Essential DIY Supplies

DIY Answer Guy — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 21:37:47 +0000

The essential list of do-it-yourself, home improvement supplies you should never be without.

Over the years I noticed that there were certain do-it-yourself supplies I was continually buying. You know; tape, glue, caulking and many others. Having these DIY supplies on-hand has saved me so much time and money that I decided to assemble a list of those indispensable and most used supplies you should have on-hand before taking on your next DIY project. I’ve also included photos of each for easier reference.

Since these supplies are used so often and are quite inexpensive, you’ll be glad to have them on hand. Also, not having to run to the store every time you need one of these supplies will save you time, money and frustration.

So here we go.

Do-it-Yourself Supplies

Cable Ties

This first one has saved me many times. Cable ties are the totally indispensable fastener. You’ll just be amazed of how many uses there are for these handy items. They come in many different sizes and colors and you can tie almost anything together with these. I have used them for hinges, clamps and even to temporarily hold up plumbing pipes. Definitely a 1001 uses and only about $12 for 650 pieces.

DIY Tip: You can hook cable ties end-to-end to make whatever length you need.

Wood Glue

First choice of glue is yellow carpenters wood glue. This is a great multi-purpose glue used for joining all types wood. Used extensively in cabinet making and Popsicle stick houses.

Liquid Nails

Liquid Nails is great to have for heavy duty jobs, like laminating wood for a beam, installing sub-floors and extra holding power for outdoor jobs. Remember, this adhesive is stronger than the wood it holds together, so once it’s glued, getting it apart will be quite improbable.

DIY Tip: Keep liquid nails off your fingers!

Liquid Nails also comes in small tubes and in clear as well.

There are many other types of liquid nails for masonry, mirrors, tub surrounds and more. Great for small projects as well.

Latex Caulk

Caulking is essential for giving projects a finished look. The most popular is Latex painter caulk, used for filling the gaps in moldings, nail holes, sealing up doors and windows and many others. Latex caulking comes in different colors and is paintable.

Don’t forget the caulking-gun (one of many essential DIY tools you should own).

Silicone Caulk

Silicone caulk is great for kitchens, baths, doors and windows. It’s waterproof and comes in colors as well as clear.

DIY Tip: For a smooth caulk line, keep you finger wet as you smooth the caulking.

Patching Plaster

Patching Plaster is another must. Great for filling holes in drywall, trim and various finish jobs around the house. It’s easy to apply and can be sanded.

Masking Tape

Masking tape comes in different widths and colors. The colors represent different applications, such as green is used for very fine line and curve masking. Blue works well for most applications.

DIY Tip: To prevent wood from chipping and tearing when cutting doors, trim, cabinets or other fine woods, draw your cut line and then place a piece of tape along the line. This will reduce tearing and splintering.

Double Back Tape

Double back tape is great for steadying pictures from moving side to side, posting temporary art, holding rugs down and so much more.

Duct Tape

Duct tape is number one on the list of must haves. You know what they say, “duct tape and baling wire”, it’ll hold just about any thing together. There are many different brands, grades and colors, so buy the correct type for the job.

DIY Tip: Don’t use duct tape on heating ducts. Regular duct tape will dry out, crack and fall off. There is special foil tape made for duct work and radiant barrier insulation. Remember, use the right fastener for the job.

Teflon Tape

Teflon tape is applied to the threaded ends of pipes to improve the water tightness of a joint. They also make teflon tape for gas pipes too.

DIY Tip: Wrapping the teflon tape on a pipe, roll the tape backwards off the roll. It’s much easier to handle that way.

Plumbers Tape

Plumbers tape is most often used for hanging pipes, giving them support, but this product is great for so many other uses because it is so pliable.

DIY Tip: Use a piece of plumbers tape to connect book shelves or other furniture to the wall for earthquake and child protection.

Drill Bit Gauge

A drill bit gauge is the easiest way to match the size bit you need to a particular screw or bolt.

Carpenter Pencils

A must have for any DIY project.

Coat Hanger

You laugh, but a piece of a coat hanger is great to have in your tool box. It can be used to hold things in place, reach for something you dropped, hang something you want to paint and a million other DIY uses. I’ve had a piece of coat hanger in my tool box for over 30 years–well not the same one.

DIY Tip: A piece of coat hanger is great for cleaning out the spray tube on expanding foam cans.

Walnut Pick

These are great for cleaning out screw heads filled with paint or cleaning out any small area.

Lubricants

Tip, WD-40 is a solvent not a lubricant.
So use a teflon or silicone spray to lubricate.

Electrical Supplies

It nice to have various electrical supplies and connectors available for you home, car and others projects. I would recommend picking up an assortment of connectors like this.

Many of these kits come with a wire-stripper and a crimping tool.

If you’re ever in a pinch you’ll be happy to have these DIY Essential Fasteners on hand.

Just one more way you can succeed with speed.

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Essential DIY Supplies

How to Easily Remove Wall Anchors

DIY Answer Guy — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 01:42:35 +0000

Removing wall anchors the quick and easy way.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=wM7Vp6lQ2fs

I understand the frustration you feel when you want remove something hanging on the wall (book shelf, picture, towel rack, etc.) only to find out that a wall anchor needs removed too.

And, as you probably know, trying to remove that little wall anchor by pulling it out usually leaves a really big hole!

Now your small do-it-yourself project has turned into a large hole patching project too.

You see, most wall anchors are plastic and have barbs that hold them in place. These work quite well but tend to leave big holes in the wall if you try to pull them out.

Well, I have a great little tip for you that will help you easily remove that wall anchor while minimizing the hole to patch.

So here we go.

How to Remove Wall Anchors

Our goal is to cut the face of the anchor off and then push the remaining part of the anchor through the wall.

Take a new utility blade and place it flat against the wall just above the anchor face. * BE CAREFUL. Using a utility blade like this can lead to injury. I recommend wearing gloves.
Next, slide the blade slowly and carefully behind the face of the anchor.
Alternate downward pressure, left to right, on the blade, slowly cutting the anchor face off.
Once the anchor face has been cut off, gently push the remaining part of the anchor (that is left inside the hole) into the wall. A small Phillips head screwdriver works well.

Now you have just have a small hole to patch.

DIY Tip: The trick to effectively patching holes in drywall is to make sure the patching plaster is dry before sanding. To help make this easier, I recommend using DryDex Spackling because it goes on pink and dries white when it’s time to sand and paint.

Removable Wall Anchors

There is a newer type of wall anchor available to do-it-yourself’ers called EZ Anchor.

These wall anchors come in a variety of sizes and screw directly into the wall.

This is a time-saving benefit for both installing and removing because when you need to remove the anchor, you can simply un-screw it from the wall and patch. You can pick up EZ Anchors at your local home center.

It’s that easy.

If you have questions about your DIY projects, just ask your personal DIY consultant. I’m here to help you succeed with speed.

Here’s some excellent TV wall mounts.