Essentials for DIY Home Ownership

The tape measure is the most important tool a home owner can have. Even before you move into a new place, a tape measure is essential for planning everything from appliances and furniture to blinds and carpet. There's dozens of tools to help ensure precision and accuracy, including levels, protractors, and digital laser measures, but none are more convenient or reliable than a standard handheld measuring tape.

Generally available in sizes 8 to 50 feet long.

A multi-bit screwdriver will be used in the greatest variety of projects of any hand tool. A good multi-bit tool is practical for simple tasks like removing light switch covers and prying open cans of paint. It's essential for almost any task involving electronics, furniture assembly, home fixtures, and basic automotive work.

There are many situations inside and outside your home where a compact handheld flashlight or headlamp will be your best friend. If your house has a crawl-space, attic, or poorly-lit rooms, a flashlight will make inspection and repairs possible. With new advances in battery capacity and recharging technology, affordable, high-lumen flashlights are readily available.

Generally available between 150 and 1200 lumens.

Utility knives are precise, ultra-sharp instruments that allow for clean cuts in a variety of material. Commonly used for opening boxes and packaging, drywall fitting, and installing roofing and flooring.

Hex keys are high-torque bits commonly used for putting together furniture, fixtures, and tool assembly. Single keys are often included in assembly kits, but owning your own set will ensure you can reassemble and repair the things you own long after the original bit gets lost.

Adjustable wrenches (also known as crescent wrenches) offer the greatest versatility when working with nuts, bolts, and other mechanical applications. One adjustable wrench can do the job of ten or more fixed-size wrenches.

The cordless drill is the first power tool you should purchase when building a tool kit. They are compatible with a huge variety of drill bits, as well as screwdriver bits if you don't have an impact driver handy.

Drills have a number of uses outside of using with drill bits, including mixing paint, tilling soil, and sanding.

Impact drivers use momentum to deliver stronger driving force than a standard drill can. They can be used with the same bits as traditional screwdrivers, and when paired with a cordless drill, are the backbone any basic woodworking project.

An indoor broom with an attached dustpan is sufficient for most indoor sweeping tasks. The softer, longer bristles protect floors and can reach dirt and dust under furniture and appliances.

Modern step stools are foldable, multi-step surfaces that can stored and transported much more easily than traditional ladders. General uses include painting, cleaning, and reaching high-up spaces like shelves and attics.

There are specialized plungers for sinks and showers, but the toilet plunger is the most powerful and most essential for modern bathrooms.

Duct Tape is a highly-adhesive tape designed to repair a variety of items including metal, duct-work, and plastic. It is available in multiple widths and material types, and is typically water resistant.

A handheld lighter is great for everyday tasks like lighting candles, tiki torches, gas burners, and camp fires.

Extension cords increase the range of indoor and outdoor projects, as well as allow permanent applications like Christmas Lights, Bug Zappers, and Electric Vehicle charging.

Work gloves are protective essentials for outdoor projects and every other project that puts wear and tear on your hands.

Push brooms are intended for heavy-duty tasks, such as sweeping driveways and garage floors. They usually feature stiffer, shorter bristles than traditional brooms, and a wide broom brush for covering larger areas.

Garden hoses are used for gardening, irrigation, cleaning, and pressure washing. Generally 12 to 100 feet in length, with varying degrees of durability and flexibility.

Hose Nozzles allow specific water flow for different outdoor watering applications. Multi-setting nozzles with snap adjustments include mist, cone, flat, shower, soaker, and jet.

Multi-position Ladders are the most versatile and compact options for home and professional use. Painting, tree maintenance , and roof-related projects are all ideally suited for multi-position ladders of various sizes.

Hedge shears are the single tool that can manage the greatest variety of landscape cutting and trimming in your yard. They are compact and strong enough to cut small branches, but larger enough to take care of hedges, long grass, vines, and other high-volume greenery.

Leaf blowers are the way to manage light yard debris at scale. Rakes are useful for specific surfaces and small piles of leafs, but they struggle to collect debris efficiently, and don't work well around tall grass, bushes, and fences.

Safety Ear Muffs provide the highest amount of noise reduction, and keep your ears warm during outside work. They are also generally more comfortable and easier to remove / adjust than in-ear protection. You will thank yourself for using ear protection for every project involving power tools and really anything where loud noise is a possibility.

Circular saws are the most critical power saw to have for general purpose tasks and basic woodworking. They are generally the easiest to transport to a job site, and can cut through a variety of materials when using the right blade.

Wood screws are designed to anchor securely into wood boards and plywood. Common lengths range from approx. half an inch to 4+ inches, and when paired with glue or by themselves, are one of the strongest, easiest ways to secure wood and similar material.

Ear plugs are the most convenient, cost-effective way to get quality hearing protection. They are available in a variety of materials and styles.

Bar Clamps are secure, highly-adjustable tools to keep woodworking pieces (and just about anything else) together when assembling and gluing. They generally range from nine inches to two feet of clamping area, and are available in a number of adjustment styles.

Wood glue is specialized for permanent bonding of all types of wood, but can generally bond a variety of materials. It takes longer to set than other types of adhesives, but when set it can be stronger than the wood itself.

A work vacuum (also called a shop vac), is a high capacity, high airflow vacuum that can handle larger amounts of dust, construction debris, and other materials than normal home vacuums.

Sawhorses are an economical, compact way to set up a work surface or cutting platform. Modern, collapsible sawhorses light and easy to transport, and can securely hold hundreds of pounds.

Levels provide consistent, intuitive measurements to ensure project pieces are properly aligned during assembly. They are available with bubble-sight or digital indicators, in a variety of materials and styles.

Paint rollers are the most effective way to reliably cover large surfaces with even coats of paint. Brushes are still necessary for detail work and tight corners, but they can't compare to the speed and even coat of using a roller.

Roller paint trays are necessary for using rollers effectively and ensuring an even coat on the roller cover. they are generally metal or plastic, and can be used with removable liners or by themselves.

Paint brushes are the classic and indispensable way to approach painting projects. Rollers and spray painters are more efficient at covering walls and large areas, but the flexibility and shape of brushes allow them to handle edges and tight spaces with ease.

Painter's Tape is the key to a clean and professional painting project. The best tape prevents paint from bleeding through to unpainted surfaces, and leaves no mark where removed.

Drop cloth is necessary for any indoor painting project, because even the best painters make mistakes. Generally made from fabric or plastic.