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Fill your tool kit for less than $200
By Jay MacDonald · Bankrate.com


If you don't have a handyman in your family and don't have a clue where
to begin when it comes to assembling a proper home-repair tool kit,
there's good news: For $200, you can buy 90 percent of all the tools
you'll ever need to repair and maintain your home.

Good tools purchased early in life can be a smart investment, says
David Tenenbaum, author of "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Home Repair
and Maintenance."

"You can spend a little money on a tool or two with each job," he says.
"That way, you gather the tools you'll need slowly and less painfully."

Of course, the sooner you purchase the basics, the longer you'll use
them, hence the more cost-effective they become. The key is to buy only
good tools from reputable name-brand manufacturers.

"Quality matters," says Tenenbaum. "Good tools work and bad tools
don't. It's basically as simple as that."

Not just for men
And ladies, listen up: Having the right tool at the right time is
equally important for women. Deb Zarek, co-owner of Mr. Handyman home
services, in Austin, Texas, assembled her own tool kit while living as
a single adult.

"I think most women are really intimidated by power tools," she says.
"They just don't know what to do with them or how they're supposed to
work. That whole power thing is kind of scary."

That said, Zarek insists sometimes a "handywoman" beats any available
handyman when it comes to home repair.

"I think women are more aware of their surroundings and take a little
bit more care to not damage things," she says.

The secret to a great tool kit? Selection. Of the thousands of tools
available at your local hardware store, it only takes about a dozen to
tackle most home repair jobs, and only one of them plugs in.

Here are the tools our experts suggest as absolute musts for a lifetime
of home improvements and repair. The first 15 items make up the
absolute basics for a serviceable tool kit to last a lifetime -- all
for just under $200. That said, your handyman life can be made much
easier with a few additions. Buy the last half-dozen items as needed.

All prices reflect the-least expensive good-quality products available
at Lowe's home improvement stores in fall 2006.


Essential tools for every household


1. Toolbox: $30


Let's start with something to fill, shall we? A good, usable toolbox
can save as much time on a job as having the right tools inside. "A lot
of people don't get one and their stuff is all over the place and it
takes them a half-hour of frustration to get what they need for even
the simplest job," says Tenenbaum. He prefers a soft canvas bag with
lots of pockets that drapes over a five-gallon bucket. Rubber-bottom
soft bags are a slightly heavier alternative.

--- for interactive slideshow with pictures and tool details, visit:
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Jay MacDonald is a contributing editor based in Austin, Texas.

Bankrate.com's corrections policy -- Posted: Nov. 7, 2006

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