Thanks to the technology. We have so many sophisticated power tools today to do all the house chores. I use numerous essential power tools for home improvement.
A little bit about me: I promise! I won’t bore you. I am a building and constructions engineer. I have over six years of experience in handling the tools related to this industry.
I have a dorm room in the back of my house which is full of power tools that I used personally and professionally for years. I have over 100 different categories of products, and you can imagine any product, I had one already.
I just wanted to do a post about the must-have power tools for home use and immediately went into the dorm room to see what tools I often pick for home my remodeling and decoration.
I have the habit of keeping the frequently used tools separately in a wooden stand which is a 6 feet tall, 8 feet width one which you can count as my preparation all using the power tools listed below.
Here are the frequently used power tools for home improvement. I have listed them in no particular order. I have written about the tools even a novice to these tools can understand. For example, I have explained what a drill machine is.
Essential Power Tools for Home Improvement:
Without further talk, let us see the list of power tools for home improvement.
Tool #1. Drills/Drivers
Drills:
A drill is a machine fitted with a cutting tool attachment or driving tool attachment used for boring holes in various materials or fastening different elements together.
Cordless Drills
Cordless drills are standard nowadays, and these are the modern form of old drills. These drills work with the help of rechargeable batteries. Due to the technology advancements, cordless drills can last long enough to do many jobs.
Usually, Cordless drill users have one fully-recharged backup battery if the first one shut down. This backup one will last long enough until the first one recharges fully.
Corded Drills
Corded type of drills is also available which gets the power directly from mains through the cord and eliminate the need for recharge them often. At present, the corded drills too can have the same features loaded in the cordless drills.
You can buy the corded drills if you want to use them for longer duration jobs and you can go for cordless models if you’re going to do just the small jobs like fixes or setup hangers.
Tool #2. Hammers
Hammer tool is a favorite tool for the DIYers who do the home improvement jobs. Unlike the steel hammers, we used in our good old days; we now have electric hammers, thanks to modern technologies. We have both the cordless hammers and the corded hammers.
Cordless Hammers
Cordless hammers are the ubiquitous tool in home improvement jobs. I have seen the cordless hammers in many of my friends, relatives and neighbor homes.
I see the cordless models more than corded one in such instances. It lets us know that for home use cordless models are much better.
Corded Hammers
I have used various brand corded hammers in my profession. As a worker, I have to work around 8 to 12 hours a day. For such longer duration jobs, cordless models would not be the best choice. Corded hammers eliminate the worry of recharging batteries in cordless models.
I try to tell you that to decide between corded or cordless hammer, use the duration of the job as a deciding factor. I didn’t mean corded hammers are not fit for home use. If you are going to use the hammer tool for the longer duration, you may go with corded models.
Tool #3. Sander
Sander is a more powerful tool used to smooth the surface for various objects like wood, metal and floor. Depending on the task, you should choose a specific kind of the sander required.
Sanders are available in different types. Few common sanders are Random orbit sander, Belt sander and the Palm Sander.
Palm grip sanders are best to use on vertical surfaces like walls and doors.
Palm sanders fit comfortably in your hands to sand the wood, scrap the metal, and to scrap the walls.
Orbital sanders are best in horizontal surfaces in roofs and floors. Belt sanders are best to use in wood sanding and removing paints from the walls and removing the finishes from wood.
Tool #4. Jig Saw
Jig Saw is handy to cut the Wood in straight or in angles. As it can cut the Wood in edges, you can cut the curved shapes.
Jig Saw is also helpful to cut different thickness Wood if the right blade used. If the right blades used, Jig Saw can cut metals, drywall, and fibre class.
If you are a DIY enthusiast, then your toolset will be nothing without a jigsaw. The versatile and powerful tool for intricate cutting of boards, and other materials. For bevel cuts that other tools can’t do, jigsaws can help you with its variety of blades. The blades will wear out soon if cutting pipes and sheets regularly. Keep enough number of blades handy.
Jigsaw is essential tool every household should have. I recommend it often to my friends to have it and do the job without the need of any worker.
Tool #5. Rotary Tool
The concept of the Rotary Tool is to rotate the bit at high speed. Depending on the bit or blur attached, you can accomplish various tasks drilling, cutting, cleaning, polishing, sanding, routing, carving and engraving.
This is a small tool compared to the drills, hammers and other tools. But it helps you complete the above mentioned important tasks. There are videos on how to use rotary Tool (or Dremel Tool) for various tasks.
I do personally use the rotary tool for engraving purpose in woods and cut out a part to make the design on wood.
Tool #6. Grinders
Grinders are the useful tool for our home use to soften the surface of the material. It does the polishing job perfectly. Grinders use an abrasive material (mineral/ceramic) to smoothen the surface. You can use Grinders for smoothening the wood, steel, and floor.
If the Grinders are not in your home, you will not polish anything. But if you have it, you will find the usage of it and do some beautiful finishes. I recommend you to buy one for your home improvement.
Tool #7. Cordless Screwdriver
This is an electric screwdriver, not the usual tool we use. You can do the job of a screwdriver very quickly with the drills/drivers or an oscillating multi-tool which allows attaching screw drill bits. But the cordless screwdriver is inexpensive than the drill drivers. Screwdriver comes with the corded and cordless screwdriver models.
A handy tool used for daily household needs that you should not miss out.
Tool #8. Circular Saw
The circular saw uses the rotating blades with the tooth or abrasive materials to cut the wood and other materials. Circular saw does the cutting job finer and more quickly.
The circular saw cuts the material in angled or straight manner. We can use as per our needs. You may find other tools too for some of the tasks of the circular job, but still, I would go with the circular saw as it does the job pretty quickly and accurately.
Tool #9. Reciprocating Saw
A reciprocating saw works on the back and forth movement concept. It helps you in construction and demolition works. Reciprocation saw works comfortably on vertical surfaces.
Reciprocating saw is used for normal home use to industry level works. For your home improvement, you need a cordless reciprocating saw which sells on Amazon under $99.
Tool #10. Nail Guns
Nail guns are the convenient tool which helps us in wooden works. You can use nail guns to fix the wood materials. Nail Guns are just like a small gun to use in a single hand. This nail gun operates typically from the force of an air compressor. Buy both combined.
Nail guns are handy to attach ply material into the wood. I never buy plywood door for my home. I create them. I first create the wooden door and then apply the plywood material in the wooden door using the Nail Guns.
Tool #11. Oscillating Multi-Tool
Finishing the number of jobs in just one tool, how would that be? An oscillating multi-tool does the same. You can change the accessories (different oscillating blades, bits) and get any job done right away.
See the multiple brand oscillating tools and accessories come along with the main multi-tool.
A single oscillating multi-tool can do the cutting, grinding, scraping, drilling, hammering, sanding, and other jobs too.
Tool #12. Paint Sprayers
I have the electric paint sprayer in two sizes. First one is small which can paint a small area or a section of the whole wall and the second one is big which I can use for the painting of the large house at fast.
The small one is low price range less than couple hundred dollars, and the big one is seven hundred dollars. But if you are a DIYer, you can buy them because it saves a lot of costs if you paint your home all on your own.
Tool #13. The Lawn Mower
Have a little garden around your house? I do. I have the small area covered my home. If I don’t pay attention to it for over a couple of weeks, it doesn’t look like the garden instead it becomes the bush for the animals to hide.
It was two decades before the Lawn Mower was a millionaire’s thing. Not anymore. Everyone hold it now. It is affordable for everyone too. See the below two models I do proudly own.
Tool #14. Impact drivers
What an Impact driver can do, the same you can have with the widely-popular drill/drivers. An impact driver is single task tool, it does one thing correctly, and it is driving screws so fast.
It drives screws faster than the drill/drivers.
How the Impact drivers and drill drivers differ?
Impact drivers and drill drivers both look like the same. But it has the one difference.
Drill/drivers have the keyless chuck on the tip of the device, but the Impact drivers have the collet instead of the keyless chuck.
Impact drivers drive the screws so fast. Drill/drivers can’t screw in such fast. Some of the good cordless models screw 120+ screws in an hour before running out of charge.
Tool #15. Leaf Blowers
This is not the essential power tool everybody to have in their home, but if you have trees around your house and the leaves fell over everywhere and don’t know how to clean it all, you should have a Leaf Blower.
Leaf blower helps you gather all the leaves in the garden and other flying scraps as a big pile in a single place so that you can clean them quickly.
Leaf blowers are costly compared to the above listed essential power tools for but do the pretty tough task so quickly Hence you can plan to buy this power tools after you purchase other power hand tools first.
These leaf blowers are cordless tools hence you can carry and complete the task out of your home. Batteries are robust enough not to disturb you in between.
Tool #16. Garden Vacuums
Garden vacuums are another garden improvement tool which is for smaller tasks to clean out the minor dust from the garden.
Garden vacuums are cheaper compared to the leaf blowers so you can buy it even if you don’t buy the leaf blower.
Every man needs a tool kit – period! And if anything, the 16 essential Power tools for home improvement we’ve described above already may have made the case quite clear. Hey, still feeling doubtful? Confused about their quality?
Don’t worry. We’re here to help!
Breaking down the walls of doubts, here are some of the top frequently asked questions about these tools and their definitive answers.
Jump in;
1) Why should I get these tools?
A way to save money, consider these tools as an investment as these can help you tackle most home repairs without calling in professionals. Besides, there is also something macho about having powerful tools of your own.
In our opinion, no home should be without these tools purring in their garage. Yup, you’ll appreciate having them one day – just wait.
2) Are they costly?
Some of the major tools like drills, power hammers, and drill presses may prove to be a quite expensive investment to make. However, that’s just about where the buck stops, with most other DIY equipment’s being generally affordable.
3) Are these tools really safe?
I can’t speak for others. But for all the models featured above, we guarantee that they have all the safety measures and certifications to help better offer you a safer, more confident workspace.
That being said, though, just make sure to better keep them out of the reach of children and pets, and you’ll be golden.
4) What’s the best place to buy them?
From a trustable standpoint, we reckon you’d be more pleased if you buy these tools from reputed sources like Amazon, Best buy, etc…
5) Tool kits vs. individual units – which is best?
If you are okay springing for a premium model, we advise going for a toolkit set up as it can considerably help lessen the sheer shopping hassle. However, if you want better quality, buying each of them individually will be a more apt choice.
Put simply; the choice is up to you.
Do you use any other Power Tools?
I have listed all the essential power tools for home improvement. Few more tools can be
included here, but I avoided them because I find not much use for home needs.
The 16 tools I included here are essential power tools; I use it at least once or twice in a quarter. That frequent use is what I consider them include here.
Let me know do you use any other power tools that you use for your home and garden improvements. If yes, let me know what the power tool name is. I will include in my list of essential power tools for home improvement for the benefit of my audience.
It’s interesting that a power drill or electric screwdriver can be used for any household need. I need to get a tool kit since I am moving into my first house next month. I’ll have to find a good deal for tools.
Taylor,
Glad that you found this article interesting. Sure, you will find some good deals on various DIY tools for your home improvements, on this blog. Check out other blog articles to grab it.
I have read your entire article. The tools you have discussed for home improvement in this article are very important to us. As a carpenter I can say that this article is very useful for everyone. Thank you very much.
With no proper toolkit, DIY’ers or even professional service providers can’t be a successful one. Thanks for commenting!
Some must have tools for those who like to work at their garage or workshop and make things on their own. These are some of the basic tool. when I first started working I didn’t have all these tools. so I had to improvise sometime.
Great post regardless. Very helpful, thank you.
Thanks for adding your discussion here, James.