You probably sometimes think that you would find a rabid monkey to fix the broken seal in your back door rather than waiting around for Cowboy Bob to ride in on his Ford Rip-off and tell you it’s going to cost three times the price it actually should. There isn’t much of a difference, except the monkey probably smells better and won’t drink all your tea and eat all your biscuits. We have fallen on hard times. We’re not fools. The politicians may be telling us we’re on our way out of the credit crunch, but we know better.

There is a simple solution to this problem. Do it yourself. You might think DIY is just the cause of bodge jobs and nasty accidents, but it’s an excellent way to save money should you plan ahead and ensure you know how to handle the tools you have to hand. We’re talking simple jobs like repairing holes in the walls, putting up shelves, hanging pictures, fixing the cars and reshaping doors and not extending the back bedroom or building a conservatory. Some things should be left to the professionals.

First of all, you need to know what your basic tools are. You can buy them separately, or if you want to just get it all out of the way and buy the lot, you can easily find sets that have everything you need for everyday odd jobs. Most kits include screwdrivers, a spirit level, hammer, spanner, chisel, tape measure, pliers and a Stanley knife. Of course, though these seem like the babies of the tool world, they still require at least a little bit of skill to handle. They can cause a lot of damage if handled incorrectly are likely to cause bruises even when they are!

Safety is one of the most important considerations when endeavouring to DIY. Everyone has heard the statistics, and the last thing we want is for you to add your name to the number. Purchasing goggles, gloves and masks will make an excellent addition to your DIY basics and are also going to be vital to keeping your free from injuries and chemical fumes.

If you consider yourself more of a novice, you can probably move onto the slightly more edgy DIY items; the power tools. These definitely aren’t for those who aren’t in the know-how. You shouldn’t try using them to make yourself look cool, either, because you’re only going to end up losing an eye or a finger.

What makes power tools especially dangerous is the added threat of electricity. A jigsaw isn’t going to stop sawing unless you switch it off – all the yelling in the world isn’t going to achieve that, so it’s best you don’t get anything you value too near to the blade. Power tools don’t suddenly turn you into John McClane. In fact, if you end up losing a limb, you’re going to end up a lot more like peg-leg Captain Barbossa than rugged womaniser Captain Han Solo. On the plus side, so long as you know how to handle them, electric drills, screwdrivers, planes and jigsaws will come in very handy for bigger DIY jobs.

The advanced tools are only for those amongst you who already know how to handle heavy pieces of kit. A hammer to the thumb or pinch from the pliers is nothing compared to the physical harm these pieces of equipment (routers, chopsaws, sanders) can cause if you don’t have the right safety gear and don’t know exactly what you’re doing. Don’t say that you can just figure it out, otherwise you’re going to be figuring out what you’re big toe is doing on the other side of the room. Find someone who knows what they’re doing.

Check-lists are excellent tools on their own for helping you get starting DIYing. If you have a nice, friendly list of everything you need to perform a job, then you know there is nothing you’re going to forget. Saves you the headache from forgetting something vital, doesn’t it?

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