Itching to DIY But Don’t Have the Tools? There's a Solution.

As an avid at-home DIYer and a city-dweller, I know very well the limitations that a small space or budget can have on the projects you can take on. There was a time when all I really had in my tool arsenal was a drill, but now I’m the proud owner of three different power saws, two sanders, a sewing machine, and about a million little tools and accessories to go along with them. But not everyone has the room (or the desire!) to store this many tools. In fact, I actually ended up building a cabinet from scratch just to house all these things.

Enter: tool rentals. I was recently reminded of this ingenious resource by Instagram friend and incredible DIYer, Dominique Gebru (of @Dommdotcom). Usually, if I don’t have a tool myself, I enlist the help of my dad, who’s got at least one of everything (the guy has three 3-D printers, no joke), but I live over an hour away, and it’s not always convenient. You know what’s located five minutes down the road, though? A Home Depot. And that Home Depot rents a whole range of tools to accomplish any DIY, cleaning, or yard project, with pretty reasonable rates.

The best part? If you fall in love with the ease of use or convenience of a certain tool, you can add it to your wishlist and start building up your ultimate DIY toolkit—just consider the rental a nice little trial run.

Neighborhood Hardware Stores:

First thing’s first: check out the local hardware store to see if they do tool rentals (which they very well might!). Not only is it great to patronize a small, local business, but they might actually have the best deals in town.

Home Depot:

Everyone’s favorite brown and orange home-improvement warehouse has some fantastic tools for rent, many of which are made by the professional brand Makita, as opposed to, for example, the entry-priced brand Ryobi.

Lowe’s:

Similarly, Lowe’s offers a wide-range of tools for rent, from lawn care to power tools to industrial fans, ladders, and scaffolding.

Ace Hardware:

Much like the others, Ace Hardware also rents tools, but they vary from store to store, so be sure to call your local Ace to find out if they have the tool you’re looking for.

The types of tools you can rent from your hardware store of choice really run the gamut, and you might be shocked by just how much they have in stock to choose from. For outdoor and gardening projects, you can rent anything as “small” as a leaf blower to as large as a lawn mower. There are also augers, chainsaws, string trimmers, and more to accomplish projects like installing fences, creating garden beds, and maintaining landscaping.

In terms of cleaning, there are a range of heavy-duty tools, like pressure washers to clean the sides of the house, patio, or fences, carpet shampooers to tackle difficult-to-clean carpeting, and industrial vacuums to clean any and every mess.

For DIY tools (my favorite) you can rent for pretty much any project you could ever dream up. Kitchen cabinets can be redone with a rented paint sprayer, woodworking projects can be accomplished with miter and circular saws, furniture refinished with sanders, and your walls decorated with a drill.

As with anything else, you’ll want to compare prices from multiple places to ensure you’re getting the best, but all in all, I found the prices listed on Home Depot’s website, for example, to be really reasonable. You can usually rent per hour, per day, or per week, depending on the scope of the project you’re hoping to get done, so you’ll also want to compare the price of a tool itself vs. how much it will cost to rent for an extended period. Here’s a snapshot into what you might be spending on a rental:

• Carpet shampooer: Approx. $22 per day
• Leaf blower: Approx. $24 per day
• 12-inch miter saw: Approx. $43 per day

Similar to car rentals, there can be hidden fees when it comes to renting tools, like damage protection insurance (usually about 15 percent of the rental price), which is often optional but helpful for peace of mind in case a tool does break in your possession. You’ll also need a valid photo ID and credit card (not a debit card) to present upon pick-up, and most companies have first-come, first-serve tool rentals, meaning you usually aren’t able to reserve them ahead of time.

Have you ever rented a tool for a project? Tell us about your experience below!