and step stool.įor anything more substantial than a coat hook or picture frame, you should upgrade the hardware used to mount items to your walls. We promise that if you go in with the right attitude and the right gear, you'll be amazed by what you can accomplish.īe sure to check out our many other buying guides, including our Favorite Cold-Weather Gear Under $100, the Best Climbing Gear for Beginners, Emergency Gear to Keep at Home, and our Buy It For Life Guide. Instructions on how to construct things can be found in manuals and YouTube videos, but there are certain tools you inevitably need, whether you live in an apartment or a single-family home. You can save a ton of money and time if you’re willing to learn. All it takes is a can-do attitude, a bit of patience, the humility to know when to consult the instructions, and the right tools. And it doesn't matter that you don't already know how to do them: That's what YouTube tutorials are for. It doesn't much matter if you've never done it before. Let's get down to brass tacks: You can tackle most home repair and installation jobs. ![]()
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